For up to the past 20 years, Tennessee has allowed the dumping of radioactive/nuclear waste into 5 Tennessee Municipal landfills. These landfills were created for household waste and never intended for this material. The Tennessee Department of Environmental Conservation (TDEC) has approved this program without public knowledge. It is unknown if and when TDEC will expand this program to other state landfills in Tennessee.
5 LANDFILLS IN TN ACCEPTING RADIOACTIVE WASTE:
- BFI/Allied Middle Point, Rutherford County
- BFI Carter Valley, Hawks County
- BFI North Shelby, Shelby County
- BFI South Shelby, Shelby County
- Chestnut Ridge Landfill & Recycling Center, Anderson County
Most of our Murfreesboro local elected officials said they did not know about this. Nancy Allen, former Mayor signed the Middle Point Contract without knowing. She said, “I never remember the word (nuclear waste) being used. We were dealing with primarily household waste. It was never in any of the discussions of any committee meetings that I remember.”
The nuclear materials go through licensed TN Processors which are allowed to monitor the levels of radiation themselves (self regulation). Some of the dumped nuclear materials have come from the following sources: closed California pharmaceutical company ICN Radiopharmaceuticals, UCLA, unknown waste from Washington State, Decommissioned Nuclear Plants, Big Rock Point MI, and possibly Maine Yankee. TDEC has told ENDIT the originators companies of the dumped nuclear waste are proprietary information. This information was released from Channel 4 Investigative journalism to the public. You can read about the harsh criticism given to the State of Tennessee by both California and Washington in our news links section.
TEMPORARY MORATORIUM AT MIDDLE POINT
A temporary moratorium for 60 days has been passed by our State Legislature which will prohibit the dumping of nuclear waste at Middle Point until Sept. 4, 2007. In the meantime, TDEC’s Municipal Solid Waste Advisory Committee (SWAC) will be studying BSFR. The City Council of Murfreesboro has asked that the moratorium be extended.
Citizens to End Nuclear Dumping in Tennessee (Citizens to ENDIT) is asking federal, state, & local officials for a permanent end to dumping all nuclear and toxic waste in our landfills in Tennessee or other sites in Tennessee. We urge that they require frequent and thorough monitoring: of 1. Air quality near dumping sites. 2. Drinking water for levels of radioactivity and toxicity and 3. Independent assessment of the levels of pollution at Middle Point and other Tennessee landfills. ENDIT also urges that all possible efforts be made to clean up dumping sites in Tennessee and that any plans to expand the Middle Point landfill be terminated permanently.
Please feel free to download & sign the petition to end radioactive dumping at Middle Point Landfill and mail to:
CITIZENS TO ENDIT
P.O. BOX 11333
MURFREESBORO, TN 37129
