U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) sent a letter to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael Regan, requesting a briefing from the EPA on the chemical spill near St. Louis Lambert Airport and Coldwater Creek. The EPA initially responded to contaminated industrial wastewater last week, and reports suggest the public was not immediately notified of the spill.
“Last week, your agency responded to a chemical spill near St. Louis Lambert Airport and Coldwater Creek. While the EPA originally stated that approximately 1,000 gallons of wastewater, contaminated with trivalent chromium, may have made its way into the creek area on June 27, subsequent reports have provided additional information,” wrote Senator Hawley. “These new reports suggest that hundreds of gallons of industrial chemicals were released by GKN Aerospace through a Boeing wastewater treatment plant on June 25 and June 26—and to make matters worse, the more toxic hexavalent chromium was also discharged as a pollutant.”
He continued, “The community deserves clear answers from the EPA about this latest incident, and precisely what it plans to do about it. At your office’s earliest convenience, please contact my staff to schedule a briefing regarding this matter.”
Senator Hawley has consistently advocated on behalf of the Coldwater Creek community. Most recently, Senator Hawley’s Justice for Jana Elementary Act of 2023 mandating the clean up of Jana Elementary School and radioactive waste testing be performed at the surrounding buildings in the Hazelwood School District, passed in the Senate. Companion legislation has since been introduced in the House of Representatives.
Read the full letter here or below.
July 3, 2023
The Honorable Michael S. Regan
Administrator
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, D.C. 20460
Dear Administrator Regan:
Last week, your agency responded to a chemical spill near St. Louis Lambert Airport and Coldwater Creek. While the EPA originally stated that approximately 1,000 gallons of wastewater, contaminated with trivalent chromium, may have made its way into the creek area on June 27, subsequent reports have provided additional information. These new reports suggest that hundreds of gallons of industrial chemicals were released by GKN Aerospace through a Boeing wastewater treatment plant on June 25 and June 26—and to make matters worse, the more toxic hexavalent chromium was also discharged as a pollutant.
This incident will undoubtedly concern Missouri residents living in the vicinity of Coldwater Creek. Residents have expressed to my office that they were not notified of the spill and the facts surrounding it immediately. That same Coldwater Creek area has long suffered from persistent radioactive contamination, which other federal agencies have refused to properly remediate—most recently in the case of Jana Elementary School. This recent incident appears to be merely the latest episode in the ongoing issue of contamination in this area. The community deserves clear answers from the EPA about this latest incident, and precisely what it plans to do about it.
At your office’s earliest convenience, please contact my staff to schedule a briefing regarding this matter. Please come prepared to address the following questions:
- How much time elapsed between EPA’s learning of this incident and EPA’s notification to the public of any associated risks from this contamination?
- What, if any, remedial measures have GKN Aerospace and/or Boeing committed to the EPA that they will take in response to this incident?
- What, if any, health risks does this spill pose for the population of St. Louis, including those near Coldwater Creek? Will you commit to informing the public of any risks in a timely manner?
I look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
Josh Hawley
United States Senator