JEFFERSON CITY, MO, MARCH 17, 2025 – The Missouri Department of Natural Resources is glad to see Director Lee Zeldin is in Missouri to evaluate firsthand EPA’s handling of radiologically contaminated sites related to the development of the atomic bomb, according to MoDNR Director Kurt Schaefer.
“The Department of Natural Resources thanks President Trump, U.S. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin and members of Congress for working with Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe, who is from North County and very familiar with this issue,” said Schaefer. “We’re glad to see the federal government finally devoting the level of seriousness deserved to the St. Louis area and impacts from the federal government’s development of the nuclear bomb as part of the Manhattan project,” said Schaefer.
As the lead regulatory agency for these sites, EPA is responsible for the sites.
The Department of Natural Resources stands ready to advise in any way EPA may need, said Schaefer, who leads MoDNR under Governor Kehoe.
MoDNR periodically conducts site visits and occasionally performs independent investigations and sampling in the vicinity of these sites. This includes technical review on decision documents, work plans, designs, investigations and reports, and assisting with field oversight of investigation and remedial activities.
“This is a complex historical problem for the federal government, and we are glad to see the federal government may be moving toward acceptable resolution,” said Schaefer.
Some areas became radiologically contaminated in 1973 when soils mixed with uranium ore processing residues were used as daily cover in landfilling operations. The radioactive residues were related to the Manhattan Project, a research and development program that produced the nuclear bomb.