Despite once ruling that a substance called phosphogypsum was unsafe for use in road construction projects, the Environmental Protection Agency (the EPA) is now allowing this radioactive material to be used on a Florida roadway.

The EPA is describing this as a “pilot.” This is absurd, and needs to be blocked. They said it would grant a pending approval to Mosaic Fertilizer LLC to use a material called phosphogypsum in a few sections of road on the company’s property.

Back in the 1930s, radium was used in watch making for glow in the dark hands and indicators. They stopped using it because people were getting cancer, going mad, and their bones would degenerate to nothing.

Phosphogypsum contains radium, which decays to form radon gas, both of which areradioactive and can cause cancer, according to the EPA. If you buy a home, typically you would ask for radon testing before purchase. It’s an odorless, tasteless gas, is highly toxic, and can kill humans and animals.

Phosphogypsum is a waste product that comes from the fertilizer production processand is currently kept in “stacks” as part of an attempt to limit public exposure.

Mosaic Fertilizer asked the EPA to allow it to build three 200-foot sections of road with phosphogypsum mixtures to “demonstrate the range of… road construction designs.” 

The EPA said in its preliminary approval that the potential radiological risks to public health of building the small scale pilot project are no higher than those of keeping phosphogypsum in a stack.

However, the agency hasraised concerns in the past about using the material specifically in road construction. This decision is baffling. This must stop and those involved need to be investigated.

The EPA said in 1992, the use of phosphogypsum in road construction was always considered unsafe, and it noted risks to both construction workers and anyone who later builds a home where the phosphogypsum road had once been. So why are we using this material.

While the project is being described as a pilot, an EPA spokesperson said the approval of an individual project “does not imply approval of any other or future request.” And also this “EPA’s full review process, including risk assessment, must take place for each request for other use of phosphogypsum, and approvals are granted on a case-by-case basis.”

Radium from this proposed road can leak into the local water supply. Exposure to it causes harmful health effects, including radiation sickness, anemia, and cancer. Safety protocols are critical when handling radium or radium-containing materials.

Ragan Whitlock, a Florida-based attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, had this to say: “Shame on the EPA for disregarding its own science showing the unacceptable risks to people’s health and the environment from using phosphogypsum in road construction.”

If this proposal isn’t stopped here, it could be your city next. It’s time to speak up and stop this insanity!

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