The Army needs to find a way to clean up the depleted uranium safely.. State and federal officials say its safe, but skeptical activists filed a lawsuit saying the federal government didnt test the refuge carefully enough. Many projects have attempted to clean contaminated groundwater at the Arsenal. Official websites use .gov During removal of contaminated soil and construction of the remedy containment structures, air monitoring was conducted at multiple sites in the Arsenals interior and fence line, and several sites in the surrounding communities. Drop us a note at tips@coloradosun.com. As production declined at wars end, the U.S. Army leased some of the facilities to private companies, one of which Shell Oil Co. purchased, for the production of agricultural chemicals. In addition, there were actions completed by Future Farmers of America (FFA) between 1991 and 1993 that cost approximately $151.2 million. independent local journalism in Denver. 1943RMA employees work around the clock to manufacture mustard gas, Lewisite, chlorine gas and incendiary weapons. The U.S. Army later reactivated Arsenal facilities for Cold-War weapons production and demilitarization. Just watch where you step. The facility was built in 1942, in response to the outbreak of World War II in Europe. Become a member to support the independent voice of Denver But CERCLA empowers Colorado to enforce federal standards, the lawsuit claims. Roughly 10 miles (16 kilometers) from downtown Denver, the arsenal was once an environmental nightmare where chemical weapons and commercial pesticides were made. The Colorado Sun is a journalist-owned, award-winning news outlet based in Denver that strives to cover all of Colorado so that our state our community can better understand itself. Safety concerns for neighboring residents, Economic impact of contamination and clean up, Last edited on 17 February 2023, at 15:23, Learn how and when to remove this template message, Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge, "The Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge: On a Rocky Road to Creating a Community Asset", "Remediation Management of Complex Sites, Case Study 6.4 Rocky Mountain Arsenal, Colorado", "A Brief History of Rocky Mountain Arsenal", "Remediation of Groundwater Contamination at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal: Numerical and Geostatistical Analysis", "Colorado Sues Government Over Rocky Mountain Arsenal Site", "Rocky Mountain Arsenal Oversight Program FAQs", Rocky Mountain Arsenal, Commerce City, Adams County, CO, Rocky Mountain Arsenal Archive: A collection of primary, historical documents, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rocky_Mountain_Arsenal&oldid=1139926896, North boundary groundwater treatment system (197982) $4.3 million, Irondale groundwater treatment system by Shell (1981) $1.1 million, Basin F liquid evaporation and contaminated sewer removal (1982) $1.5 million, Northwest boundary groundwater treatment system (1984) $5.5 million, Removal of 76,000 drums of waste salts (1986) $10.5 million, Treatment in the public water supply and The Klein Water Treatment Facility supplies safe drinking water to 30,000 south Adams County residents (1989) $23.1 million, Removal and containment of 10.5M gallons of Basin F liquids and 564,000 cubic yards of sludges (1989) $42 million, Improvements and modifications to North boundary system (19901) $2.75 million, Basin F groundwater intercept system (1990) $0.7 million, Basin A neck groundwater treatment system (1990) $3.1 million, Northwest Boundary System Improvement (1991) $1.4 million, Rail classification yard and motor pool ground water (1991) $3.0 million, South tank farm plume (1991) $0.5 million, Reapplication of windblown dust control (1991) $0.25 million, Groundwater treatment system to the north (19923) $8.7 million, Building 1727 sump cleanup (1993) $0.18 million, This page was last edited on 17 February 2023, at 15:23. Make a one-time donation today for as little as $1. In 1942, during World War II, the U.S. Army bought 17,000 acres of farmland outside of Denver to develop chemical weapons to be used as a war deterrent. This legacy, they say, requires restrictions on where visitors can go and obligates the government to monitor the sites for perhaps centuries. More by The Associated Press, Got a story tip? This led the State of Colorado to take legal action over who has legal authority over RMA remediation efforts, payment of natural resource damages (NRDs), and reimbursement of costs expended for cleanup activities (response costs). The Rocky Mountain Arsenal, located ten minutes outside of downtown Denver, Colorado, offers one of the most unique urban wildlife refuges in the country. These potential confounders are not clearly addressed in this report and may complicate the analysis as well as raise concern for disparities in exposure risk that is dependent upon demographic factors. There are multiple paved, boardwalk, or gravel trail options with a variety of lengths and difficulty levels available. 2015Black-footed ferrets are reintroduced at the Refuge as part of a nationwide recovery program for the endangered species. Provisions for a permanent water supply for off-post residents affected by arsenal groundwater contamination. The U.S. Army has begun removing Building 130, which is located northeast of the Refuge Visitors Center. Fish and Wildlife's Rocky Mountain Arsenal website. Rocky Mountain National Park Tour from Denver 49 Recommended Full-day Tours from $195.00 per adult Private Rocky Mountain National Park from Denver and Boulder 49 Recommended Full-day Tours from $849.00 per group (up to 5) Hiking Adventure in Rocky Mountain National Park from Denver 265 Recommended Full-day Tours from $139.00 per adult After a $2.1 billion cleanup, the site was reborn as Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge, with 24 square miles of idyllic prairie where visitors can take scenic drives or hikes. In its own account of the cleanup at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal, the Army web site offers this explanation: The Rocky Mountain Arsenal deep injection well was constructed in 1961, and was drilled to a depth of 12,045 feet. This new publication offers highlights from the past year, along with news about upcoming projects scheduled for 2022. Fish and Wildlife Service andShell Oil Company. [20] In the case of Rocky Mountain Arsenal, total indirect cost was not estimated at all. The Rocky Mountain Arsenal was placed on the National Priorities List of Superfund sites in July 1987. In 1992, Congress Passed the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge Act (RMANWR Act). Another group asked the courts to release documents from a 27-year-old criminal investigation into the weapons plant, hoping they will show whether the government tracked down and cleaned up all the contamination. Estimating exact direct and indirect impact of the contamination is very challenging as the cleaning and monitoring costs are complex. One of the lessees, Julius Hyman and Company, manufactures agricultural chemicals at the site. (8 of 9), "The Refuge and adjacent property represent a public-private partnership done right," said Mayor Sean Ford. State officials say they want long-term and legally binding assurances. 