Fish and Wildlife Service inventoried more than 330 species of wildlife that inhabit the Arsenal including deer, coyotes, white pelicans and owls. Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge. The program consisted of four tests between September 3 and October 26. State health officials are asking the federal courts to intervene to stop the contamination on the north and northwest boundaries of the trenches. Additionally, studies performed at Colorado State University found no increased risk of Arsenic, Mercury, or neurotoxicity in communities within 15 miles of the RMA.[16][17]. In 1985 the Army permanently sealed the disposal well in stages. Telling stories that matter in a dynamic, evolving state. 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. On May 21, 2011, the official visitor center for the refuge was opened with an exhibit about the site's history, ranging from the homesteading era to its current status. The military closed the sites to keep people safe from the dangerous work that went on there, not to save the environment, said Havlick of the University of Colorado. The Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge has been transformed from a 17,000+ acre facility used for weapons and chemical manufacturing into a beautiful nature sanctuary. 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. In 1984, the Army began a systematic investigation of site contamination in accordance with the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA), commonly referred to as Superfund. Groundwater treatment will continue until all water leaving the site meets state and federal standards. Legislators quickly moved from beneath chandeliers in the Denver Capitol Building, fearing they might fall. Fish and Wildlife Service, bringing the total to 15,000 acres (61km2). An astonishing array of animals and habitats flourished on six obsolete weapons complexes mostly for nuclear or chemical arms because the sites banned the public and other intrusions for decades, Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), In this Oct. 13, 2005, file photo, deer cross a road striped of its asphalt at the former Rocky Flats Nuclear Weapons plant near Golden, Colo. (Ed Andrieski, AP File photo), How Denver is spending the $41M from the Broncos sale, Three members of Colorados congressional delegation seek $60 billion to reduce wildfire risk, restore Western land, Troubled K.P. This resulted in subsequent earthquakes in Denver area. Fish and Wildlife Service andShell Oil Company. The injected fluids had very little potential for reaching the surface or useable groundwater supply since the injection point had 11,900 feet of rock above it and was sealed at the opening. 6:54AM. From Arsenal of Democracy to urban wildlife refuge, the RMA has been critical to achieving U.S. defense, space exploration, environmental remediation and conservation goals. According to National Resource Damage Assessment, although the contamination has been reduced by the treatment efforts, the water in and around the arsenal may never be fully clean. It was an inexpensive way to expand the national refuge system, especially in urban areas with scarce open space, said Mark Madison, the Fish and Wildlife Services historian. In the early 1980s the site was selected as a Superfund site and the cleanup process began. [13], As part of the clean up of the RMA, much of the soil, up to 10 feet below the surface was removed from the site. Structures that contain the contaminated soil at RMA are also actively monitored, along with surface water and biological resources. Only one, on July 15, caused minor damage at Commerce City. Throughout the decades of cleanup, the air monitors revealed there was no safety hazard to public health as no arsenal chemicals had been released into the air. Many homeowners reported wall, ceiling, floor, patio, sidewalk, and foundation cracks. For testing purposes, the well was injected with approximately 568,000 US gallons (2150 m) of city water prior to injecting any waste. Between 1946 and 1987, the Army also leased portions of the arsenal to Shell Oil Company to manufacture pesticides. A small herd of wild bison was introduced to the refuge in March 2007 as part of the USFWS Bison Project. Denver's independent source of Following a final land transfer, the Refuge expands to 15,000 acres and becomes one of the largest urban national wildlife refuges in the United States. Rocky Flats historical public exposure studies, Final Consent Decree between the United States and the State of Colorado, Final Consent Decree between Shell Oil Company and the State of Colorado, Colorado Attorney General's Colorado Natural Resources Trustees website, Colorado environmental health site assessment. Tensions arose between the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the State of Colorado, United States Army, and the chemical industries as they partnered to clean up the site and create the RMANWR. The site was placed on the National Priorities List (NPL), a list of the most contaminated areas in the United States. Please direct your comments and questions to: Rocky Mountain Arsenal, 7270 Kingston Parkway, Building 129, Commerce City, CO 80222 or by email to: Patty.l.lee6.civ@army.mil Annual Monitoring Reports In cooperation with federal, state and local regulatory agencies, the U.S. Army maintains and monitors the remedy to ensure its ongoing protectiveness. Catch . First, the well casing was tested to evaluate its integrity. Houses creaked and objects rattled during this magnitude 2.1 earthquake. The JARDF is located at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal, 7270 Kingston Parkway, Building 129, Commerce City, CO 80022-1749. I think theres a case to be made that just leaving it in place really maintains an unacceptable risk of contamination spreading from the site, he said. The final step was adding Bentonite, a heavy clay mud that later solidified, to close the rest of the hole up to the ground surface. A lot of the environmental stories are kind of doomy and gloomy, and these are successful ones, something positive, he said. 1999The RMA becomes the first environmental cleanup site in the nation to receive the Occupational Safety and Health Administrations (OSHA) highest workplace safety award. Researchers have not examined the health risks to wildlife at the cleaned-up refuges as extensively as the potential danger to humans, but few problems have been reported. 