TALLEVAST — Residents of this historic southern Manatee County community voiced their discontent and lack of confidence Wednesday in a proposed 50-year plan to clean up contaminated groundwater under their homes.
At a meeting in the Mount Tabor Missionary Baptist Church on Tallevast Road, more than 50 residents gathered to hear representatives of the Lockheed Martin Corp. explain the Remedial Action Plan submitted to Florida environmental regulators.
When Doug Foster, a consultant with the engineering firm Camp Dresser & McKee, hired to develop the plan, flashed a slide indicating the plan would take at least 50 years, the audience began to rumble and snicker.
The cleanup plan was developed after it was discovered in 2000 that the groundwater of this predominantly black community was contaminated with toxic waste left behind from the former Loral American Beryllium plant at 1600 Tallevast Road.
Lockheed owned the property when the contamination was discovered, so it is responsible for the cleanup, under the supervision of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
After asking several questions about supplying information on the demolition of buildings on Lockheed property and not receiving any satisfactory answers, one resident said in frustration, “We’re the victims and you’re treating us like we don’t count.”
The Bethesda, Md.-based company tore down two of the buildings on its property where a high concentration of groundwater was found, but Manatee County officials allowed them to leave the cement slabs in place, contrary to code.
“We think the county suspects there’s an issue with the soil under the slab,” said Wanda Washington, vice president of FOCUS, a community advocacy group.
Brad Owens, the Lockheed official charged with implementing the remedial plan, tried to explain that tests for toxic gases were performed on the soil under the slabs and said all the data showed no soil was contaminated.
The residents asked Deborah Getzoff, director of the Southwest District of DEP, if the state environmental agency would take the data into account before it issues an approval.
Getzoff said the state hired an expert from California to analyze the results of the soil gas tests and would use the conclusions as part of the approval process.
But even all the colored slides and detailed explanations Lockheed offered could not soothe the emotional feelings of residents and what the toxic spill did to their property values.
Because of the cloud of toxic contamination and a 50-year-long cleanup period, Clifford Ward said residents can not use the equity of their homes to accomplish some of their dreams, such as send their children to college.
An attorney for Lockheed said they were restricted from commenting on the property value issue, because most of the Tallevast residents at the meeting have a lawsuit against the company.
