Explosives Detected in Drinking Water Near Badger

[CPEO Moderator <cpeo@cpeo.org>]

CSWAB
Citizens for Safe Water Around Badger
E12629 Weigand's Bay South - Merrimac, WI  53561
Phone (608) 643-3124 - Fax (608) 643-0005
Email: info@cswab.org - Website: www.cswab.org
February 5, 2004


PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release

For more information contact:
Laura Olah, CSWAB (608)643-3124

Explosives Detected in Drinking Water Near Badger

SAUK PRAIRIE ? New test results confirm that explosives are present in
at least 2 residential wells on Keller Road in the Township of
Sumpter.   The Army has offered free bottled water to these families.
Local residents are demanding that Badger Army Ammunition Plant expand
testing to ensure that all other nearby drinking water wells are safe.

            Officials from the WDNR, U.S. Army at Badger, and Army
Headquarters held a private teleconference call today to discuss test
results that confirmed dinitrotoluene (DNT) contamination is present.
Several other nearby homes were also tested but no contamination was
reported.

            DNT is a chemical used in the manufacture of munitions and
is classified as a probable human carcinogen by the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency.   As a result, Wisconsin's drinking water standard
for dinitrotoluene is only 0.05 parts per billion.

            Following the call, Army officials contacted Citizens for
Safe Water Around Badger (CSWAB) to report the decision by WDNR and the
military to postpone notifying the general public for at least a week
and to consider only a few additional wells for testing.

            CSWAB disagreed with the decision to delay informing the
public and issued its own press release today.   The group is also
demanding that the Army offer free water testing to all residents living
near the southeast corner of Badger until the source or sources of the
contamination are defined.

            The homes on Keller Road are located more than 500 feet from
a plume of contaminated groundwater flowing from Badger south to the
Wisconsin River and finding DNTs this far east is inconsistent with the
known plume location.  It is possible that another site could be a
contributing source.   The Settling Ponds ? a 60-acre site that
stretches across the entire width of the plant ? is an example of
another nearby source of DNT contamination in the environment.

            Moreover, some areas inside Badger contain primarily shallow
wells leaving a significant gap in information about water quality in
deeper aquifers.

            For these reasons, CSWAB believes broad base testing is the
only way to ensure that human health is fully protected while the Army
and WDNR try to figure out exactly what is happening.

- END -

--

Laura Olah, Executive Director
Citizens for Safe Water Around Badger
E12629 Weigands Bay S
Merrimac, WI 53561
phone: (608)643-3124
fax: (608)643-0005
email: info@cswab.org
website: www.cswab.org

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CPEO: A DECADE OF SUCCESS.  Your generous support will ensure that our
important work on military and environmental issues will continue.
Please consider one of our donation options.  Thank you.
http://www.groundspring.org/donate/index.cfm?ID=2086-0|721-0