Times Beach, Missouri

Once home to more than two thousand people, the town was completely evacuated in early 1983 due to TCDD (a type of dioxin) contamination, formerly the largest civilian exposure to the compound in the history of the United States.

[2] The famous U.S. Route 66 highway that stretches from Chicago, Illinois, to Santa Monica, California passed though the community on its southern end.

It happened just as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was confirming that dioxin contaminated the soil,[5] leading to the town's evacuation by 1985[1] and complete demolition by 1992.

[8] During the late 1960s, the Northeastern Pharmaceutical and Chemical Company, Inc. (NEPACCO) began operating out of a facility located near Verona, in southwestern Missouri.

[10] From 1970 to 1972, NEPACCO was primarily involved in the production of hexachlorophene (3), an antibacterial agent used in soap, toothpaste, and common household disinfectants, from 2,4,5-trichlorophenol (1) and formaldehyde (2).

Unfortunately, instantaneous dimerization of the resulting phenol produces trace amounts of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD), an extremely toxic compound known to have both acute and chronic adverse effects.

Bliss took most of the still bottoms to his storage facility near Frontenac, Missouri, where the contaminated NEPACCO waste was unloaded and mixed into tanks containing used motor oils.

[11] On May 26, 1971, the owners of Shenandoah Stable, located near Moscow Mills, Missouri, Judy Piatt and Frank Hampel, paid Bliss $150 to spray the floor of their indoor arena.

[9][12] The waste oil sprayed, which totaled a volume of 2,000 gallons, was uncharacteristically thick, and left a pungent, burning odor.

Twelve horses died, and children exposed to the arena were diagnosed with chloracne, a skin condition associated with dioxin poisoning.

[9] Although initial results revealed that the soil at Shenandoah Stable contained PCBs and chlorinated insecticides, the CDC was unable to identify a specific chemical culprit.

The ban was motivated by the death of thirty-two infants in France who were exposed to high levels of hexachlorophene in baby powder.

[11] With further investigation of contaminated locations, the CDC advised residents of the Minker and Stout properties to minimize contact with the soil.

In a 1975 confidential report to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the CDC also further advised the removal and burial of contaminated soil from both properties.

[16] The EPA did not become heavily involved with the Missouri dioxin contaminations until 1979 when a former NEPACCO employee reported the burial of toxic waste on a farm located about seven miles from Verona.

[15] In May and June 1982, the EPA decided to revisit the Shenandoah, Timberline, and Bubbling Springs stables, as well as the Minker and Stout properties.

[15] By 1985, Times Beach's entire population of well over 2,000 residents had been relocated, and Governor John Ashcroft had issued an executive order for the town's dis-incorporation.

[17] Since it contained over 50 percent of the dioxin in the state of Missouri and because it was no longer inhabited, Times Beach was the logical choice for the placement of a new incinerator.

[9][13] In response to the events that transpired in Missouri during the 1970s, a number of laws were passed to regulate the generation and disposal of potentially hazardous products.

In 1976, Congress passed the Toxic Substances Control Act, which required the testing of chemicals that could pose an unreasonable risk to the environment.

[15] In 1980, the passage of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) established a multibillion-dollar Superfund to investigate and clean up old, abandoned hazardous waste sites.

The passage of CERCLA also defined the liability of a company and ensured that parties responsible for the release of toxic substances are held liable in the case of environmental damage or harm.

In 1983, the federal government sued NEPACCO and its officers, Edwin Michaels and John W. Lee, in United States v. Northeastern Pharmaceutical and Chemical Co..

As they began to settle into their new lives, their logistical and financial worries were soon replaced by the fear that their children would be afflicted by sudden chronic illnesses.

One building from the town still exists: the park's visitor center was once a roadhouse from Times Beach's glory days and was the EPA's headquarters for the area.

[23] Subsequent studies of potentially exposed people from Times Beach and some other contaminated locations in Missouri have revealed no adverse health outcomes that can be directly linked to dioxin.

In a study conducted by the CDC and the Missouri Division of Health, no cases of chloracne, a common symptom of acute dioxin poisoning, were observed in Times Beach residents.

The former roadhouse, now the Route 66 State Park Visitor Center in January 2017
Map of Missouri highlighting Saint Louis County