☢️Climbing a Giant Mound of NUCLEAR WASTE!!! | History Traveler Episode 348
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- Опубликовано: 16 май 2024
- Alright, so this one is a bit different. We're just outside of St. Louis, MO and we're climbing a GIANT mound of nuclear waste at the Weldon Spring Site. But there's more to this place that what meets the eye and the history behind this site is SUPER interesting. Definitely one to watch to the end. Enjoy!
For more on the Weldon Spring Site, go here: www.energy.gov/lm/weldon-spri...
This episode was produced in partnership with The Gettysburg Museum of History. See how you can support history education & artifact preservation by visiting their website & store at www.gettysburgmuseumofhistory...
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All drone shots conducted by a Part 107 licensed drone pilot with permission from the U.S. Department of Energy.
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Jd has a slight glow now!
Ha!
Especially in some of the earlier accidents, there was a blue flash reported.
At least he didn’t find a reason to bump his head.
Hahaha J D is now radioactive? 😂
Wait, JDs pregnant? 😮
Thanks JD. I am a retired paramedic in St Charles County. We were required to have training on this site as they were building it. I have done a lot of research of the surrounding (now gone) communities of the research area. This entire area is a historical honey hole. I still live only 8 miles from this site. Glad that you were in my stomping grounds!
Oh wow! Cool. Yes, lots of interesting history in that area.
I used to do LE training over there and it’s a pretty unique place that even our local population has no idea about. Pretty amazing place to see though!
This is a nice change up! I highly recommend that you attend the Oak Ridge, TN Secret City Festival. During this time they will let you tour the graphite reactor used in the manhattan project. It’s a diamond in the rough for WW2 history.
Definitely want to get to Oak Ridge at some point.
And my sister works for Oak Ridge Police Dept. 911... It's beautiful up there!
I lived in St Peters for several years, drove by the site many times . Fascinating to learn so much more about the site. There are hundreds of sampling wells surrounding the site to monitor the ground waters from the disposal and containment that was created there.
This video is why I really enjoy your channel JD. It's educational. We learn by watching your content. I had no idea about this place and it was very interesting to learn about what was taking place off the battlefield during WWII and how this place helped with the defense of our nation during the Cold War. Excellent work sir!
Glad that you enjoyed it!
Credit to JD, giving all of us a chance to see real information and research it ourselves. JD is a champion.
Lived in that area my whole life, went to that site for a school field trip. Thought it was the worst thing in the world, other classes/halls went to fun places like the city museum. I only realize now the importance and the impact of that place. There’s bunkers and storage areas from that time in Missouri all around the area.
I went there about 10 years ago, what amazed me is how quiet it is there, no birds, no car noise....nothing but the wind.
😢
😒😒
Animals are smart! They know that is toxic.😮
@@giselegamble9973 well its just rocks...There isnt anything of use for birds. No Water, No shelter. Just a open area.
Theres tons of animals there. They actually have managed hunts on the land
Lived in the area for 20 years and have driven past this hundreds of times. Hiked the trails that overlook the Missouri River less then a mile down the road. Knew it was nuclear waste, but had no idea about the TNT, DNT plant during WW2. Will absolutely be stopping there sometime in the near future. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.
Same, going today.
That was very interesting. Never heard of this. Thank you for everything you do.
I don't know how forgiving your wife is, but please let her know, it's content you show and narrate, that fascinates my curiosity about anything war related history and more !! Bravo 👏 You and your help are a history teachers- teacher 👏 !!
A step away from the normal content but this is really cool! I like the way you mentioned the controversial things like taking homes, etc. it’s important the look at all aspects of! And science contributions to history are very cool indeed! Great episode JD
But why did they choose that town to rid it's residents when they have millions of acres of baron wasteland in the NM/AZ/NV/CO/UT deserts? The Army was already in deserts training for Africa. Seems odd. Perhaps in proximity to the Missouri River is the only reason. Thought might be in proximity to Fort Leonard Wood but it's not.
There was a WWII ammunition plant in Millington, Tennessee. The two stacks are still standing.
Really interesting! Thank you for the effort!
My pleasure!
Added to my US "Destination Bucket List". Thank you for this JD!
I've visited our UK's Nuclear Store, up at Sellafield/Drigg in Cumbria, so visiting the US equivalent would be a trek from the hills of WV for sure!
