Opinion ID: 1435262
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Contamination Caused by PGDP

Text: In August 1988, a State of Kentucky agency discovered groundwater contamination outside the boundaries of PGDP  specifically, contamination by trichloroethylene (TCE) [3] and technetium-99 (Tc-99) [4] in a plume of groundwater flowing northwest from the facility. Levels of TCE exceeding regulatory limits were detected in a few wells. The Tc-99 concentrations were below proposed regulatory limits. PGDP provided a temporary water supply to residents in the area that might be affected by the groundwater contamination. Residents who actually were affected by contaminated groundwater were provided with a continuing temporary water supply and eventually the United States Department of Energy provided them with municipal water at no cost. [5] PGDP routinely sent informational mailings to residents near the plant regarding the contamination and the facility began holding public briefings about the groundwater contamination. On March 1, 1990, a second plume of TCE groundwater contamination was detected extending northeast from the boundaries of PGDP at an average depth of 75 feet below the surface. PGDP conducted a neighborhood notification survey of all local residents and held public briefings about the newly detected contamination. In total, approximately 10 billion gallons of contaminated water were spreading off the site as of April 2000, when the United States General Accounting Office (GAO) issued a report regarding the contamination and cleanup efforts.
In mid-December 1988, elevated levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) [6] were found in fish taken from a drainage ditch on PGDP's site and the nearby Big Bayou Creek. Seven of 116 fish caught from Big Bayou Creek had PCBs above the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) action level of two parts per million. The FDA advises that PCBs in fish tissue at two parts per million or above may present a health risk to humans. [7] The State of Kentucky posted signs advising people to limit consumption of fish caught in the Big Bayou Creek.
Surface soils within and outside the PGDP boundaries were contaminated by water runoff, spills, and buried waste. Soil samples revealed the presence of, inter alia, Tc-99 and PCBs.