Every morning, Bunch would come to the donut shop. To broadcast the crimeand thereby maximize the thrillthey stashed their loot atop the towns police station. The haul included drums laden with cancer-causing polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). She and Frank Purler, another former resident, are looking through old photo albums and scrapbooks that he brought. For both PCBs and dioxin, it was a yes. Times Beach was on her list, she said. Insects fell from the air. The dispute pitted neighbors, even relatives, against one another, eroding the citys greatest asset, its family atmosphere. "I was only following orders, but I dream about it," he said. no. On any given afternoon, youre bound to see deer wandering in the woods. No one is testing them. In both instances, the allegations were not based so much on environmental concerns as they were on the bottom line. (He declined to comment for this story.) Bliss was, and remains, a clever businessman. Anyone can read what you share. Its a thermometer with one-liners painted across its face. The chemical companies paid him to take the sludge, and then he turned around and sold it to somebody else. WebJerry Russell Bliss, Age 66. "Only if they said, 'Sid, next week you'll have cancer,' I might worry. His acting career began at the age of 12 when he was given a role in the western series The After a 30-day public comment period, the agency will then decide which means of remediation to pursue. Wildwood city officials have questioned her credentials, and she says a real-estate agent recently criticized the motives behind her activism. I dont really think there was enough dioxin down here to do anything, he says. Only Bliss actually knows how much he knew about what he was hauling. Jerry-Russell Bliss, Inc., appeals from denial of a license to transport hazardous waste. Each gap represents a former road. When a driver frequently moves from team to team, hes often called a journeyman.. A guard and a caution sign were posted at the entrance to town, a bridge that came across from the high side of the river, to keep people out. Those who returned were instructed to leave, and anyone who hadnt was told to stay away. Dioxin clings to dirt and dust particles and officials fear that residents may inhale it or swallow it if they return home. It's been 30 years since dioxin contamination was discovered in Times Beach, in one of the largest environmental disasters in our nation's history. Former company officials said their warnings were ignored. Its a difficult position for the city, says Joe Vujnich, Wildwoods director of parks and planning. She currently holds the position of Senior Program Manager at The Walt Disney Company. Bliss sprayed dioxin-contaminated oil on unpaved roads, parking lots, truck terminals and horse arenas as a dust suppressant. After Bliss sprayed the Shenandoah Stables in Moscow Mills in 1971, owner Judy Piatt watched barn sparrows die "by the bushel.". The DNR presented further evidence at the same proceeding that linked the chemical manufacturer indirectly to a 1977 incident in which a Bliss driver dumped toxic chemicals including one exclusively made by Monsanto at a site in Jefferson County. As the offers improved slightly, many of the holdouts grudgingly gave in. "His loss hurts immensely, but memories of his intellect, heart and humor will live on," the family said. Missouri's problem is different from New York's Love Canal, which Hooker Chemical used as a toxic dump for dioxin until it was discovered in 1978. In May, a second flood hit, a sort of aftershock, and in June, Leistner won the mayoral election, defeating a challenger who wanted to stay. A boulder sits in the center of her well-manicured front yard, next to an inviting driveway leading to an attached garage. Tests show dioxin in the fish. From the picture window of her ranch-style home, Lorraine Jordan has a view of James S. McDonnell Park across Adie Road, where an eight-foot tall cyclone fence is now being constructed. Copyright 2023 SLM Media Group. If you were born and raised there, you grew up there, but then you moved there., On Saturday nights, she and her husband would get together with friends to play penny-ante poker. He believes that his grandfathers health suffered as a result of the spraying. No one listened. Sometimes, Copeland and Bunch would spend a summer day walking the railroad tracks on the west end of town. The younger Bliss is appealing the denial of his request for a hauling permit from the Missouri Hazardous Waste Management Commission. Sue OLeary, 76, lived in the Beach for 20 years. Would any human being do that?, To be sure, Bliss views himself as a victim in all this. Ive felt that the steps that weve taken and the timeliness of those steps have been appropriate, says Hall. Our materials are appropriately handled at waste disposal operations., Martha Steincamp, the chief regional counsel for the EPA, concurs with Monsantos professed innocence. Stelzer of the Riverfront Times. The only request: wash down the trailers first. Over several weeks, 11 cats and four dogs dropped dead nearby. In this instance, however, because the highest level of dioxin is believed to be buried more than a foot deep, it has been deemed safe by the EPA. Monsanto refused to consider the governors appeal, even though