Recently, a report surfaced that radioactive material had been discovered during the Environmental Protection Agency’s clean-up of the Cosmo Specialty Fibers facility in Cosmopolis and that the Washington Department of Health (DOH) had been alerted.
On Wednesday, the DOH provided the following statement:
“The Krypton-85 source was contained in an industrial gauge. The source housing is in good condition, was secured, and showed no evidence of tampering. No radioactive leakage or contamination was detected.
“The source has not yet been removed. In late September, the Department of Health issued a notice of correction directing the property owner to safely remove or transfer it. We are working to identify additional options for removal. In the meantime, the EPA has marked off the area with caution tape to prevent unnecessary exposure.
“Due to the chemical nature of Krypton-85, and the low amount of material present, there is no significant risk to the public.”
In August, the EPA, in coordination with the Washington State Department of Ecology, began a time-critical chemical removal action at the dormant Cosmo Specialty Fibers pulp mill.
For the past two years, the EPA and Department of Ecology have worked closely to assess conditions at the non-operational facility and identify actions needed to reduce potential risks to the community and the environment. More than 750,000 gallons of waste chemicals were stored at the site, and the facility has accumulated more than $2 million in environmental fines.
Per the latest summary of EPA activity at the site, dated October 17, just over 277,000 gallons of acidic waste have been treated; approximately 563,000 gallons have been shipped offsite, consisting of both treated acidic waste, waste directly from tanks, and chemical totes/drums; 25 tanks have been emptied, four tanks are in the process of being drained, and 34 additional tanks are currently scheduled to be further evaluated and emptied if needed.
The public may access routine updates about the clean-up efforts here: https://response.epa.gov/site/doc_list.aspx?site_id=17379