Windscale☠️
I need that sign "Nobody runs from empty guns" over my reloading bench. Nice episode JD and thanks!
me too
Busch wildlife conservation area is located next to this site with 33 lakes for fishing I have many fond memories of my father taking me and brothers fishing, as a teenagers we would explore the Weldon spring site out of curiosity
Weldon Spring uranium plant contaminated Missouri lakes with radioactive waste
Lakes and streams in August A. Busch Memorial Conservation Area were contaminated with uranium from refining efforts in Weldon Spring
By: Allison Kite, Derek Kravitz and Kelly Kauffman - October 25, 2023
Read the above story.
Outstanding video J.D and thank you.
Glad you enjoyed it!
I have lived in a town next to Weldon Springs all my life. The government is keeping a lot of toxic waste information from the public even today. If you fly over bodies of water in this area it is always green. The quarries in St. Louis County are full of nuclear waste and is an issue Senator Josh Hawley is working on for this area.
Exactly. Get this. I Interned under the crook Governor Jimmy Carter. I completed a study on Nuclear Power Safety in 1974. Half the material was taken out. Then, remember Three-Mile-Island under Carter. Hahaha. Carter over-sprayed Georgia with poisonous fire ant spray. I'm a drafted, disabled, and 1968 Republic of Vietnam combat veteran. I wouldn't trust the government about anything! God bless.
I live in Maryland Heights Missouri, STL County right across the Missouri River from St. Charles. Two dumps are in the area. Bridgeton landfill has an underground fire, raging for at least ten years. Champ dump, behind Pattonville HS, has nuclear waste illegally dumped from the original Manhattan Project. The dumps are almost adjacent and the fire is moving toward the 80 year old nuclear waste. Despite public outcry and repeated concerns from fire chiefs, neither city hall is taking any action. If the fire reaches the nuclear waste nothing good will happen…and politicians don’t give a sht.
@@jimreilly917 My Uncles worked at the old West Lake Quarry in Earth City where toxic waste was dumped for years. Both died of cancer in their 50's. Senator Josh Hawley has done some work to bring this issue to national attention.
The Badger Ordinance in Sauk County Wisconsin has the same type of story. Farmers displaced for the munitions plant at the time of WWII. Fortunately all of the land has been reclaimed for recreation or state park. There is a small museum if you wanted to visit.
Very interesting video and history. You should do a video on the veterans of nuclear testing and Cold War that were exposed to the nuclear weapons testing and the health effects that followed.
JD, I grew up in the area (and went to the nearby high school you passed) and my mother still lives nearby. I remember growing up in the 80's and people didn't really talk about what happened at Weldon Spring. I'm so thankful for the interpretive center and how the history is being preserved. Thanks for a great video!
JD. How about doing a video on immigration. What did it take for our Great grandparents to come over around 1880. And what items that they brought with them.
On my list.
I would have never known this existed if it wasn't for this video. What fascinates me is the visitor's center that breaks down the process of making the various products. Thank you, JD!
Very informative. I didn't recall hearing much about this place, but as a small child the evening news always reported on the Times Beach evacuation and toxic waste clean up in the Eureka,MO area down by Six Flags.
I grew up in Denver and remember hearing about Rocky Flats for years in the 80's. Seeing this reminds me of that time.
This video brought me to your channel. Fantastic production and top presentation style my man. What an extraordinary place. All the best bro from the UK 😊
I lived in St. Louis for a time ... I never knew this site existed. Thanks for the education ... as always!
Yikes!
Glad that you liked it!
Another awesome video
Glad you enjoyed it!
I used to train at the Weldon Spring Army Reserve Training site before the cleanup. An area we were in a few months before would be fenced off the next time we were there. Then it closed for a few years and they built that facility. On the training site there were a lot of buildings and factories on the grounds, nearly all of which were removed in the past 8 years.
I live be a few miles from this and a few years ago I had went fishing at the Busch Wildlife Conservation area which is located just below this area, It consists of about 40 lakes. Fishing was lousy so I decided to visit the Site. It’s an amazing place to see. Imagine nuclear waste next to a place where people live, picnic, fish and hunt. The craziest thing is next to this is Francis Howell High School. Literally next to it. Go a few more miles down Hwy 94 and you have some of the best Vineyards in the Midwest, if not the entire country. There are also beautiful million$ homes within a few miles.
