CHESAPEAKE
Farmers and others familiar with the 217-acre site on which a golf course made from fly ash now sits say they doubt that elevated boron readings from well tests nearby are linked to agricultural use.
"It wouldn't be enough hardly to test," said C.W. Bradshaw, the former president of Weaver Fertilizer Co. Inc., which owned the golf course property for more than 50 years. "It would be a very slight trace."
Bradshaw said that for as long as he's known it, the land had been used to grow corn, wheat and soybeans.
L ast month, city officials released the results of water tests taken at 75 properties near the Battlefield Golf Club at Centerville. In many cases, the tests found higher levels of boron than for the other nine elements in the sampling.
The city noted at the time that boron is used in agricultural operations, which were prevalent in that part of the city for decades. Boron is also in fly ash, however, and its presence in test results could foreshadow the arrival of other contaminants of greater concern into the well water.
Though sulfates are known to be another fly-ash "marker," the city did not test for them because of a complication with the testing method.
Bob Lambert, who since 1953 has grown corn, wheat and soybeans on a 327-acre farm about a half-mile from the golf course site, said boron accounts for about 0.02 percent of the premium fertilizer he has used.
He's not sure whether it could be linked to elevated boron levels in the tap water of some nearby homes that rely on wells.
"I'm beginning to wonder about that," Lambert said. Boron used in farming is " such a small amount."
A letter to the affected residents from the city noted that the levels of boron found do not indicate a threat to human health. As of Tuesday, city officials were still evaluating the results and had not determined the cause of the elevated readings.
"The work on the site and the evaluation of the results will tell us more," said Lizz Gunnufsen, a city spokeswoman. "All we can do now is speculate, which we think is unwise."
While the testing continues, the owners and managers of the golf course are reeling from the financial pressures brought by scrutiny of the site.
"These guys have borrowed against everything they've got," said Richard Matthews, their attorney. "This is tearing them up."
Matthews said the lakes on the golf course are its sole irrigation source. The lakes were tested and showed no problems, he said.
If the lakes were contaminated with boron or anything else, he wondered why there wouldn't be "dead grass all over the place."
The golf course's conditional use-permit, approved by the City Council on June 20, 2001, provided for a seven-year period within which nearby residents whose wells dried up or showed signs of contamination from the project could seek a new one from the developers.
That period is set to expire June 20.
Last week, the city gave "notice of claim" to MJM Golf LLC, the company that owns the course, "for each potable well serving a home within a 2,000 foot radius of the outer boundaries of the golf course."
"In the event that test results show well replacement to be necessary or prudent, the city will expect the owner to honor its obligation to the community," wrote City Manager William E. Harrell.
There are roughly 200 wells in the affected area.
Matthews said the current golf-course owners were latecomers to the site.
"We had nothing to do with the prior project," he said. "All we did was buy the land and finish the golf course. We're just trying to do the right thing here."
Watson Lawrence, an agricultural extension agent in Chesapeake who works with farmers, said boron plays a necessary but very small role in plant nutrition.
"Boron is a micronutrient that is utilized in very small amounts by crops," Lawrence said. "From a cost-effective strategy, we do not apply large amounts of boron to field crops."
In some cases, boron is applied directly to the leaf tissue of plants in order to minimize the risk of over-application to the soil, he said.
Boron was added to the test panel because it is a "marker" for fly-ash contamination, said W. Lee Daniels, a Virginia Tech professor and fly-ash expert, in an interview last month.
"Boron is the most mobile constituent we see," Daniels said. "If there's one thing that'll move first, it's boron, then sulfates."
Originally, the testing offered by the city focused on nine elements that can leach from fly ash into groundwater, posing potential health risks. After the samples had been taken, Daniels advised the city to add boron and sulfates to the test panel. But the tests couldn't search for sulfates, because a small amount of nitric acid was added to the samples as a preservative. Nitric acid destroys sulfate before it can be analyzed.