1969Powered by rocket fuel propellant manufactured at the RMA, Apollo 11 lands on the moon. Share Them by March 3. The U.S. Coinciding with these activities, from 1946 to 1982, the Army leased RMA facilities to private industries for the production of pesticides. The U.S. Army and Shell conducted the $2.1 billion environmental cleanup of the site in collaboration with the Environmental Protection Agency, Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and Tri-County Health Department. Montbello is located to the south of the RMA, and Commerce City to the west. Rocky Mountain Arsenal, among other post-military sites, was a top priority, establishing RMA as a superfund site. 1941Japan attacks Pearl Harbor, and the United States enters World War II. At least 30 of the 560-plusrefugesmanaged by the wildlife service have some history with the military or weapons production, the AP found. The manufacturing of these weapons continued until 1969. Marshall fire victims protested green building codes as too expensive. 1995-1996Following extensive community input, the Off-Post and On-Post Records of Decision (ROD) are signed. Some were among the most dangerously polluted sites in the nation but held swaths of hard-to-find habitat. The Off-Post Record of Decision was finalized in December 1995 and its requirements consist of actions for off-site groundwater and soil. Any detected voids behind the casing were cemented to prevent possible contamination of other formations. A monitoring program was developed to monitor the success of exposure prevention efforts during the environmental cleanup at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal. Many mammals and birds were found dead and may have suffered lower reproduction rates or birth defects.[11]. 1996The U.S. Army, Shell and U.S. All surface work related to the environmental cleanup ended in 2010, one year ahead of schedule and within budget. The U.S. Army later reactivated Arsenal facilities for Cold-War weapons production and demilitarization. Colorado health officials contendthat Shells trenches and slurry walls have not prevented pesticides and other dangerous chemicals from leaching into the groundwater. Contaminated ground water was first discovered to have migrated off of the Arsenal in the mid-1950s when crop damage and affected livestock was noted on farms north of the Arsenal. 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. Restrictions on well water use, residential development, consumption of fish and game from the arsenal, and agricultural use of the arsenal will exist in perpetuity until further scientific research is completed at the site. Roughly 10 miles (16 kilometers) from downtown Denver, the arsenal was once an environmental nightmare where chemical weapons and commercial pesticides were made. Then a year and half after the Rocky Mountain Arsenal waste dumping practice stopped, the strongest and most widely felt shock in Denver's history struck that area on August 9, 1967, at 6:25 in the morning. Three criteria were es Fish and Wildlife Service to create and later expand the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge. The U.S. Army permanently manages. The military reserved the right to oust these companies and restart chemical weapon production in the event of a national emergency. An official website of the United States government, Rocky Mountain Arsenal has recently published its annual community report. (3 of 9), REDEVELOPMENT - Commerce City, CO a northern suburb of Denver,and a sports enterprise business have invested more than $120 million in the property, which yields 1.7 million visitors annually. 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. The animals were transferred from the National Bison Range in Montana. Last week, on December 8, 2015, the Rocky Mountain Arsenal rounded up the bison herd to gather animals that had been selected for donation to the Crane Trust--a bison conservation . After the war, it became a bustling center of industrial activity -- a top-secret center that created a lot of dangerous waste. While the framework for the comprehensive environmental cleanup was being developed, work crews discovered a pair of roosting bald eagles at the site, which prompted the U.S. A similar shock, magnitude 4.1, centered in the Denver area November 15. Its radiation isnt strong enough to be dangerous outside the body, but its dust is a serious health risk if inhaled or swallowed, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says. The 17,000-acre site is 10 miles northeast of Denver. American bison are reintroduced to the site that same year as part of a nationwide conservation effort. The U.S. Army will permanently retain and manage about 1,000 acres of Arsenal land that contain the landfills, waste consolidation areas and groundwater treatment facilities to ensure they remain protective of human health and the environment. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Shell Oil for failure to obtain a proper-post closure permit for Basin F, a section of the Rocky Mountain Arsenal. Solid and liquid chemical hazardous wastes were disposed of in trenches, burn pits and pooled in open basins covering wide areas. 