Krey and E. The dotted red line shows the route of the proposed Jefferson Parkway. Plutonium is highly flammable. Water cannot be used on a plutonium fire without risking a criticality or nuclear chain reaction. There were more than fires at Rocky Flats, the largest occurring in and These fires spread radioactive contamination in the Denver metropolitan area, particularly to areas south and east of the site. Many people choose to get in a car every day, even though statistics show it's a really bad health choice.
It's possible to see risk everywhere, nowhere and at many points in between, he said: "You can see it wherever you think it's gonna keep you from getting to tomorrow. Search Query Show Search. Show Search Search Query. Play Live Radio. Next Up:. Available On Air Stations.
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Ryan Moehring. Story updated Oct. In some ways, living on the Front Range involves a risk. Join Today. Sign Up. I Support Learn More.
Latest Stories. More ». Sign Up Now No Thanks. Become a member and go ad-free! Support Our Journalism. Privacy Policy. Managers at Rocky Flats did not always follow the rulebook in making decisions.
In , for example, they settled a dispute with rancher Marcus Church by giving him keys to fence locks and allowing him to move cattle through the top-secret plant. Other management decisions were not so humorous. Many had to do with the disposal of large amounts of nuclear and toxic chemical waste created during the production process. Such environmentally unsound practices in industries around the nation came under increasing scrutiny after the Environmental Protection Agency EPA was established in But weapons plants such as Rocky Flats claimed they were exempt from such jurisdiction because of the Atomic Energy Act of That immunity argument worked until challenged in court during the mids, at about the same time whistleblowers informed FBI officials of potentially illegal practices at Rocky Flats.
This dramatic, if symbolic, raid occurred as the Cold War nuclear arms race was winding down and federal priorities were shifting toward environmental protection and away from nuclear weapons production. Indeed, in November , five months after the raid and the same month the Berlin Wall fell, plutonium operations at Rocky Flats were halted. A little more than two years later, President George H. But DOE retained ownership of about 1, acres, 20 percent of the area, in the most contaminated central industrial section of the plant site.
As of , the refuge, with its planned biking and hiking trails, had not been opened to the public for what the US Fish and Wildlife Service said are financial reasons.
The significance of the Rocky Flats complex can be seen largely through its legacies: the bombs it manufactured, its former workers, the environment, and the community. On a national level, the hollow plutonium bomb cores made at Rocky Flats are present in the US nuclear arsenal, which in amounted to 7, weapons of the 17, nuclear weapons possessed by nine nations around the world, Russia has the largest number, with 8, The US plutonium bombs were produced by the more than 20, men and women who worked at Rocky Flats over the years, some of them for decades.
For example, chronic beryllium disease, similar to black lung disease, definitely killed or sickened a few hundred plant workers. Cancer, a disease whose origins are harder to pinpoint, has afflicted many workers — some of whom died while others continue to fight for health compensation. It is clear from various studies that radiation contamination from Rocky Flats went off the site, but the significance is still disputed.
On-site contamination is indisputable. Some members of the grand jury investigating the case, along with activists and other citizens, complained that the settlement was not tough enough.
The record shows that Rocky Flats was a secretive, dangerous industrial complex, particularly as it aged. By the s, the major plutonium-processing building had far exceeded its designed lifetime. Publicity about the plant, both before and after the raid, made it seem sinister.
Many people in nearby communities continue to wonder aloud whether radiation from the plant caused the illnesses or deaths of friends or relatives. State health department data, such as the cancer registry, do not support such fears, but they still persist. Uncertainty, risk, and evidence are weighed differently by various individuals and groups. For example, antinuclear activists often see danger because of the unknowns, while many officials see the available data and information as demonstrating that risks are negligible.
The debate is sure to continue after the national wildlife refuge is opened to the public. Rocky Flats is located between Golden and Boulder just east of Highway In the US government built a major nuclear weapons factory there. Its purpose was to process plutonium into metal and to make plutonium bomb cores. These bombs were similar to the kind of bomb that destroyed the Japanese city of Nagasaki in Because of the radioactive materials the plant worked with, it also posed a danger to the community.
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