All,
Our 2024 was marked by progress and new partnerships, by a daunting amount of time away from home, and new national recognition that the federal government has treated St. Louis and St. Charles badly—ignoring, lying about, and bungling the cleanup of the radioactive material it brought here. As readers of this page, you have been with us every step of the way.
Karen and I are taking a quiet week off to reflect on the successes of the past year, but we wanted to share with you some of our hopes for 2025.
Our New Year’s Wishes-
1. The U.S. Department of Energy publicly acknowledges its responsibility for the nuclear waste that contaminated so many sites in St. Louis and St. Charles—and pays to clean it up.
2. The federal Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) is renewed and expanded to include everyone in every state exposed to radiation from atomic weapons testing/development and uranium mining.
3. Remediation accelerates along Coldwater Creek and at Weldon Spring, and finally begins at West Lake.
4. Doctors and other clinicians routinely ask their St. Louis and St. Charles patients, particularly those with any history around Coldwater Creek and Weldon Spring, about any potential exposure to radiation in their homes, workplaces, and schools.
5. Continuing and open conversations with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, with elected officials in Clayton, St. Charles, and Jefferson City, and with the operators of West Lake and Champ landfills.
6. New and knowledgeable leadership for the Environmental Protection Agency’s Region 7.
7. The community’s gratitude for the diligence of the Pattonville Fire Protection District and the St. Louis County Public Health Department.
8. Funding to underwrite our advocacy, travelling, and communications.
9. A blessed year (and a pay bump) for every government staffer who has opened a door, read a text, and listened to a message—and then advised their boss to listen to us.
10. COMFORTABLE SHOES!!!!
Happy new year, fam
-the Moms