After her recent success on Love Is Blind, Bliss can also add reality TV star to her resume. How deep did it go down? Leistner grew up in Valley Park and moved to Times Beach in December 1956, at age 18. Downstream from the Verona plant, dairyman Bill Davis watched eight cows die after they drank from a river a half-mile from the factory where all Missouri's dioxin was once produced. Sometimes, its thought that people are asking for complete safety, complete security. WebJERRY-RUSSELL BLISS, INC., Petitioner-Appellant, v. HAZARDOUS WASTE MANAGEMENT COMMISSION, et al., Respondents. One residence has had to be evacuated because of interior contamination. The area has been fenced off and excavated. Others drove out through the rising water, trying to follow the roads they couldnt see. See the article in its original context from. Entrepreneurs like Truman Nickel, however, are busy hauling away beat-up mobile homes for resale in Alabama and Louisiana with the EPA's blessing. I know Monsanto was not a viable defendant in this litigation.. Under crossexamination after Tuesday's testimony, Mr. Lambarth acknowledged that since Jan. 1 this year he has been working for a waste oil concern that is competing with Mr. Bliss for customers. Bliss disposed of this waste in various ways. On any given afternoon, youre bound to see deer wandering in the woods. he asked. After all, Bliss sprayed the oil on his own property, and once even claimed to have tasted it to test its strength. TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. Yet we know there are people who are not sensitive, because of their lucky genetics. Tom Whats-his-face at the Post-Dispatch, he didnt have time. "I don't think we're proud of the track record," said Fred A. Lafser, director of Missouri's Department of Natural Resources at one hearing. When considering deviations from the existing zoning code, the city takes into account several factors, such as the availability of utility services, topography and road conditions, but nothing on the municipal books deals with building houses on top of former hazardous-waste sites. It was an overstatement, to be sure, but one rooted in factat least until the Great Depression. Another has a rare form of epilepsy. While the CDC warned residents to evacuate and stay out to avoid dioxin exposure, the jury is still out on its long-term effect on humans, as well as the extent of contamination. The EPA removed the remaining barrels in July 1983. According to a 1981 IEPA document, Piatt recalled that Bliss possibly obtained waste from Monsanto. The IEPA summary goes on to state: Judy Piatt has a diary and pictures of such activities, but will not release these to (EPA) Region VII on the advise of her attorney., But perhaps the most damning indictment comes from Bliss himself. (Despite repeated requests, the agency was unable to comment for this story. oklahoma public land deer hunting Accept X Natalies ashes will be spread in a private family ceremony at the barn, her favorite place on Earth. February 13, 2022 1 Min Read. If theres any dioxin left, it doesnt seem to bother the wildlife. ", Dave Covert feels bad about what happened. Steve Taylor (at left) never lived in Times Beach, but he did spend time at one of the horse farms where Bliss sprayed. Stuff flooded in for us to have Christmas like you wouldnt believe, she says. The couples property is adjacent to the Bliss farm. During the questioning, inmate Scott Rollins, a former Bliss driver, made a stuttering confession that he had picked up waste from Monsanto in Illinois. Regulatory authorities became aware of the contamination in October. He isnt here to argue that the Times Beach incinerator spewed poison from its smokestack. Memories of the eviction are still too emotional. Officials blame their inaction on scientists who once believed dioxin decays faster than it does. On this day, fuzzy dice are 35 percent off. But while he uses words like fraud and cover-up, there is one key difference between this man and a full-blown environmental kook: Taylor knows that there are things he doesnt know. He carries a brown leather briefcase, packed full of documents, many of which he says are classified. I remember this old guy he used to give us stuff. By its order dated August 7, 1987, this Court found the NEPACCO defendants, IPC, Russell Bliss and Jerry-Russell Bliss, Inc. jointly and severally liable "They'd tell me, 'You can't see it, taste it or feel it.' Some Times Beach residents evacuated, but many defiantly stayed. Bunch lived at Cape Cod, a little motel on the edge of town. Just about everything seems out of place, even the stuff that says Route 66 on it. Times Beach, which involved burning over 265,000 tons of dioxin contaminated waste from more than two dozen sites in eastern Missouri. "We had no authority to do anything until the Superfund law passed in 1980," Hedeman said. As of now, no specifics about Russel Flowers involvement in the accident have emerged on the internet. Only a small portion of the residents ever made it back. The second half of the sites name is something of a misnomer, because the locations of the Bliss farm and the other hazardous-waste sites are all outside the Ellisville municipal limits. She worked as a