UNIVERSITY CITY — The St. Louis region is suffering from a legacy of federal incompetence that has now resulted in a possible national security risk. State Senator Maria Chappelle-Nadal is asking for Sens. McCaskill and Blunt’s support in calling for congressional hearings by the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs committee.

As the Manhattan Project came to a close, the Environmental Protection Agency was charged with managing waste disposal. They contracted with haulers and never followed-up on how the waste had been disposed. The radioactive waste is sitting in unlined landfills located in various places in St. Louis City and County. Some of the waste has been dumped directly into creeks.

“Some have likened the EPA’s incompetence to having allowed a ‘dirty bomb’ to be placed in the center of the country,” Chappelle-Nadal explains.

North St. Louis County has seen an increase in rare cancers and diseases.  Children have been afflicted with genetic mutations causing brain tumors, double sets of teeth and missing eyeballs.

The scale of the problem is beyond the local government’s capabilities. St. Louis County is planning a health study to begin in early 2016. Chappelle-Nadal recommended the Center for Disease Control provide assistance and expertise immediately.

Federal hearings would require the EPA to provide answers for their past behavior and motivate the agency into action. At this time the agency has been slow coming with both answers and action.

Westlake Landfill contains radioactive waste dumped illegally by Mallinckrodt.  The radioactive waste has been identified as highly mobile, most likely due to rainwater. Waste has been found in nearby parks and in the backyards of residents along Coldwater Creek.  Recently, Sen. Chappelle-Nadal asked the Missouri Department of Natural Resources to investigate waste left in a Maplewood landfill near Rocket Park and Deer Creek.

Senator Chappelle-Nadal is currently serving in her second term in the Senate.  Her district includes the Bridgeton and Westlake Landfills and Coldwater Creek. She is seeking action from the federal government and local leaders to address the environmental and health disasters by the leftover and illegally dumped waste.