Owen Park's dirt is dirty
You may want to reconsider the five-second rule if you’re picnicking in the area of Owen Park. According to the Leader-Telegram, “Soil contaminated from a factory that fueled Eau Claire's streetlights more than a century ago has been found in Owen Park.”
There appears to be no immediate danger for park visitors as the contaminated soil is currently covered by a foot of sand placed within the dirt. The concern is that this topsoil will eventually erode and make human contact with the contaminated portions more likely. The Leader-Telegram explains…
… if the top layer of sand is disturbed or wears away, the hazard would be from people coming in contact with contaminated dirt and then eating without washing their hands.
Concerts in Owen Park: still clean.
The L-T also mentioned that Xcel Energy has begun taking soil samples by digging various wells and will begin a slow cleanup process next year.
The danger as of now is apparently very low, and citizens shouldn’t be afraid to visit with their picnic baskets, hand-woven blankets, dogs, and children in tow. In fact, other areas where old factories used to extrude contaminates were higher up on Xcel’s cleanup list and are already receiving treatment/cleaning. Owen Park will be going under the knife soon enough, though.
