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EPA Begins Arsenic Cleanup at Western Kentucky Site

Art Smith, EPA

Preliminary work has begun to clean up a contaminated site in Ohio County.  The EPA is targeting large amounts of arsenic discovered a year ago.

The full-scale cleanup on Shinkle Chapel Road won’t begin until next year, but the EPA this week began preparing the site by re-building a driveway to the property, constructing a staging area for personnel and equipment, and moving contaminated waste into a pile and covering it. 

Art Smith is an on-site coordinator for the EPA’s Louisville office.  He says the arsenic has been there for at least 50 years and the concentration is extremely high.

"The concentrations are up to 75 percent pure arsenic in some locations, which is quite a bit unusual for a residential property," Smith told WKU Public Radio.

It’s unknown how the arsenic got on the property, which has one unoccupied home.  Smith says there should be no threat to the public.  The contaminated area is surrounded by a fence, locked gates, and signage.

Lisa is a Scottsville native and WKU alum. She has worked in radio as a news reporter and anchor for 18 years. Prior to joining WKU Public Radio, she most recently worked at WHAS in Louisville and WLAC in Nashville. She has received numerous awards from the Associated Press, including Best Reporter in Kentucky. Many of her stories have been heard on NPR.