The U.S. Corp of Engineer’s efforts to clean up contamination at a missile site near Cheyenne has been inadequate. That’s according to a newly released report commissioned by the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality.
The report was conducted by the Intera group. It found that the Corp of Engineers, who have been monitoring the abandoned Atlas Missile Site since the early 2000’s, didn’t realize how much of the chemical TCE had leaked into nearby soil and groundwater. TCE can cause cancer and liver damage if consumed, says Wyoming DEQ manager Hannes Stueckler.
“If it winds up in someone’s water well. And there are water wells downstream from the site. Then there is a potential for health effects.”
Stueckler says the Corp of Engineers underestimated how much time and money it would cost to clean up the site. He says the DEQ plans to install more monitoring wells to track the chemicals.
