It’s hard to imagine that right beneath our feet, in the soil of Ellisville, a significant danger had been left undisturbed for decades. The Ellisville Superfund site, a contaminated area of land where hazardous waste and pollutants were released into the soil, once posed a serious threat to both human health and the environment, and yet many of us were left completely unaware.
Located in St. Louis County, Missouri, the Ellisville Superfund Site is comprised of three non-contiguous properties – the Bliss property, the Callahan property, and the Rosalie property. Due to severe contamination, the three properties were designated to be one large Superfund site on the National Priorities List (NPL) in September 1983.
All three of the properties contained a plethora of toxic chemicals that were improperly disposed of into the environment. The Rosalie property was found to have four acres contaminated with various toxic liquids and solid wastes disposed of in and near Caulks Creek.
The Bliss property was contaminated due to the Bliss Waste Oil Company, which was in operation during the 1960s and 1970s. During that time, some of the waste was buried in drums, and the rest was dumped on the ground.
At the Callahan property, paint-related waste and solvents were found in drums buried deep under the ground. This contamination has led to the presence of chloroform and other chemicals in the soil, which led to significant health risks for nearby communities.
The soil at the Ellisville Superfund site was contaminated with several hazardous chemicals, including chloroform and trichloroethylene (TCE). Chloroform is a toxic chemical that can become harmful if ingested or inhaled. TCE, on the other hand, is a volatile organic compound that can contaminate soil and groundwater, leading to serious health risks.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) previously found high levels of these chemicals in the soil at the Ellisville Superfund site, which created a significant risk to public health and the environment.
Fortunately, the EPA has been successful in cleaning up the area. Today, the Bliss property contains multiple groundwater monitoring wells to ensure that any residual contamination is immediately detected and does not spread.
While remediation efforts have worked, the damage has already been done. For anybody who lived or worked near the site while it was contaminated, the chemicals in the soil and groundwater may have had severe health effects.
The contaminated soil in the Ellisville Superfund site was found to contain a number of harmful chemicals, including chloroform and TCE. Exposure to these chemicals can have serious health effects, including an increased risk of cancer.
Chloroform, a known carcinogen, can increase the risk of cancer and have serious effects on the liver and nervous system. TCE, on the other hand, is a solvent commonly used in manufacturing and cleaning products. In recent years, states have banned the use of TCE due to the health risks it may cause, such as cancer and damage to both the liver and kidneys.
The contaminated soil in the Ellisville Superfund site had the potential to pose serious health risks to those who lived or worked nearby while the pollutants were still present. Those who ingested or inhaled the contaminated soil may have experienced serious health problems as a result.
If you believe you may have been exposed to contaminated soil in Ellisville, it is important to seek medical advice from a medical professional. You may also wish to consult with one of our experienced environmental attorneys to learn more about your legal rights and options.
As more information comes to light about the extent of the contamination at the Ellisville Superfund Site, there is increasing concern over potential lawsuits that may arise.
In recent years, there has been a growing focus on environmental law and the need to hold companies and organizations accountable for their actions that may have contributed to the contamination of land and waterways. This has led to a rise in mass tort and class action lawsuits, where groups of individuals come together to seek compensation for damages related to exposure to toxic substances.
Given the scale of the contamination at the Ellisville Superfund Site, our attorneys at OnderLaw are working hard to make sure that justice can be served for anybody who was affected by the toxic chemicals left behind. This may include individuals who lived in the vicinity of the site, as well as workers who were exposed to the chemicals during its operation.
If you believe you may have been affected, it is important to know what options you have. If a mass tort lawsuit is filed, it may be an opportunity for individual claims to be filed against the responsible party. These types of lawsuits allow each case to be evaluated based on its own merit, which may be advantageous to the affected party.
On the other hand, a class-action lawsuit may be filed in the event that a large number of people were affected in similar ways due to the contamination at this site. These lawsuits allow large groups to pool resources together and hold companies accountable for their negligence on a larger scale.
If you feel you or your community was impacted by this Superfund site or any site, do not hesitate to contact our team for a free consultation today.
