¶ … disposable" society that is dependent upon fossil fuels, trash disposal and hazardous waste disposal are not just concerns, but are potential threats to human life, and the lives of everything else within the environment. The National Priorities List, a document prepared by the Environmental Protection Agency, consists of sites that have been found so contaminated they present an immediate threat to persons living or working near the area. Among those noted on this list is The Florida Petroleum Reprocessors (FPR) site in Broward County, which was a waste oil transfer station from 1978-1992. When the EPA investigated FPR, they discovered a plume of groundwater contamination over 600 acres in size, extending into the Biscayne aquifer to a depth over 140-feet.
This is but one example of violations of hazardous waste disposal laws. In Broward County alone, other contaminated sites on the Priorities List are the Davie Landfill, Chemform, Hollingsworth Solderless Terminal, the Petroleum Products Corporation (which also contaminated the Biscayne aquifer), Wilson Concepts of Florida (adjacent to Chemform), and Wingate Road Municipal Incinerator Dump which poured contaminated incinerator waters into aptly named Lake Stupid - which in turn sent its overflow to Rock Pit Lake, a recreational area. Cancer has now claimed the lives of many of the residents who have lived, played or fished in the vicinity, unaware of the lethal toxins.
The contamination in the dumps is largely due to now antiquated disposal methods, in which improperly contained hazardous wastes were once permitted to be dumped along with non-hazardous wastes. Clearly more timely monitoring and strict enforcement of fines is in order so that contamination can be prevented rather than dealt with after the fact. In addition, educating the general public regarding little-known facts (i.e., "it only takes one gallon of gasoline to ruin 5,000,000 gallons of drinking water"), can help bring about awareness on a grass roots level - which will in turn help overall monitoring.
This feasibility study will focus on providing cost-effective methods to not only monitor potential sites of contamination, but will also examine methods of enhancing public awareness.
Works Referenced
National Priorities List, updated September 9, 2002. 10/3/02 http://www.epa.gov/superfund/sites/npl/fl.htm#Davie_Landfill
Untitled review of Wingate Dump and Lake Stupid. 10/3/02 http://www.xso.com/news/morgue/0910toxi.htm
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