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. Kirk Mitchell is a general assignment reporter at The Denver Post who focuses on criminal justice stories. 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. The cleanup was completed in 2010 and five large parcels of land have been deleted from the NPL . Early 1980sAll production at the RMA ceases, and the mission shifts to environmental remediation and restoration. When the cleanup was completed, it was clear that no Arsenal chemicals had been released into the air that exceeded the health-protective levels established for the site since the environmental cleanup began in October 1997. Photos source: US Fish and Wildlife Service In some cases, they could have conceivably made the site into something that was economically valuable, but that would have cost more, Rome said. Many residents reported it was the strongest earthquake they had ever experienced. The Rocky Mountain Arsenal, a manufacturing center of United States chemical weapons, is located in Commerce City, Colorado. There is an 11-mile motor tour that takes you through the preserve. Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge, a former nuclear weapons plant northwest of Denver, opened to hikers and cyclists last September, but some activists question whether its safe. Some parts of the refuge have been deemed safe but visitors must watch a safety video and sign a waiver promising not to sue if theyre injured by an exploding shell. To learn more and view artifacts from each period, visit the Refuge Visitor Center. CDPHE is asking the federal court to compel the Army to install or modify the existing treatment system to effectively prevent pollutants from contaminating groundwater, the lawsuit says. The U.S. Congress responded to the movement in 1980 with the creation of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), most commonly referred to as a Superfund. Mallard carcasses found to have higher levels of Dieldrin. The land has a unique story - it has survived the test of time and transitioned from farmland, to war-time manufacturing site, to wildlife sanctuary. "They have a very distinctive emerald green eye shine. 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. Following the war and through the early 1980s, the facilities continued to be used by the Army. Exchanging animals among smaller herds. [3] After the bald eagles were captured, tested, and found to be healthy, the National Wildlife Federation worked with policymakers to transition RMA to a wildlife refuge. There is no appropriate standard by the EPA, but the state of Colorado has a standard treatment protocol for this chemical. Just watch where you step. More recently, it has been used as a storage facility for excess office furniture and equipment. An acoustical ceiling and light fixtures fell at one school. For more information please visit U.S. North of the former Stapleton Airport and west of Denver International Airport, Adams County. Rocky Mountain Greenway Trail Open: Year-round to hiking, bicycles, and Class 1 e-Bikes Length: 4.8 miles This regional trail corridor will link Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge with Two Ponds and Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuges, along with many other protected open space and park lands throughout the Denver metro-area. Damage on a lesser scale occurred throughout the area. Photo source: Dave Showalter As cleanup actions were successfully completed, the U.S. Army transferred land to the U.S. Contaminants included solvents, metals, pesticides, and miscellaneous manufacturing-related chemicals. Additional cement barriers were placed inside the casing across zones that could access water-bearing formations (aquifers). In 2004, 5000 acres along the perimeter of the site were deleted from the National Priorities List of Superfund sites to establish the National Wildlife Refuge. The facility was built in 1942, in response to the outbreak of World War II in Europe. Fish and Wildlife Service establishes a field office at the RMA to manage bald eagles and other wildlife. The second largest earthquake in the Denver series occurred on November 26, 1967. [11] Air quality monitoring of the Arsenal began concurrently with the decontamination process in 1997 and surveillance continued until July 2009. 1966Following reports of localized earthquake tremors, the U.S. Army concludes the deep well injection program. The refuge was created on the buffer zone surrounding the production area. Fish and Wildlife Service to establish a field office at the RMA to help manage the abundant wildlife. Rocky Mountain Arsenal continues to leak contaminants into groundwater, Colorado health department lawsuit says Contaminants include organochlorine pesticides, heavy metals and solvents. [20] In the case of Rocky Mountain Arsenal, total indirect cost was not estimated at all. 1962Treated liquid waste is injected into a deep well located more than 12,000 feet below the ground surface. Residents were generally shaken, but no damage was sustained. Vote in our annual food bracket challenge. [3] One of the goals of the MMP was to enhance community assurance that the clean-up was effective, and it included air quality monitoring, cancer surveillance, and birth defects surveillance. When the Cold War ended in the 1980s, more surplus military lands were earmarked for refuges. More by The Associated Press, Got a story tip? The Rocky Mountain Arsenal was a United States chemical weapons manufacturing center located in the Denver Metropolitan Area in Commerce City, Colorado. The On-Post Record of Decision was signed in June 1996 and describes the