receptionist at a dental office and became a Times Beach alderwoman in 1981. Bliss faces five lawsuits from property owners, officials said, and an unrelated indictment for tax evasion. [5] Outline of AbrahamHicks' teachings Last Saturday morning, Steve Taylor heard a tapping at his apartment door, a gentle rapping that he hopes to hear no more. An EPA tracking sheet lists 29 such sites. The only request: wash down the trailers first. Will it be cheaper to buy out the town or clean it up?". McClellan calls Bliss an intelligent and thoughtful man, and hes stayed in touch with the erstwhile waste hauler over the years. Even so, he has consistently denied having any knowledge that the materials were toxic. Emmett Copeland moved to Times Beach as a teenager in the early 1970s. Early 1970s: Waste oil hauler Russell Bliss is hired to remove dioxin from the tanks. Records confirmed Bliss had been there. Indeed, it borders on negligence. The younger Bliss is appealing the denial of his request for a hauling permit from the Missouri Hazardous Waste Management Commission. This time Teasdale made the plea with the TV news cameras rolling. But as you see, Bliss drivers consistently stated that Monsanto was a client.. The chemical companies paid him to take the sludge, and then he turned around and sold it to somebody else. Eventually, one of the towns police officers, a 300-pound man nicknamed Tiny, whom Copeland remembers eating quite a few long johns from his parents shop, identified the culprits. You got to do your homework on these pieces, otherwise youre wasting your time. "Is it in the garbage? Sue OLeary, 76, lived in the Beach for 20 years. Bliss showed no emotion during sentencing before U.S. Dictrict Judge Clyde S. Cahill. Officials won't know until next month, when 250 new dirt samples come back from the lab. Leistner rejects the notion that its all simply genetic. It brought a lot of revenue into Times Beach, Leistner says, laughing. As these families were being made their offers, they were taking the money and running, Leistner says. She currently holds the position of Senior Program Manager at The Walt Disney Company. Although state and federal regulatory authorities all heralded the closing of the incinerator as the end of states toxic legacy, the discovery of the new site draws into question the EPAs prior assumptions about the origins of the dioxin and other hazardous wastes that have long plagued the region. If she had a couple of drinks at Bucks Place, she could walk home. She doesnt speak to me., Eventually, the properties of those who didnt take the buyout went into condemnation. Sid Hammers wife didnt want to stay in Times Beach, but Sid didnt see anything wrong, Leistner says. But PCBs have been found in the past along with dioxin at the now remediated sites in eastern Missouri. WebThe Bliss site is an 11.5 acre tract owned by Jerry Russell Bliss, plus four contiguous properties near Ellisville, Missouri. My (goal) is to have a park that is presentable to the public and that is safe to the public and doesnt put them at any risk. Nothing against journalists some of them are my best friends, Wurm adds. However, we dont have any information that would suggest there would be. The following year, in November 1982, the city clerk received a phone call from a reporter. In an effort to control the dust, the city hired waste oil hauler Russell Bliss to spray them down, which he did multiple times between 1972 and 1976. The state presented its evidence in the case at an hearing in January, and Bliss' defense of the They even had a couple of pool tables, and one time, Minnesota Fats stopped by for a game. she asked. In all, 265,000 tons of dirt from 27 locations would be burned. He had acquired an official document detailing suspected dioxin sites across Missouri. In the short term, the federal agency has settled for containment and fencing off the contaminated areas. (He declined to comment for this story.) The mostly pleasant trails run north by the railroad tracks and then take a right along the river. 314-918-3000. A federal court jury July 22 found Bliss guilty of over-stating his business expenses for 1976, 1977 and 1978. There are many epidemiological studies that showed health effects in humans exposed to dioxins, says Dr. Hana Pohl, an environmental health scientist at the CDC. There are no signs to warn these park users that they are trekking through a hazardous waste site. Judy Piatt, who was co-owner of Shenandoah Stables in 1971 when the arena was oiled for dust control, testified that the driver for Russell Bliss, a waste oil dealer, ''told me there was special stuff put in the oil for special customers that would kill flies.''