Is Times Beach Missouri still contaminated?

2001: EPA deletes Times Beach from the NPL EPA and the state of Missouri determine that the site no longer poses a significant threat to public health or the environment. The site is deleted from the NPL.

How did Times Beach Missouri get contaminated?

The Times Beach Site is located in Times Beach, Missouri. The site is a formerly incorporated city whose road system was sprayed with dioxin-contaminated waste oil for dust control in the early 1970s.

Is it safe to go to Times Beach Missouri?

In 2012, the EPA returned to Times Beach at the request of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources to test for dioxin. Using new testing methods, the EPA reported that it found no health risks for park visitors or workers.

What happened at Times Beach Mo?

On December 23, 1982, the Missouri Department of Health and the federal Centers for Disease Control (CDC) inform residents of Times Beach, Missouri that their town was contaminated when the chemical dioxin was sprayed on its unpaved roads, and that the town will have to be evacuated and demolished.

How long does dioxin stay in soil?

A: Dioxin is a highly persistent chemical that only slowly degrades in the environment. Dioxin present in surface soil may take from 9 to 15 years to degrade to half its concentration. In subsurface soil, dioxin will remain largely unchanged with time.

What can dioxins do to the body?

Dioxin Key Facts Dioxins are called persistent organic pollutants (POPs), meaning they take a long time to break down once they are in the environment. Dioxins are highly toxic and can cause cancer, reproductive and developmental problems, damage to the immune system, and can interfere with hormones.

Is Times Beach a Superfund site?

The 1-square-mile Times Beach Superfund site is located 20 miles southwest of St. Louis, Missouri. The site is a formerly incorporated city that sprayed its roads with waste oil in order to control dust in the early 1970s. During a 1982 investigation, the EPA discovered that the city used dioxin-contaminated oil.

What does dioxin do to the body?

Dioxin Key Facts Dioxins are highly toxic and can cause cancer, reproductive and developmental problems, damage to the immune system, and can interfere with hormones. Dioxins are found throughout the world in the environment , and they accumulate in food chain s , concentrating mainly in the fatty tissue of animals .

How do you clean up dioxin?

Incineration at temperatures above 1200°C is considered the most effective way of destroying dioxins.

How long does it take for dioxin to break down?

Once dioxins enter the body, they last a long time because of their chemical stability and their ability to be absorbed by fat tissue, where they are then stored in the body. Their half-life in the body is estimated to be 7 to 11 years.

How long does it take dioxin to break down in the human body?

How do you test for dioxin in humans?

You have to have at least 90 millilitres of blood taken. The blood must be taken at a medical laboratory so that it can be quickly processed. The processed blood sample is then sent to a laboratory with the facilities to test for dioxin. The results of the test will be sent to your doctor.