29 NoraNora stared at the pictured smokestack. “Are you saying that the ground at the plant site is poisoned?”
“The plant site and a thousand square miles around it. The wind blew smokestack emissions across the area.”
His finger moved to the land mass on the far side of the water. “Much of Vashon Island was affected. Arsenic and lead settled into the soils. I’ve been involved in determining and monitoring the extent of contamination and the risks for residents.”
Her eyes widened. “People are living on poisoned ground?”
“The severity of the poisoning varies,” he noted. “Arsenic occurs naturally in ground all over Washington. The background level in the state as a whole, including the Puget Sound region, is seven parts per million. The highest concentration reached in the contaminated a