Last week, a Virginia Beach law firm looking into issues relating to fly ash on the golf course, sent a letter to nearby homeowners, suggesting that they may want to ask the city to retest their water, measuring for 16 other possible contaminants.
However, the city is not planning to conduct any more testing on the adjoining properties and is instead focusing on tests at the golf course site, Gunnufsen said.
"What's in the fly ash would dictate the need for any further testing," she said.
Peter deFur, an environmental consultant in Richmond and a part-time faculty member at Virginia Commonwealth University, said that not including sulfate in the test panel "is sort of inexcusable."
"There's no reason why they can't go back and pull another sampling," he said. "It's sort of a no-brainer."
Charles Norris, a Denver-based hydrogeologist who works with Earthjustice, an environmental law firm, said the fact that elevated boron levels were found in samples taken from kitchen tap water suggests that what's in the groundwater is at least that much.
"They've done a sniff test that says, 'Uh-oh, something doesn't smell right, but we don't know how bad it is.' "
Robert McCabe, (757)222-5217, robert.mccabe@pilotonline.com
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Repeat until it every one belives
That is how the global warming alarmists are. The sky is falling, the sky is falling . .after hearing the same thing over and over people eventually start to beleve it. The Pilot will keep trying to blame developers and Thelma Drake for something that does not exist. The farmers don't think it's there fault - of course they don't.
Everyone thinks I am great, Everyone thinks I am great, Everyone thinks I am great, Everyone thinks I am great . . .
Hey, where's the arsenic, lead ... ?
Where's the arsenic, nickel, vanadium, beryllium, cadmium, barium, chromium, copper, molybdenum, zinc, lead, selenium, uranium, thorium, and radium?
What a farce. First we get a series of A-1, above the fold stories. Then when testing shows nothing, we get a lower-profile B-1 story.
Meanwhile, sandwiched in between these, The Pilot is running promotional ads touting their investigative reporting, in a naked attempt to position themselves for an industry award. ["We broke the story"] But, the results show .... NOTHING!
Don't despair, just go and talk to some farmers and keep the bogus story going in order to save face, and maybe if you can stir up enough doubt, you can force new tests and the next series of test results will give The Pilot enough to go on to eke out a modicum of journalistic integrity.
Newspapers make mistakes just everybody else. That's excusable. But continuing to push a story that has no merit and sensationalizing it to save face is inexcusable.
All this tempest in a teapot has done is raise the anxiety level of residents in that area, crippled the viability of the golf course owners, and cultivated saliva for the ambulance chasers who smell a k
This is how it works Judy
The roads are in bad shape everywhere there is not a new development. Ever notice how in front of new subdivisions there are nice wide lanes, turn lanes, bike lanes, curb and gutter, sidewalks, nice wide shoulders, etc. Then where there isn't a new development the roads are narrow, uneven, little or no shoulders, deep ditches, poor sight lines, etc.
Thank the "greedy" developers for making all the public improvements, while the city just keeps taking your "taxes".
Like it or not, without developers - you and 100 people you don't know, would have to get together negotiate the price of the land, go to the bank ask them for a loan, get proper zoning and city approval. Then have surveys and engineering done, and meet all the demands of the city, like building sewer pump stations, extending water lines making road improvements, etc. Then you could pay for the construction (hopefully there are no wetlands to contend with - note - if it is wooded, it is probably wetlands). Don't forget to keep paying the bank, then once the roads and utilities are built and the city has ok'd everything, you can then begin building a house (hope your attorney set up the HOA properly). Now that
IRA has it right i
IRA has it right i think.
fast forward to the days 35-45 years from now looking on my 3D Holoscreen TV watching ads from lawyers,
"Did you ever go near Centerville Turnpike and Whittamore Road? If you did contact the lawfirm of Dufus, Rufus and Poofus and wel'll get you the CASH! CASH! CASH! You Deserve!"
