Daniel McKeel

Ret. Pathologist, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis
West Lake Landfill (WLL) Proposed Plan
Extended Comments on West Lake Landfill Flood Plain Issues

“The West Lake Landfill is not designed to safely contain radioactive wastes by any criteria of any regulatory agency (NRC, EPA, DOE, MDNR).  Yet very hot nuclear weapons waste from Mallinckrodt Chemical Works Uranium Division was dumped there illegally by Cotter Corp. in 1973.  The public was not protected from these wastes in any manner for the next 3.5 decades even though the WLL radionuclides were characterized by the early 1980s.  This is truly shameful and represents gross negligence.  Nearby residents in Spanish Village, daily workers at Earth City, and trash haulers employed at other parts of the landfill were placed at high risk.  Now there is an opportunity to correct all of this by excavating and removing the rad waste to a licensed federal facility such as the representative from ENERGY SOLUTIONS (merged with Envirocare) outlined at the 3/27/08 public meeting in Bridgeton. Yet a half-way remedy was selected that will fully protect no one.”

America’s Nuclear Legacy – More than 6,000 Nuclear Dumps… and Counting

Link to Video and all images from the Symposium


“Contaminate St. Louis” by Jason Hargrove

Robbin Ellison Dailey

Bridgeton Resident, Spanish Village Subdivision
“I live at Ground Zero, less than half a mile of that Burning Out Of Control Superfund Site. West Lake Landfill/Bridgeton Landfill is the Best Kept Dirty Secret in the St. Louis region. Our quality of life as been destroyed and our home values have plummeted as a result of Republic Services’ mismanagement, negligence, and inadequacies at their landfills. We want FUSRAP to come in and properly address and clean up this site.”

Michael Dailey

Bridgeton Resident,
Spanish Village Subdivision
“This is no way for anyone to have to live!”

Christen Commuso

Photographer, Founder of Humans of West Lake
Former Maryland Heights Resident
“Meet me.  I am not just the creator and photographer of this page. I share your fears. I share your sorrows. I am one of you.  In an 11 month period, I had my gallbladder removed, a total hysterectomy, an adrenal gland removed and thyroid cancer. My remaining adrenal gland also has tumors and there is an unclassified lesion in my liver. I am in a constant state of pain. This photo was taken directly after a 6.5 hour surgery to remove my adrenal gland and thyroid.  They are mutilating my body. If the disease continues at this rate, they are going to run out of body parts to remove.”

Photographs by Christen Commuso exhibited at “The Atoms Next Door Symposium”, 02/20/2016

Debi Disser

In 2007, my brother Doug was diagnosed with an aggressive, rare form of brain cancer called Glioblastoma Multiforme; stage 4. The very next day, he underwent a four hour surgery to remove the baseball-sized tumor. Due to the stage and size of the tumor, Doug’s prognosis was only 18 months to live, he survived 14 months, he was 43 years old.

As children, Denise, Debi and Doug (pictured) grew up in the now nonexistent Brownleigh neighborhood near the Manhattan Project radioactive waste storage site at the St. Louis Airport (SLAPS). Doug also played baseball and attended festivals at the Berkeley ball fields, which were later closed because of radioactive contamination originating from SLAPS. In his adult years, he worked in an 3-man office just a mile or so from the radioactive contaminated West Lake Landfill. His coworker would also be diagnosed with brain cancer but survived.

Debi works with Just Moms STL as a their researcher, videographer, and website manager in hopes of saving other families the heartache of losing loved ones caused by exposure.

“For the movie [Atomic Homefront] to premiere on the anniversary of Doug’s death is no coincidence to me. It will be very difficult to watch, but I feel like my brother will be with me. No matter where I go, I know he’s there. I’ll never forget why I fight so hard.”

Meagan Beckermann

Bridgeton Resident
“On this beautiful day, it would fill and warm my heart to have the windows open and my children playing outside. I love feeling the breeze come in the windows while listening to basketballs bouncing and children laughing. I want to see my son running with his dog in the backyard when I look out the kitchen window. I miss this! Luckily I had that with my now 14 year old as we lived elsewhere. I don’t have this with my 6 year old. Its just one of the simple pleasures that has been ripped out from under my feet by Rep.Servcs. I can never get back the memories, joy and serenity that this big bully company has stolen from my family and I.”

THIS COMPANY NEEDS TO STEP UP AND DO THE RIGHT THING! They need to assist those of us in this community that want to move. I personally do not want any type of additional compensation, I just want to be able to move so that I can have my life back. But for now, I will stay inside my stuffy house on this beautiful day to get things done and ask my husband to please take my son as far away as possible from our home so that he can play outside and breath fresh air.” (February 27, 2016) 

Meagan Beckerman by Network Lobby.org

This is my baby boys’ deterioration since moving 1.3 miles too close to the Bridgeton Landfill.

Byron Clemens

St. Louis Resident
“I support our collective effort to make the world safer for future generations by cleaning up Manhattan Project atomic weapons waste – now.”

Byron & Ray – “What’s Going On”

Tonya Mason

Bridgeton Resident, Spanish Village Subdivision
“We can’t open our windows. Our eyes burn when we walk outside. We vomit when we get out of our cars. We know there’s something in that dirt!”

Ashlee Plume

Prior Maryland Heights Resident
“This week is my last week living in Maryland Heights. After a very long mental struggle, I decided to uproot my family from the place we have called home for 28 years. I’m a Pattonville alumni and my son is in 4th grade in Pattonville. It’s painful to leave but this decision was solely based on the fact that I do not want to raise my family near this landfill. Too many times I’ve been woken up in the middle of the night by that horrible smell. I hope Republic Services and Governor Jay Nixon are happy knowing they’re running out long time residents of this city. I can only imagine the revenue effects this will have on the area should other residents and companies follow suit. What a shame, this used to be a great area to raise a family. I will continue spreading awareness from my new home.”  05/16/2016

Cory Ell

Resident
“It almost feels like we’re not going to get the truth until something happens; and then it will be too late.  I feel like my best course of action is to uproot my family and move as far away as I can.”

C. J.  Mese (wife Smith-Johnson)

Resident
HAVE A heart  LET US BREATHE SMART!