SUPERIOR, Colo. — Warning signs are going up in the Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge — the site of a former nuclear weapons production site — warning people of possible radioactive contamination.
The Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center said this move is a direct response to requests from residents in the area. For years, the wildlife refuge has been at the center of heated debates about its safety and if it was properly cleaned before converted to a wildlife refuge.
While signs have been in place for years at the refuge, on Tuesday, Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center announced it was adding a new sign — this one warning about "potential risks of using trails."
Below is a look at the sign.
It warns that people may be exposed to radioactive materials and encourages hikers, bikers and equestrians to make informed decisions before entering. The City of Westminster said the new signage will also be posted at the bridge over Indiana Street within the coming weeks.
Rocky Flats was shut down in 1989 following an FBI raid and a federal investigation that resulted in Rockwell International, the site’s operator at the time, pleading guilty to environmental crimes, including illegal storage of radioactive waste and violations of the Clean Water Act. Although a $7 billion cleanup was completed in 2005, Allred and other activists argue the remediation was insufficient and that dangerous particles — including plutonium, americium, uranium, beryllium and radioactive lead — still remain in the soil and air.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service opened the refuge to the public in 2018. Today, the EPA and Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment say that the plutonium contamination in that area does not pose a health threat. But concerns continue to grow for nearby communities.
In June, Denver7 reported that Westminster was considering caution signs.
Around that same time, Westminster, Broomfield and Superior formally withdrew from the Rocky Mountain Greenway trail project, which would connect Rocky Flats to other regional parks. Wheels were set in motion in 2016 to develop the greenway, which would connect a string of trails from the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge to the Rocky Flats Mountain Wildlife Refuge to Rocky Mountain National Park.
In the past years, seven school districts have also barred staff from bringing children in their care to field trips at Rocky Flats, according to the Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center.
The Follow Up
Westminster considers caution signs at Rocky Flats amid contamination concerns
Christopher Allred, with the Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center, led the campaign for the new warning signs.
“After decades of advocacy from the state to the municipal and county levels, we finally will have strong warnings posted around Rocky Flats,” he said in a press release. “We appreciate these important steps by the Boulder County Commission and Westminster City Council to bring more transparency and public health protections to the region. It is time for other communities bordering Rocky Flats to follow suit.”
The controversy around Rocky Flats was on full display at the 19th Colorado Environmental Film Festival, where "Half-life of Memory: America’s Forgotten Atomic Bomb Factory" dove into the history.
Prior coverage:
- Westminster considers caution signs at Rocky Flats trails amid contamination concerns
- Scientists, community leaders call on City of Westminster to stop Rocky Flats pedestrian bridge plans
- Boulder County reconsidering involvement in trail connection to Rocky Flats due to plutonium concerns
- Environmental and public health advocates file lawsuit Monday to halt work on Rocky Flats trail