Then i'll say something like "I remember in my day when lawyers only ambulance chased car accident victims and Mcdonalds coffee spillers, they were the good old days Lowell The Hammer Stanley was the bees knees boy, tell you what..."
The real issue
"Last week, a Virginia Beach law firm looking into issues relating to fly ash on the golf course, sent a letter to nearby homeowners, suggesting that they may want to ask the city to retest their water, measuring for 16 other possible contaminants."
Anyone see the real issue here($$)?
Why not just test wells near fields that have been used by the same farmers? Remove the variables before pointing a finger at any party involved. From a test well perspective on this land the test sites are inconsistent in their results.
Fly Ash in Chesapeake
The City of Chesapeake should have never allowed fly ash to be dumped anywhere in the city. Chesapeake should have known that fly ash contained dangerous materials. The dumping of fly ash should have been illegal. Potential contaminated drinking water is not the only problem in the Hickory area of Chesapeake. The City of Chesapeake has been neglectful of the roadside that is torn up on Centerville Turnpike in front of the golf course area. Not only is it a dangerous drive it is unsightly. Chesapeake talks big about how they would like Chesapeake to look beautiful but they show little concern. This is not the only area that is difficult to drive on Centerville. Just north of the canal bridge on Centerville Turnpike there is a new housing development for single family homes (formerly a swamp). Through the years of driving in this area I have seen over six car accidents on the Centerville Bridge. One of them was a five car pile up. The City of Chesapeake has made poor choices for the safety of our citizens. I can only image that it has helped take away the value of homes in the area. The City of Chesapeake should be held responsible.
whats the point
whats the point of throwing the blame around for the poor state of affairs here. If fly ash is so bad why is Virginia Power allowed to operate a landfill on the Southern Elizabeth River that leaks everytime it rains. Oh thats right, they have the political clout to.
Everytime I pass over the high rise bridge and see guys fishing at the hot ditch I cringe. You can see the ash in the wet lands, in the water, in the air, and surely in the ground. Are they responsible to suppy this area with clean drinking water ?
Developer's Failure
This requirement is from the the conditional use permit issued to the golf course/waste disposal site developer. It is clear he violated this stipulation and city officials did not ensure compliance.
"The applicant acknowledges that it is his legal responsibility to ensure safe public drinking water to his patrons. As such the developer agrees that he shall monitor the domestic water supply for the clubhouse and have
prepared water quality reports by an independent consultant on a semiannual basis. Such report shall be filed with the State Water Control
Board with a copy provided to the City of Chesapeake Department of
Utilities. The term of these reports shall extend from six (6) months from
the date of the initial land disturbance to two (2) years after the formal
opening of the golf course."
Why did the developer fail to conduct the testing they were required to conduct in this conditional use permit?
Over 55 years . . .
A nearby farm has been polluting the groundwater for over 55 years. There are dozens of farms in that area of the city. Most, if not all of them, have been dumping tons of fertilizer on the ground for decades. I'm sure there is no coincidence between the farmers dumping BORON on the ground and the elevated levels of BORON in the drinking water. We must blame the developers. The city should test the water of all the neighborhoods near farms to see if they have elevated boron levels. If those homeowners have Boron poisoned water, should the homeowners sue the farmers? Maybe if a reporter lived near another farm he could write an article about how the farmers have skirted the rules, maybe he could even find that a farmer contributed to the campaign of Krasnoff for Mayor.
Once again...
The levels of boron shown so far do not indicate any threat to human health
But yet here we are with the 5th?.6th?..10th? story about the same thing on the same site.
Of course the fertilizer company would say that, as are the owners since the fly ash has been put in, as will the current owners, city officials...and anyone else who ever drove by and threw out a gum wrapper nearby.
Noone will ever say "Oohh it was me, I totally polluted that site. Please sue me for all the money there ever was"
of course, since the readings dont show pollution...