Upcoming in St. Charles, Mo.
Cleaning up the Weldon Spring Site
Presentation by Yvonne Deyo and Kevin McCarthy, Weldon Spring Site Interpretive Center
Chemical and radioactive contamination at the Weldon Spring Site led to a major environmental cleanup effort starting in 1986. Yyvone Deyo and Kevin McCarthy will share the story of the Weldon Spring Site’s complicated past and cleanup, describe the long-term surveillance and maintenance program, and future plans for providing educational resources to the surrounding community.

This photo, circa 1990's, depicts one of the many contaminated dumpsites at the Weldon Spring site that were cleaned up during the 1990's and 2000's. photo courtesy of Weldon Springs Interpretive Center.
Presentation by Yvonne Deyo and Kevin McCarthy, Weldon Spring Site Interpretive Center
Wednesday, June 10, 2015
4:30 p.m. Free Paddle trip with Big Muddy Adventures! (details below)
6. p.m. Meet at Big A’s Restaurant
6:30 p.m. Presentation
At Big A’s Restaurant (in the back room)
308 N Main St. – St Charles, MO
(directions below)
The Weldon Spring Site, located on Hwy 94 near I-64, has a unique history connecting to WWII and the Cold War. As a result of site activities during these eras, chemical and radiological contamination occurred leading to a major environmental cleanup effort starting in 1986. Yvonne Deyo and Kevin McCarthy will share the story of the Weldon Spring Site’s complicated past, present long-term surveillance and maintenance program, and future plans for providing educational resources to the surrounding community.
Free Paddle Trip with Big Muddy Adventures!
Join expert Missouri River guide Mike Clark of Big Muddy Adventures before the presentation for a up and downstream paddle through downtown St. Charles on the Junebug canoe. Space is limited – PLEASE REGISTER on the Greenway Network website.
Here’s the link to register – fill out your name and the month you want to join the paddle trip: www.greenwaynetwork.org/get-involved/educational-events/big-muddy-speaker-series-paddle-registration.php.
This opportunity brought to you by the generosity of Greenway Network and Big Muddy Adventures.
Meet by the river behind Big A’s at 4:30. You’ll be back by 6 p.m.
Directions
To Big A’s on the Riverfront, our host for the Speaker Series.
To get there from I-70
- Take I-70 to exit 229B – the 5th St. Exit
- Merge onto 5th St. headed north toward St. Charles.
- After about 1 mile, turn right on Monroe St.
- Turn left onto N. Main St.
- Big A’s will be on your right (308 N. Main St.) Additional parking is available in the rear.
- View on Google Maps.
Resources and Links
Dig deeper for more info on this topic.
- Website for Weldon Spring Site Interpretive Center
- Download fact sheet on Weldon Spring Site history (pdf)
- More Fact Sheets
- WSSIC Online Tour (lots of good info)
- EPA Superfund Profile on Weldon Spring
- Wikipedia entry on Weldon Spring Ordnance Works
- Historic Photo Gallery of Weldon Spring Ordnance Works
Articles
There remains a lot of local controversy on whether or not contamination that originated at the Weldon Spring sites continues to pose a threat to water resources and residents in nearby areas. Here’s some older and more recent articles related to the history of the Weldon Spring site.
- “A Pile of Nuclear Waste now a tourist attraction in Weldon Spring, MO” – post on Amazing Planet
- “Report on Cancer Risk from Weldon Spring assailed” by Blythe Bernhard, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Sept. 20, 2012
- “A Monument to our Times” by Jeff Joiner, Rural Missouri, Sept. 2004.
- Reprint of 1989 St. Louis Post-Dispatch article on Weldon Spring.
- “St. Louis Burning: What killed the babies near Weldon Spring” by Ryan Schluesser, Al-Jazeera America, April 30, 2015. Part of a three part series on radiation contamination in St. Louis area.
- “The Right To Answers” – article by Jeanette Batz in Riverfront Times, March 2001.
- “Mountain of Nuclear Waste Splits St. Louis and Suburbs” – article by Keith Schneider, New York Times, March 24, 1990
The Big Muddy Speakers Series in St. Charles
is hosted by these wonderful partners:
- Greenway Network
- Missouri River Relief
- Friends of Big Muddy
- Big Muddy Adventures
- Big Muddy National Fish & Wildlife Refuge
- Big A’s Restaurant
All speakers are presenting for free and Big A’s is sharing the space for free! Thank you for sharing your knowledge with all of us!
The Big Muddy Speaker Series also takes place monthly in Rocheport and Kansas City.
A special thank you to Greg Poleski of Greenway Network and Mike Clark of Big Muddy Adventures for making this happen!