[CPEO-MEF] Contaminants Threaten Badger Ammo Plant Wildlife

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

Citizens for Safe Water Around Badger
Email: info@cswab.org - Website: www.cswab.org

February 2, 2005
PRESS RELEASE

Residual Contaminants Threaten BAAP Wildlife

A new report released today challenges more than a dozen Army proposals
to weaken cleanup goals at the closing Badger Army Ammunition Plant ? a
move that could save the military tens of millions of dollars in cleanup
costs but would leave higher levels of ecological toxins in the environment.

Concerned about the potential long-term risks to the local ecology,
CSWAB hired noted wildlife toxicologist Dr. Peter deFur to comment on an
Army study that suggests soil contaminant levels at Badger do not pose a
risk to wildlife. 

DeFur, an Affiliate Associate Professor in the Center for Environmental
Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University and President of
Environmental Stewardship Concepts, concluded that the Army's assessment
is flawed and fails to show that the cleanup goals previously approved
by the WDNR and USEPA are inappropriate.

"The document does little to accurately determine the risks to wildlife
in and around Badger," deFur said. "The report fails to evaluate the
potential effects of organic compounds such as nitroglycerin and
dinitrotoluene." 

"By not evaluating all compounds present at the site, the military has
underestimated the risks to the local ecosystem," he added.  "Specific
wildlife toxins, such as aluminum and tin, were identified as concerns
in previous studies but were completely absent in this study."  

"By protecting wildlife, we assure that this land will be safe for
hunting, farming, grazing, and conservation," said Laura Olah, CSWAB's
Executive Director.  "The Army should stick to their commitment to the
level of cleanup that was approved by both the Wisconsin Department of
Natural Resources and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 1993." 

Located at the base of the Baraboo Hills, it is anticipated that the
7,400-acre plant will soon be transferred to new owners, including the
Ho-Chunk Nation and the State of Wisconsin.  A portion of Badger has
already been transferred to the U.S. Department of Agriculture for its
Dairy Forage Research Center.  

For more information about Citizens for Safe Water Around Badger and to
see the full text of the report, visit their website at www.cswab.org.


-- 


Lenny Siegel
Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
c/o PSC, 278-A Hope St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
<lsiegel@cpeo.org>
http://www.cpeo.org
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