before a federal ban on the chemical the company had been the sole producer of PCBs in North America. Just off Strecker Road, in the gully washes that feed into Caulks Creek, the first of thousands of barrels of toxic waste were discovered nearly 19 years ago. Both locations are suspected to have been contaminated by waste-oil operator Russell Bliss sometime in the early 1970s, according to the EPA. The missive from Martha Steincamp, the EPA regional counsel, instructed Taylor and other members of the Times Beach Action Group (TBAG) to turn over any information they may have concerning potential hazardous waste sites in the St. Louis area. However, we dont have any information that would suggest there would be. We have no way of knowing that there will not be additional sites in the future. Given these revelations and the luxury of six additional years of hindsight, the lack of prudence exhibited by the EPA and DNR at Terre Du Lac is indeed inexplicable. He had acquired an official document detailing suspected dioxin sites across Missouri. Exposure can cause cancer, immunodeficiency, endocrine disorders, and reproductive and developmental issues, says Dr. Arnold Schecter, a professor at the University of Texas School of Public Health and one of the worlds foremost experts on dioxin. You know, hed give Gary (Lambarth) some of these old, old sex magazines. Seven families sued the responsible Realtor, and they were awarded a cumulative settlement of more than $500,000. Jerry Springer died Thursday at his home, his family said in a statement shared with Insider. For four or five months, that site has been standing there idle. You want to make sure you do it right, and, in the process of doing it, safeguard the public. As things stand, Byrne Builders holds an option to buy the land from its current owners, Gerald and Patricia Primm. Sometimes its just best to leave well enough alone.. So Ill just let the record of decision stand for itself, OK? But eventually, it caught up with him. They wanted more money, Leistner says. Its good to put a lot of thought into a process such as this, but when are we going to see some outcome? We've found it on the shoulders of the roads, but how much is in the roadbed? The courts appraisals came back even lower than the EPAs offers, and the other benefits were no longer available. The door was locked, and Burford stood in a second-floor conference room. He was hired to dispose of the waste after Northeastern was absorbed by Syntex Agribusiness Inc. Court records show that Northeastern had waste buried on farm land and discharged some waste through its plant's sewage system. If the city allows W.J. As of now, no specifics about Russel Flowers involvement in the accident have emerged on the internet. This is especially true for 2,3,7,8tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin, which is the most toxic and the one found at Times Beach. "They'd tell me, 'You can't see it, taste it or feel it.' The oil, it turned out, was laced with dioxin. Essentially, Hall is asserting confidence in the clean up before it has started. The next day, he was sure that somebody was doing it to get even with him, Leistner says. Why were they in such a hurry to clean up the Callahan site? The words come easily, honed over decades of repetition. To pad the citys coffers, it stationed a cop with a radar gun out on the highway. Across the street in the park, a family of four walks with their two dogs along the asphalt trail that skirts the dioxin-contaminated site. There are so many bad stories that I cheated people out of their money, Leistner says, her tone turning sharp. This was home. Eventually, in 1985, there was only one couple left living in the town, George and Lorene Klein. Just little bullshit. P.O. Although state and federal regulatory authorities all heralded the closing of the incinerator as the end of states toxic legacy, the discovery of the new site draws into question the EPAs prior assumptions about the origins of the dioxin and other hazardous wastes that have long plagued the region. [1] [2] [3] Jerry Hicks died November 18, 2011, from cancer. Entrepreneurs like Truman Nickel, however, are busy hauling away beat-up mobile homes for resale in Alabama and Louisiana with the EPA's blessing. The environmental activist, who is too young to remember the Selective Service System, and too poor to be concerned about the Internal Revenue Service, had, nevertheless, received a frightening message from a federal agency. Leistner rejects the notion that its all simply genetic. BY C.D. Yet we know there are people who are not sensitive, because of their lucky genetics. Top editors give you the stories you want delivered right to your inbox each weekday. The paper had purchased the land from a farmer and rebranded it as a resort, a place for doctors from St. Louis to relax or catch a few fish on the weekend. She lived there for a quarter century, until December 1982, at which point the town was thrown into what she calls the time of flood and dioxin. She has spent the past quarter century telling the Times Beach story. The DNR investigation of Terre Du Lac in the spring of 1983, however, does not appear to have been as thorough as the EPA now claims. These days, Bliss, whos in his late seventies, is still finding unique ways to make a buck. The