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Wetlands near Halaco reopened
Radioactive material buried in slag pile
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Crews working with the Environmental Protection Agency pulled down a fence and reopened a patch of wetlands next to the old Halaco smelter site at Ormond Beach, which was closed a month ago after workers found traces of radioactive isotopes there.
The crews completed removal of an estimated 5,000 cubic yards of dirt and plants from a berm along the Oxnard Industrial Drain at the end of Perkins Road, said Rob Wise, on-scene manager of EPA's work at the bankrupt company's site.
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More from Other NewsThe federal government is considering including the almost 40-acre Halaco property on its list of Superfund cleanup sites. The plant and an adjacent almost 28-acre pile of waste are laden with metals, chemicals and traces of radioactive isotopes.
About a month ago, Wise discovered grayish dirt contaminated with the radioactive isotope thorium 232 not far from the entrance to the old plant. Over the past month, crews excavated the contaminated dirt and took it to the Halaco slag pile, where it has been buried. What will ultimately be done with the material and the waste pile will be decided after the federal government decides whether to include the site on the Superfund list.
The cleaned-up wetlands are near a public parking lot and a pedestrian bridge where people could walk. Wise said mere contact or proximity to thorium does not present a risk, but inhaling or ingesting dust presents a risk.
It's believed that the contamination occurred in the late 1960s, when Halaco dumped its waste directly into the Oxnard Industrial Drain. The company stopped the practice in 1970.
The radioactive thorium is from the recycling of magnesium that had been alloyed with the material, a process used in aerospace parts. The company had a license to handle the material but stopped accepting it in the late 1970s after its license expired.
EPA officials have found other locations in the huge waste pile with elevated levels of radioactivity.
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