It's official: The
, a Superfund site in Rosedale that doubles as a woodsy playground for trespassing locals, is definitely not safe for recreation—though moreso because of the rough terrain than the pollutants that linger in the soil there, according to a newly released public-health assessment by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.
The findings of the agency's
, published in November, were publicized yesterday in a press release that explains that investigators "found evidence of significant trespassing at the site" and that trespassers "are in danger of physical hazards such as sharp debris and sharp drop-offs" that "could lead to slipping, tripping, or falling." However, "exposures to contamination across the site are not expected to result in adverse health effects," the press release continues—though "any land use that unearths sub-surface soil could result in exposure to lead and chemicals."
Those "sharp drop-offs" are likely what attracts four-wheeling trespassers, whose mud-splattering fun also "unearths sub-surface soil." Now that they know it's dangerous, but not terribly contaminating, one wonders whether they'll seek safer alternatives—or simply keep on truckin'.
