A Permanent Radioactive Disposal Facility in Lewiston? Provide Public Input Online

The Restoration Advisory Board* is conducting a Public Survey regarding the following question and related issues: 

QUESTION: Should the Federal Government create a permanent radioactive disposal facility in Lewiston, NY? 

BACKGROUND: Provided by the Restoration Advisory Board
The Lake Ontario Ordnance Works (LOOW) consists of approximately 7,500 acres of land, located in the Towns of Lewiston and Porter, NY acquired by the federal government in the early 1940’s. The “Developed Area” (see Map) of the LOOW was used for military weapons production-related operations started during WWII.

Today, the federal government no longer owns the LOOW properties, with the exception of a National Guard Weekend Training Site, and the Niagara Falls Storage Site (NFSS, see Map).

The Niagara Falls Storage Site still houses radioactive waste material from atomic weapons production in the 1940’s and 1950’s. Residues are so radioactive, they must be handled remotely by equipment rather than humans. If left in place, the NFSS radioactive residues would pose a major environmental/health hazard to the Niagara region for thousands of years.

The Army Corps of Engineers is in the process of determining whether to remove some or all of the radioactive residues and wastes from the Niagara Falls Storage Site, and what standard of clean up the NFSS should undergo. 

PUBLIC SURVEY: Please visit the LOOW-RAB Website, and select answers to the 3 questions provided.

*The Restoration Advisory Board (RAB) is a forum for the public and all stakeholders for the exchange of information as well as open and independent dialogue concerning the environmental investigation and remediation activities at the Lake Ontario Ordnance Works.