How absolutely stunning! Extraordinary, JD. Thanks so much for the introduction and the images. It’s like discovering the surface of the moon in your own backyard!
Pretty wild. Definitely learned a lot at this place.
I live in Missouri and I had no idea this was here. Thank you, JD for bringing this to light. I can only hope all nuclear waste sites are as methodically contained as this one
I always thought our nuclear waste was buried in salt mines, so i learned something.
I assume the air is monitored 24 hours a day.
Good to see the flowers were healthy and not wilting!
Air monitoring was discontinued after decades of air sampling showed no detectable levels of radon or radiation beyond background. You are welcome to walk the site with a Dosimeter if you want.
I was born and grew up in Herefordshire uk and we had one of the biggest munitions factory built at rotherwas hereford my family members worked there from ww1 right through ww2 and my grandmother was a munitions canarie girls who were turned yellow from the chemicals that was used for explosives she and many of the workers died from cancer caused by the toxic nature of the fillers used in bombs and shells hereford folks lived with this for many years after the closure of that site thank you for showing this site and showing people that lives were changed forever in the need for the war effort around the world ❤
WHAT!!!! I have followed this channel for a few years now and i love the history and the story telling. Here you are literally down the street from where i live. you would be amazed at all the history around here. So many stories, so much culture. how cool.
Oh dang! Yeah, lots of great history in that area.
I always think chemistry like the uranium process is nothing short of amazing, like who the hell was like yup I know exactly how to make it 😂😂😂
In addition to the site in the video, you can drive and walk through areas of Busch Wildlife Area and see the storage bunkers. To the east, is Weldon Spring Heights, and that was the Army officer housing. The Hamburg trail to the south is a truck route used in the cleanup from the quary to the containment dome
Thks, I have a client In That neighborhood, sears houses I believe, it’s actually nice. Makes sense now.
I had never heard of this place before, so glad that you brought it to everyone’s eyes. Thanks, really appreciate your videos.
Thanks for watching!
Impressive! What people can accomplish when they stop and do the right thing. Let’s just hope that all the dump sights look like this and this kind of care is being done today.
I never knew this existed so I learned something new today. Great video thanks JD.👍
Excellent video, JD! You might want to think about doing one on Iowa State University's role in developing a uranium ore purification process that was critical to the development of the atomic bomb.
Attended many re-enactmets at that site....we always worried that we would glow green after wandering the woods....
Ha!
Good video. We live less than ten minutes from the site. I have driven past it, many times, and have visited the visitor center. I highly recommend it. (We have not been to the top though.)
Always great content. This man doesn’t miss🤘🏻
Wow. Never knew there was a place like that in all places, Missouri lol. Great vid 👍
I used to work in health physics department for Scottish nuclear, we used to fill those yellow drums with everything & anything that was contaminated, from electric drills, spanners, overalls, rubber boots, gloves, so not everything is high level contaminants , in fact most equipment we dispose of was only done so because the contractors couldnt be bothered to or didn't know how to de contaminate the equipment.
Thanks , JD, for a very interesting video .
Really enjoyed the video mate
Found a beautiful 10 point buck carcass at Weldon springs conservation area . 10 or so miles from where you are, the largest non typical rack was found, the Missouri Monarch.
Great that you show this. Kudos!
Love that they provided seating at the top for those who may be a little winded after the climb.
JD, I hope you made it over to the Bush Wildlife area across the street. They have a bunch of old military bunkers that are open to the public. I'd love to hear the story about that place someday. I believe they used to store artillery shells in there?
So glad to find you. So tired of European history.
Were a big country, so much to see and learn . Thank you.
I find it all interesting. Thanks for watching! 🙂
You have to see the trinity site! They have open house twice a year. It was canceled in April, but they are doing it again in October.
I have it on good authority that this topic is gonna be covered on the History Channel later this year ;)
👀
Found this very interesting, thanks for doing this story.
Hey JD,
What they SOULD do is bury all the crunchy peanut butter in a mound like that!
Dang right.
Crunchy peanut butter is the best! Unfortunately I’m alone in that opinion in my household.
No, no. Just send the crunchy peanut butter my way! 😊
Maybe you could do some videos on nuclear energy history and accidents?
