Amid ongoing concerns from members of the public about contamination related to nuclear weapon components, a sign from the Boulder County government outside of the Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge warns visitors of possible exposure to “radioactive materials,” according to county officials.
The sign sits where the Coalton Trail approaches Colo. 128 and was installed in late December, according to an email from county spokesperson Gloria Handyside. The trailway is one of multiple that lead into the Rocky Flats refuge area.
“Visiting Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge May Expose You to Radioactive Materials,” the text reads, according to a sample sign image. It adds: “Hikers, Bikers, and Equestrians are encouraged to make informed decisions before entering the refuge.”
Westminster is also planning to install a similar sign, according to Andy Le, a city spokesperson. The sign was being made and will be installed “in the coming weeks,” he said. The sign would be located near an Indiana Street bridge, according to Westminster City Council information.
“The sign is for educational purposes and empowers trail users to make a decision for themselves,” he said.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment was not consulted about the language used in the signage, according to an email from Branden Ingersoll, a spokesperson for CDPHE’s Hazardous Materials and Waste Management Division.
“While local governments have the authority to post signage on local property, we want to clarify that the wording does not match the scientific findings from CDPHE or the Environmental Protection Agency,” Ingersoll said.
Former nuclear plant area
The land in the area was once home to the Rocky Flats nuclear weapons plant, established in the early 1950s, . The plant, which produced nuclear weapon components for national defense, involved the use of radioactive materials such as plutonium and uranium as well as “other hazardous materials associated with manufacturing,” according to the document. While in operation, the plant released contaminants into the environment through “routine air emissions and accidents, such as fire and spills,” the document says.
The plantap production mission was terminated in the early 1990s, and the state and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency supervised an investigation and remediation of environmental contamination at the site, the document says. Remediation of the Rocky Flats site was completed in 2005, and jurisdiction of most of the site was turned over to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to be operated as a wildlife refuge shortly after, the document says. The Fish and Wildlife Service could not be reached Thursday for comment about the new sign.
Boulder County Parks and Open Space staff were given direction by county commissioners to install the sign “in response to requests from members of the public for additional signage,” Handyside said.
A group called Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center and an organization called Physicians for Social Responsibility Colorado co-led a campaign for warning signage around Rocky Flats, according to Chris Allred with the peace and justice center group.
The wildlife refuge opened to the public in 2018, but the signage installed by Fish and Wildlife is “inadequate and misleading about the full history and current risks of recreation at Rocky Flats,” Allred said.
“While the refuge is now open to visitors year-round, radioactive and hazardous materials remain in the soil and ground water and may be present in airborne dust particles,” the provided sample text of the sign says. “Nearby communities and industry professionals continue to express concern about the area’s safety and its risks to human health.”
(For Westminster, city staff was set to make an adjustment to the sign, including to add the word “some” before “industry professionals,” according to a City Council meeting document.)
“After decades of advocacy from the state to the municipal and county levels, we finally will have strong warnings posted around Rocky Flats,” Allred said in a news release. “We appreciate these important steps by the Boulder County Commission and Westminster City Council to bring more transparency and public health (protection) to the region. It is time for other communities bordering Rocky Flats to follow suit.”
State public health department on risk
CDPHE continues to consider the refuge safe for public use under “federal health protection standards,” Ingersoll said.
“CDPHE and EPA conducted years of investigation and risk assessment at Rocky Flats using … thousands of environmental samples,” he said. “Based on that work, regulators determined that the Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge is suitable for unlimited use and unrestricted exposure, meaning no special public health precautions are required for the refuge acreage.”
A 2020 CDPHE review of potential radiation exposure from nearby construction found projected doses well below regulatory limits and more recent air sampling associated with trail work measured a fraction of the federal public dose standard, according to Ingersoll.Trails within the refuge do not enter the former industrial production area, which continues to be separately managed and regulated, according to Ingersoll.
“We understand people may view risk differently. Our role is to share the scientific and regulatory findings that guide our decisions,” Ingersoll said. “Based on decades of investigation and oversight, CDPHE and EPA continue to consider the refuge safe for public use under federal health protection standards.”
