Magnuson Park in Seattle – Part 3 of 4
This is the third in a series of posts about radioactive contamination at Magnuson Park left over from World War III. In my last two posts, I covered the history of the radioactive contamination left over from World War II at Magnusson park in Seattle and the Open House thrown by the Navy to explain what it was doing. Fortunately for the citizens of Seattle and the users of the park, State Representative Jerry Pollet decided that the Navy was not doing enough and he conducted a couple of impromptu question and answer session with the various experts who were there. The experts were not really happy with his involvement but they did their best to keep a positive attitude as they were bombarded with questions by those who attended. They did explain that they were not set up to take oral comments and encouraged people to fill out forms if they had questions or comments.
The local news media brought their cameras early and were treated to an attack on representative Pollet by a self described “environmental lawyer” who accused Pollet of grandstanding and said that there was no danger to the public at all and that Pollet was doing a disservice to the community by needlessly scaring people about the use of the park. Pollet calmly explained that there was sufficient cause for worry about the existing contamination and the plans for removal. He said that the 15 millirems that the Navy had set as a limit for the cleanup could still pose a threat giving the fact the pea patches and housing are being developed at the park. He said that exposure over time, especially for children who used the park frequently, could result in as many as one additional case of cancer per 100 people who use the park.
During the meeting, the rep from the State Dept of Ecology said that they had a great plan for clean up that was very stringent and would really do the job. Someone asked him what the plan was and he said that they were going to tear out the walls and floors that were contaminated, dig up the soil and cart everything away. Someone asked where the debris would go and he said that he didn’t know. Someone else asked how it was going to be transported and what route would be taken and he said that he didn’t know.
The format of the Open House with tables holding placards that dealt with different parts of the history, current situation and cleanup plans might be OK for notifying the public about a well known situation and its resolution but it is a very poor format for citizens who have little knowledge of a situation and need to learn more before they can even ask relevant questions. I repeatedly heard people say things like, “Why am I just hearing about this now?” and “I don’t even know the right questions to ask.” and “I want to hear the questions other people ask and the answers that they get.” and “It is too crowded and noisy for me to be able to ask the questions I do have and to hear the answers.” The general mood was one of frustration and confusion.
