CSWAB
has asked the Wisconsin Division of Health to investigate a preliminary report
that levels of mercury in the air near Badger Army Ammunition Plant may be
elevated.
According to an internal memo dated May 15,
2003, the Wisconsin
Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) has detected mercury downwind of the
ammunition plant using a Lumex monitor, a handheld monitor which can be carried
into the field to measure mercury in the air. “The mercury monitoring that
we've done around BAAP is extremely limited,” a WDNR official told CSWAB. “For a
time, we had a Tekran analyzer (continuous 5 minute average mercury readings)
located near Devil's Lake
State
Park. There was not
a great deal of mercury observed, but one of the two wind directions which were
associated with slightly higher results was to the southwest, towards BAAAP from
the site.”
CSWAB
has been waiting since May to receive copies of air monitoring results. “I'm
not sure if there is really enough information to get
excited about,” one WDNR official said. “As I recall, there did seem to be a
slight increase in concentration around one of the inlets to Lake
Wisconsin where I believe
some (mercury-contaminated) sediment removal was done several years
ago.”
“Please note that the more that we have used the survey instrument, the more
that we have realized that it really is just a survey instrument,” WDNR said.
“Results from this instrument can be indicative of the presence of mercury, but
the instrument varies enough that slight variations in response may or may not
reflect actual conditions. We have become increasingly wary of reporting
anything obtained with this instrument as results, preferring to use it to scout
out locations to place the more reliable instrument for longer term readings."
Laura Olah, Executive
Director
Citizens for Safe Water Around
Badger
E12629 Weigands Bay
S
Merrimac,
WI 53561
phone:
(608)643-3124
fax: (608)643-0005
email: info@cswab.org
website: www.cswab.org
