Health and Environmental Hazards in The Tar Creek Region
"Dry" and "wet" methods were used to extract pure lead from ore. Dry methods produced chat piles, and wet methods required tailing ponds to process ore into a usable product (see Chat (mining) and Tailings). An estimate cited in the Oklahoma Plan for Tar Creek claimed around 75 million tons of chat piles exist, while the exact amount of tailings is unknown. Chat piles are simply large mounds of mining waste. It was not uncommon for children in the area to play around the chat piles, such as riding bikes up and down the large piles or swimming in contaminated waters. Some of the piles were even used for track practice.
Lead poisoning is especially hazardous to children under six years of age. High levels of lead at this age can produce lifelong problems associated with impaired neurological development. A 1996 study showed 35% of children ages 1–5 had blood lead concentrations above the threshold considered dangerous by Federal Standards (more recent reports show this number to be lower). Furthermore, the miscarriage rate in the area is 24%, compared to the national average of 10%. Empty mines also present a more immediate danger due to mine collapses. One collapse in 1967 took nine homes.
Lead can also have marked environmental impacts, especially in aquatic systems. Water from the region eventually drains into the Grand Lake o' the Cherokees. This has led to raised levels of lead in the lake, and there is currently an advisory to limit the number of fish consumed by fishermen in the area.
Read more about this topic: Tar Creek Superfund Site
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