Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Problems

>>> All done! The federal government says they've finished the nuclear clean up at Battelle's old nuclear place in West Jefferson. However, the Ohio EPA is worried that there will be leaks and other problems once the federal government leaves.
The Columbus Dispatch:

....The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency sent the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission a letter yesterday requesting that more work be performed at Battelle's 1,200-acre research site near West Jefferson.

Workers demolished six buildings there and carted away nearly 1.4 million cubic feet of radioactive waste and materials. EPA officials said NRC tests still detected levels of strontium 90 in a small bog on the property that exceed state health limits for drinking water.....

....But tests of the bog, located near Battelle Lake on the property, show levels of strontium 90 that exceed drinking-water standards set by the state and federal EPAs.

Joe Jacobsen, Battelle's radiation safety officer, said the bog is separated from drinking water aquifers by a thick layer of clay, and that there is no way for radiation to leak into the lake, nearby Big Darby Creek or drinking-water wells.....

I wonder if the Battelle radiation safety officer and members of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission bring in their own bottled water from home or drink from the faucets inside the old Battelle facility.

>>> The Ohio Inspector General is scrutinizing contracts done by the Ohio Department of Transportation under the administration of former Governor Bob Taft, a Republican. Check out the list of current probes at the Ohio Inspector General's investigation list. Two managers in the real estate section of ODOT (both are left over from the Taft administration) are under investigation.

Here is an excerpt from the most recent investigation:

.....The mere fact that the same SW Region problems have been repeatedly reported to Central
Office since 1999, yet have persisted, is evidence of a historical void in accountability.....
We make three recommendations and ask ODOT to respond to this office within the next 60
days with a plan outlining how they will be implemented.....