cleanup plan for soils, groundwater and structures within the approximately 27-square-mile on-post Operable Unit. Despite the complicated and expensive cleanups, significant contamination has been left behind, some experts say. (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. The contaminated groundwater that still exists in and around RMA continues to be actively monitored. (credit: Rocky Mountain Arsenal/Twitter) That section borders 56th Avenue at the Gateway and Montbello neighborhoods. independent local journalism in Denver. The cleanup was completed in 2010 and five large parcels of land have been deleted from the NPL, creating opportunities for reuse development and expansion of the Refuge. Jefferson County Finds Itself Up a Tree Over Controversial Forest-Thinning Practices, Dominion Has the Cure for Foxitis: $1.6 Billion Defamation Lawsuit, Celebrate the 303: From Crocs to Cannabis, Colorado Has Your Number, No Liberal Tears: We Build the Wall's Colorado Conspirator Sentencing PostponedAgain, Have Thoughts About the Denver Moves Everyone Plan? Beginning in October 2012, testing has revealed that pollutants have escaped the Shell trenches and groundwater is likely coming into contact with the waste and migrating out of the trenches, the lawsuit says. For testing purposes, the well was injected with approximately 568,000 gallons of city water prior to injecting any waste. August 24, 2011 Soldiers test-fired millions of artillery rounds at the proving ground, some made of depleted uranium. In summary, there is no current evidence of health effects. Since 1985, the mission at RMA has been the remediation of the site. But parts of the refuge remain off-limits, including specially designed landfills where the Army disposed of contaminated soil. Soon after, Congress enacted legislation designating the RMA as a future national wildlife refuge. (2 of 9), CLEANUP - The remedy selected for the Rocky Mountain Arsenal included the removal of contaminated soil down to 10 over much of the contaminated area, which is contained in two hazardous waste landfills that remain on the site. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment established monitoring systems throughout various locations of the RMA. Both those cases are pending in federal court. SITE HISTORY - Rocky Mountain Arsenal was listed on the NPL in 1987. All of these constituents constitute threats to human health and the environment, the lawsuit says. Organochlorine pesticides, heavy metals, agent degradation products and manufacturing by-products, and chlorinated and aromatic solvents are getting into groundwater in unsafe levels, it says. The site was placed in 1987 on the EPAs National Priorities List, which is also known as the Superfund list. Theoretically, if the Earth still exists in the year 3000, theyll still be monitoring groundwater at the arsenal, he said. [1], The environmental movement began in the United States in the 1960-1970s. Fish and Wildlife Service management, and they now protect black bears and black-footed ferrets, coral reefs and brushy steppes, rare birds and imperiled salmon. 1942The U.S. Army establishes the Rocky Mountain Arsenal to produce chemical weapons as a war-time deterrent. [11], The NRDA found several injuries to wildlife. Rocky Mountain Arsenal, which was once a U.S. Army chemical weapons manufacturing facility, became a wildlife refuge in 1992. [citation needed] 1989The U.S. The Army and Shell Oil Co. began conducting detailed site investigations in the 1970s to define the extent of contamination. 4300 Cherry Creek Drive South Denver, CO 80246, Colorado Health Information Data Set (CoHID), Office of Public Health Practice, Planning, and Local Partnerships (OPHP), Air Quality - Monitoring, Modeling and Data. The Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge is 15,000 acres and features three lakes that are home to over 300 species of wildlife. Fish and Wildlife Service that at least 20,000 ducks died in a 10-year span during the 1970s. In the early 1980s the site was selected as a Superfund site and the cleanup process began. An official website of the United States government. In 1992, Congress designated the sites as a wildlife refuge. 1989The U.S. Army, EPA and Shell sign the Federal Facilities Agreement, which provides a framework for decision-making and for completing 14 Interim Response Actions (IRAs) while final cleanup plans are developed. Who makes the best hot chicken sandwich in Denver? and help keep the future of Westword, Use of this website constitutes acceptance of our, Denver boot puts the lock on the Global Business Travel Association bash. State officials say they want long-term and legally binding assurances. Known today as an urban national wildlife refuge, the Rocky Mountain Arsenal is one of the most studied environmental cleanup sites in the country. One of the lessees, Julius Hyman and Company, manufactures agricultural chemicals at the site. In 2009, the state of Colorado, Shell Oil Co., and the United States Army settled a lawsuit pertaining to damages to the states natural resources from past activities at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal that caused extensive contamination of soil and water at the site. One monitoring project has demonstrated incremental improvements over time, and specifically measured 640 parts per billion (ppb) in 1987 and 55 ppb in 1989, while a different off-post monitoring well measured 138 ppb in 1985, 105 ppb in 1987, 14 ppb in 1988, and 6.7 ppb in 1989. 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. Critics sayRocky Mountain Arsenalin Colorado illustrates the shortcomings of a cleanup designed to be good enough for a refuge but not for human habitation. 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