. "When I hear people talking about the effects they're feeling now, tears come to my eyes.". The park is nice enough. If you were born and raised there, you grew up there, but then you moved there., On Saturday nights, she and her husband would get together with friends to play penny-ante poker. Leistner doesnt go to the reunions. To outsiders, Times Beach residents might as well have bubonic plague. Bliss could not be reached for comment. EPA lab tests Dec. 23 confirmed dioxin on several Times Beach roadsides 100 times higher than that. For four or five months, that site has been standing there idle. And some, he mixed together with oil in storage tanks in both Missouri and Illinois, before selling it as a dust suppressant. Even so, between picnics with neighbors, river recreation, town dances, and quite a few saloons, life in the Beach, as old-timers called it, was downright pastoral. I look at it this way as a lawyer, says Steincamp. One of her adult sons has since contracted a lupus-like disease, says Jordan. Mennonites came in to help rebuild. Supreme Court of Natalie faced her 20-year battle with Multiple Sclerosis with bravery, grace, and dignity. It was an abortion. A guard and a caution sign were posted at the entrance to town, a bridge that came across from the high side of the river, to keep people out. The lots were small, and you needed at least two to build a house. He remembers being approached by an official one day while he was working. "They got rid of Agent Orange by burning it," Hedeman said of the dioxin-based herbicide used widely in Vietnam. She had cancer in her female organs that had metastasized to her blood, Leistner says. Those who returned were instructed to leave, and anyone who hadnt was told to stay away. We have to determine what there motivation is.. Monsanto is a big, big company. The EPA and CDC have each published massive documents detailing the many health hazards associated with it. Prosecutors said Bliss wrote 27 checks to fictitious people overstating business expenses, thereby reducing his federal income taxes. There are a lot of people I know who were exposed to the same stuff and moreand didnt., Today, the land that was once Times Beach has been turned into Route 66 State Park. The next day, he was sure that somebody was doing it to get even with him, Leistner says. The only building that remains is a former roadhouse, now a museum and gift shop. Only Bliss actually knows how much he knew about what he was hauling. BY C.D. Jerry Bliss was the first witness today when the hearing resumed. Whether the 88-year-old wants to be is another story. Catching up with Mike Bliss. A trio joggers run past them. "Why, if it's so dangerous, did the government wait 10 years to warn us?" The words come easily, honed over decades of repetition. But it was not until Piatt's horses began dying and her daughter became ill that CDC toxicologists believed something was dreadfully wrong. They wanted to paint, but she wouldnt let them, told them to go help somebody else. Contacted by phone last Friday at EPA headquarters in Kansas City, Martha Steincamp, regional counsel for the EPA, could not provide details on the Bliss-Ellisville cleanups and referred all questions on the matter to Bob Feild, the agencys project manager. Although Mr. Lambarth was subpoenaed as a witness for the state, his testimony tended to support Mr. Bliss's contention that at the time he picked up the dioxin wastes, he did not know they were hazardous. For instance, because some of the toxins at Times Beach were similar to those in Agent Orange, he says, the government might have had an interest in minimizing the Times Beach investigation, to limit its own culpability in Vietnam. One document that TBAG copied is a verbatim transcript of an interview conducted by an EPA official in 1980 at the Missouri State Penitentiary in Jefferson City. Sometimes, Copeland and Bunch would spend a summer day walking the railroad tracks on the west end of town. "There are too many unknowns at this point.". Wildwood residents originally voted to approve the creation of the municipality to control development, thereby ensuring that greenspace would be preserved. He was 91. The liquor store doubled as a tackle shop, selling rods and bait. The Vietnam veterans got a huge settlement, Taylor says. This suggests that some of the mixed hazardous waste that Bliss sprayed came from another source or sources. Then came a 7-Eleven. I think its unfair, unjust All my friends say that I was a scapegoat.. The plant was owned by a subsidiary of Syntex, the company ultimately held liable for the eastern Missouri Superfund clean up. She lived there for a quarter century, until December 1982, at which point the town was thrown into what she calls the time of flood and dioxin. She has spent the past quarter century telling the Times Beach story. By the EPAs count, the Bliss-Ellisville site contained at least seven separate waste-disposal locations. When asked to comment last week, Monsanto spokeswoman Diane Herndon responded with this prepared statement: No information exists that any dioxin material was hauled by Bliss for Monsanto and so no material from Monsanto would have been sprayed on roads. We didnt like that, because people were building new homes. Leistner (at right) remembers four churches and four taverns, a perfect balance. He was 87 years old. A missing page, a missing date, a missing signature. Her children helped walk the horses and worked in the stables, she says. The missive from Martha Steincamp, the EPA regional counsel, instructed Taylor and other members of the Times Beach Action Group (TBAG) to turn over any information they may have concerning potential hazardous waste sites in the St. Louis area.
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