1987The EPA places the RMA on the National Priorities (or Superfund) List. Coinciding with these activities, from 1946 to 1982, the Army leased RMA facilities to private industries for the production of pesticides. Its not because the Department of Defense has some ecological ethic, said Havlick, author of a book about conversions, Bombs Away: Militarization, Conservation, and Ecological Restoration.. Rates of birth defects in the communities surrounding the arsenal were also monitored and found to be stable and no different than rates for all of Colorado. In this study, baseline birth defects were estimated from the time period 19891997, which was the point at which the clean-up began, and inclusion criteria included mother's address at the time of birth being within the geographical study area. When the Cold War ended in the 1980s, more surplus military lands were earmarked for refuges. Manufacturing and waste disposal practices used during these years resulted in extensive soil, surface water, sediment, groundwater and structures contamination, damage to trees and vegetation, and death to wildlife. The 17,000-acre site is 10 miles northeast of Denver. The military, the U.S. Department of Energy and private companies have spent more than $57 billion to clean up the six heavily polluted sites, according to figures gathered by The Associated Press from military and civil agencies. Fish and Wildlife Service enter into a unique public-private teaming arrangement called the Remediation Venture Office (RVO) to facilitate the safe, timely and cost-effective cleanup and transition of the site. Additionally, ordnance (including incendiary munitions) was manufactured and tested, and asbestos and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were used at RMA. The Rocky Mountain Arsenal was a United States chemical weapons manufacturing center located in the Denver Metropolitan Area in Commerce City, Colorado. Air monitoring surveillance continued until the end of July 2009. It was also helpful that the location was close to Stapleton airfield, a major transportation hub.[5]. But cleanup costs for an area where contaminated waste is stored are soaring, and Department of Energy investigators say the project has been plagued by fraud and mismanagement. It stipulates that the majority of the site will become a National Wildlife Refuge under the jurisdiction of the Fish and Wildlife Service when the environmental restoration is completed. Included in the RMANWR Act, areas within RMA that were still contaminated were still owned by the U.S. Army, however, the vast majority of the land that was deemed clean would be managed by the Federal Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). The waste from the pre-treatment plant was generally a solution containing 13,000 parts per million sodium chloride (salt), with a pH ranging from 3.5 to 11.5. The building was known as the Environmental Analytical Laboratory, and was used to analyze soil, water, and air samples collected during the environmental clean-up of RMA. Denver's independent source of The end result was approximately 165 million gallons of Basin F liquid waste being injected into the well during the period from 1962 through 1966. Many of the conversions came after the first and second world wars. In the mid-1980s, wildlife, including endangered species, moved into the space and the land became a protected park. In 1996, after a lengthy process in which site investigations were conducted and completed, an approach to remedy the chemical contamination at the Arsenal was set forth by the US Army. As portions of the cleanup are completed, this property becomes part of the National Wildlife Refuge system and is transferred to the U.S. Department of Interior. Its location was selected because it is far from the coast and it has sufficient labor force. At that time, liquid waste disposal methods were employed in an attempt to prevent the chemical contamination from spreading further including lining one of the basins with asphalt, and injection of the waste chemicals into a deep well, but these techniques were ultimately unsuccessful. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment has sued the U.S. Army claiming that dangerous chemicals including pesticides continue to leach into groundwater at Rocky Mountain Arsenal . The documents provide the framework, purpose and overall rationale for remediation of the site. Take the Rocky Mountain Arsenal Self-Guided Wildlife Drive This was the highlight of the park for us. (7 of 9), BENEFIT - Cleanup of the Rocky Mountain Arsenal has bolstered the economy of the greater Denver metro area and provides its neighbors with jobs, recreation, and a peaceful escape to nature. Legislators quickly moved from beneath chandeliers in the Denver Capitol Building, fearing they might fall. The Army and Shell operated Basin F, a hazardous waste surface impoundment for the storage and treatment of liquid and solid hazardous wastes, but the facility leaked wastes into the environment after waste disposal ended in 1981, the lawsuit says. A more recent article in 2004 by Pimentel,[19] estimated the cost of removal pesticides from the groundwater and soil at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal by approximately $2 billion. Between 1946 and 1987, the Army also leased portions of the arsenal to Shell Oil Company to manufacture pesticides. List of Superfund sites in July 1987 partnership done right, '' said Mayor Sean Ford year, along news. 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