Yeah, I'd love to do that at some point.
GREAT VIDEO !!!!!!!!!
Thanks 🙏🏼
Fascinating history and science lesson. Thanks JD
We lived next door to this site off of Hwy 40/61 in Ofallon. Watched them build this containment site on the way to bush wildlife park. Scary to think we lived next to this for 5 years..
they shouldve built it in cahokia, it would've fit right in with the other mounds
Missouri actually does managed hunts on the land now. I keep applying for the deer hunt, tons of big ones there
👀
Oh, this is awesome -- thanks, JD! Will definitely make a point of visiting this place soon. Very interesting.
You’re crazy man I wouldn’t go 10 feet near that place 😎👍
Ha! Glad that I could go and share it.
different but entertaining as always! jd is my fav0rite narrator on you tube
Really interesting, thx
Very cool stuff!
This was fascinating JD.
What an intriguing place!! I never knew such a place existed. Thanks for doing this video and enlightening me.
Very interesting video. Thanks for sharing
drove by that yesterday i never have stopped by the building but i may now next time im that way.
Very insightful episode
Glad that you enjoyed it!
JD? What the Heck are you thinking??? 😮. Running!?!!! LOL 😂
Nice info!!
I used to be in the 85th Training Division, back in the 80s, and we used to do some training there.
I saw the interpretive center and the big mound about 10 years ago. Neat place to visit.
I kind of disagree with the part (5:45) that it was "kind of sad" that the government "Took their homes"
I am pretty sure they were given more than any market price in those instances.
I saw some yellow cake uranium here at Weldon Springs back in the 80s, and didn't know what it was.
Years later, I learned how nervous people are that get around the yellow cake form of Uranium.
Yeah, I really enjoyed it and learned a lot.
Love the Missouri videos when you do them. Any plans to cover the battle of pilot knob? I had never heard of it until I moved here.
We would take field trips there for science class. I believe the department of Energy spends around $3 million (2018 estimate) a year to maintain that site.
Awesome, thanks for sharing.. I can't help but think in 5k years some other civilization will think its a tomb with buried treasure.... Lol - Surry Virginia
A very different episode but very informative and as someone who lives near a former ordinance plant I know what the war effort took to defeat the Nazi's and Japan in WW II
👍🏻
This video was explosive JD! Joke aside, very interesting and very informative. I didn't know that this place existed. Let's just hope that you don't start glowing in the dark!
Wow! So did you come away glowing with radioactivity? 😮. LOL. What a site!!!!!!
Ha!
And now for something completely different. But seriously, this was one of the most informative videos I've ever seen. Well done, JD!
Thanks! Glad that you enjoyed it!
Wow what a crazy place
Definitely different.
Uranium City, was a settlement in Northern Saskatchewan.
Wow! So very interesting! Thank you ;-)
The Uranium and Plutonium came back to Western Missouri in the form of Minuteman warheads and bombs. Whiteman AFB was a Minuteman Missile Base and of course now it is the B-2 Stealth Bomber base 509th Nuclear Bomb Wing.
Cool video 👍
Now I see where JD gets his “Glowing” personality 😀😀
😂
This also looks like a great place for snakes….. yeks
The question I have is. With each container that was place in a specific location what was done to fill in any and all voids are filled as to rain water seepage to inhibit any corrosion from occurring to the containers that are in place.
Also are the containers being monitored for said corrosion?
I went there on a school field trip in like 3rd grade. I didn’t really understand what was buried their until much later
Really interesting I wonder how many other sites like this we have. Thx
Very impressive JD. Thanks. It was a necessary sacrifice to protect our democracy.
Very interesting. I have always wondered how they dispose of nuclear waste
Fort Lenardwood is there in Missouri and my dad was stationed there when he was in the army in the beginning of his career and he also said that the military uses some of the caves there in Missouri to store weapons and ammunition don’t know where that is but it’s there I think.
I am watching this video at my home less than 10 miles from this site. A lot of history in the St. Louis area.
Definitely!
I when to high school there. So many teachers and students died from cancer.
Yikes!
I live in the area, went to the mound in 7th grade for a field trip.
I like it when you are back in the USA. There is history here that you can continue to explore
👍🏻
Nice video.
Thanks!