level of PCBs was low, not a major concern, but the dioxin was a problem. People here tend to talk about the flood more than the dioxin. Jerry Bliss was the first witness today when the hearing resumed. The biggest fish appears to have either slipped off or broken the line, however. They received modest settlements, but the victims were required to absolve the defendants of any future liability. Prosecutors said Bliss wrote 27 checks to fictitious people overstating business expenses, thereby reducing his federal income taxes. Look at the record of decision. The activist points out that no PCBs were found in southwest Missouri in the tanks at the Verona, Mo. Even so, he has consistently denied having any knowledge that the materials were toxic. He isnt here to argue that the Times Beach incinerator spewed poison from its smokestack. Dioxin levels here are lower, but wider spread, officials said. Its the sort of detail that might make Taylor seem like a conspiracy theorist. Authorities were tipped in November to the spraying in Times Beach, much as they were tipped off earlier to 15 other contaminated Missouri sites. His 1974 deposition was taken several months before state and Federal officials identified dioxin in samples of the horse arena soil and traced the waste to the Verona plant. But PCBs have been found in the past along with dioxin at the now remediated sites in eastern Missouri. She traveled the country to countless rodeos, barrel races, and team ropings, often with her husband and daughter by her side. By visiting our site, you agree to our privacy policy regarding cookies, tracking statistics, etc. Bliss showed no emotion during sentencing before U.S. Dictrict Judge Clyde S. Cahill. Nobody knew it then, of course, but that oil contained massive levels of dioxin, far more than the oil sprayed at Times Beach. The agency tested the incinerator to ensure that it was destroying dioxin. But if youre in the market for something called a Menopause Meter, youre in the right place. "You win a battle, you stick up a flag," said the Chrysler assembly line worker. She doesnt speak to me., Eventually, the properties of those who didnt take the buyout went into condemnation. She earned a business degree from Maryville University and served as the Treasurer of the family car business as well as a horse trainer. Past Addresses: Eureka MO, Saint James MO Instead, she has learned the little she knows from the scant newspaper coverage afforded the subject. I look at it this way as a lawyer, says Steincamp. What Im going to ask is that they provide the citizens with some level of accountability, because we certainly arent getting it from the EPA and we shouldnt have to depend on the developer to provide it.. Most of all missing accountability, Stelzer wrote in a piece titled Why the Times Beach Incinerator Should Be Shut Down.. OLeary (at right) came back to her house as soon as she could after the flood. I know Monsanto was not a viable defendant in this litigation.. The announcement of the new site came only weeks after the EPA and DNR had completed their controversial incineration project at In August, the EPA warned Imperial residents of a potential dioxin problem, later revealing that it suspected contamination of 40 other sites in Missouri. He was 91. At this point in time, I have seen nothing to suggest that there may be additional sites out there, says Feild. Meanwhile, EPA technicians stalk the town in "space suits," sanitary gloves and respirators, digging through muddy homes and debris and taking soil samples to see if the heavy floods washed dioxin-laced mud from the roadsides into homes. No one can answer the questions the people of Times Beach are asking. Contacted by phone last Friday at EPA headquarters in Kansas City, Martha Steincamp, regional counsel for the EPA, could not provide details on the Bliss-Ellisville cleanups and referred all questions on the matter to Bob Feild, the agencys project manager. Keep supporting great journalism by turning off your ad blocker. Horses became sick, and eventually, Piatt would bury more than 50 of them. And blah, blah, blah. The discovery of the Lemar and McDonnell sites came after the closing of the controversial Times Beach dioxin incinerator in June, which precluded burning the waste locally. The park is nice enough. Stranded bear rescued from Nevada tree using tranquilizer, tarp. Waiting proved to be a bad move. Now officials worry that they may never find the 87 places reportedly used for dumping of dioxin-contaminated waste oil. On the other side was a small but vocal group of peopleLeistner estimates 50 of Times Beachs 801 familieswho argued that the dioxin wasnt a threat. He edited his footage down to a two-minute video, which he argues provides vivid firsthand evidence that racism is alive and well in parts of the country. Once we receive the public comment then well be in the position to move forward with remedy selection. Theres plenty of parking, a playground, and lots of picnic tables. "You'd tell people, 'it's got to be a chemical in the horse arena' and they'd look at you like you were nuts," she said. Or purchase a subscription for unlimited access to real news you can count on.
Abby Acone Hair,
University Of Tennessee Martin Football Questionnaire,
Stratus 5 Str1005 Pressure Abnormal,
Articles I