Post by batman on Sept 25, 2007 17:24:24 GMT -5
Toxic Waste Site Becomes Nature Preserve: As recently as the late 1980s, Rocky Mountain Arsenal, near Denver, routinely was described in news accounts as "the most toxic place on Earth" -- chemical weapons and the napalm dropped on Japanese cities during World War II were manufactured there. Then the most toxic place on Earth became a wildlife refuge. Bald eagles, at the time still an endangered species, began roosting on Rocky Mountain Arsenal grounds in 1986; declaration of a federally protected wildlife refuge came in 1992; coyote, white pelicans and owls have been found on the grounds of the arsenal, and wild bison were recently introduced there. This seemed a good example of the resilience of nature. Commentators speak of the "fragile environment," forgetting that Earth's living world has withstood comet strikes and ice ages. The biosphere isn't "fragile," it's a green fortress. At the same time news reports were calling Rocky Mountain Arsenal "the most toxic place on Earth," endangered species were moving in and thriving.
Now from nearby comes even better proof of the resilience of nature. Not far from Rocky Mountain Arsenal is the Rocky Flats facility, where the plutonium triggers of nuclear bombs once were made. (The two locations often are confused because of their similar names.) Rocky Flats routinely has been called "the most dangerous place on Earth." There was a lot of careless handling of chemicals and plutonium at Rocky Flats, so much so that the FBI raided the plant in 1989 seeking waste-management records. Rocky Flats closed in 1994, and a $7 billion cleanup followed. This summer, the grounds were declared the Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge. Deer, prairie dogs and elk have been multiplying there in recent decades, apparently unfazed by living in the most dangerous place on Earth. Want to go hiking where nuclear-bomb triggers were made? Just don't disturb the wildlife.
Now from nearby comes even better proof of the resilience of nature. Not far from Rocky Mountain Arsenal is the Rocky Flats facility, where the plutonium triggers of nuclear bombs once were made. (The two locations often are confused because of their similar names.) Rocky Flats routinely has been called "the most dangerous place on Earth." There was a lot of careless handling of chemicals and plutonium at Rocky Flats, so much so that the FBI raided the plant in 1989 seeking waste-management records. Rocky Flats closed in 1994, and a $7 billion cleanup followed. This summer, the grounds were declared the Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge. Deer, prairie dogs and elk have been multiplying there in recent decades, apparently unfazed by living in the most dangerous place on Earth. Want to go hiking where nuclear-bomb triggers were made? Just don't disturb the wildlife.