Cleanup and Complexity: Nuclear and Industrial Contamination at The Santa Susana Field Laboratory, California

Environmental contamination, a legacy of industrial activity borne by numerous sites around the world, poses health risks for surrounding communities and presents serious cleanup challenges. One such site, the Santa Susana Field Laboratory (SSFL), served as an aerospace and nuclear energy research facility for over 50 years, during which time radioactive and other hazardous materials were unintentionally and intentionally released into the surrounding environment. These releases, including the partial meltdown of a sodium reactor, were hidden from the public for three decades. The site is now located in suburban Los Angeles, with 730,000 people living within a 10-mile radius. This paper evaluates the technical and social challenges underlying site cleanup at SSFL, including a complex geological setting, uncertain contaminant information, and a convoluted, evolving regulatory framework. These challenges, paired with historical secrecy on the part of responsible organizations and unclear layers of responsibility, have led to uncertainty and distrust within the surrounding community. Lessons learned from other remediated sites are assessed and recommendations for the SSFL cleanup are provided.

Feet in danger: short exposure to contaminated soil causing health damage-an experimental study

In this study, hematological and behavioral changes in Wistar rats exposed to soil collected from urban areas next to an industrial complex were investigated. Animals were exposed to soil samples placed at the bottom of cages for 4 days. After this period, behavioral parameters were measured by the open field test and the elevated plus-maze. Blood was collected to measure hematological parameters. The soil from the vicinity of the oil refining industry caused changes in hematological parameters and altered behavioral parameters in both tests. The soil from the vicinity of the petroleum refining industry and fertilizer industries increased the density of white blood cells and decreased exploratory activity in the exposed animals. The results demonstrate that contact with contaminated soils, even for short periods, can cause physiological damage in organisms and that special attention should be given to people who live under constant exposure to these soils.

Tools used to estimate soil quality in coal combustion waste areas

Soil is a highly complex environmental compartment that has suffered with the contamination of substances of various origins. Among the main activities that affect soil quality are power generation activities that use fossil fuels, such as mineral coal. Environmental protection agencies encourage scientific investigations using tools described in legal devices or standard protocols to evaluate the potential of coal as a pollutant, especially in places that have large reserves of this mineral like the state of Rio Grande do Sul. The aim of this study was to characterize the leached extracts of different soils from an area influenced by coal waste, to classify them according to the guideline values for groundwater described in CONAMA's n. 420/2009, and to estimate the effects of the leachates ingestion in DNA mutation rates. The volume of soil needed to induce a 100% increase in the spontaneous mutation rate varied between 129.3 and 1544.1 mg of soil among the soils studied. Metals such as Mn, Pb, Cd and Ni surpassed the investigation limits for groundwater at least in one soil sample. The results showed that there can be transfer of soil contaminants to groundwater and soil intake in the area could contribute to the increased mutagenic risk.

Extraction parameters in the mutagenicity assay of soil samples

This study aimed at investigating parameters of chemical extraction associated with the detection of mutagenicity in soil samples extracts. In order to evaluate the extraction efficiency of inorganic mutagens, besides the chemical analysis of metals, the Salmonella/microsome assay was performed in the preincubation and microsuspension procedures, using two solvents, and using two extraction methodologies. The efficiency of two organic compound extraction methods was compared by qualitative analysis using CG/MS in Scan mode. The results of the analysis of inorganic extracts correlated with the mutagenicity results. Mutagenic effects were detected only in the acidic extracts of soil that were shaken, in the microsuspension assay, both in the presence and absence of metabolic activation. The other conditions tested demonstrated higher cytotoxicity and negative mutagenic effects. As to the organic compounds, Accelerated Solvent Extraction (ASE) proved more effective than extraction using ultrasound (sonication). This study will help the implementation of extraction parameters to evaluate the presence of mutagenic substances in soil samples, both of inorganic and organic origins, suggesting the implementation of acidic extraction for the assessment of inorganic mutagenicity from soil samples and confirming the efficiency of ASE extraction for the assessment of organic compounds.