OHIO ATOMIC PRESS, Jason Salley — Beneath the state’s reassurances and PR-spin lies a toxic legacy still leaching into the ground. A newly released 105-page analytical report, quietly filed by GEL Laboratories for the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), confirms what residents in this small northwest Ohio town have long suspected: radioactive uranium and dangerous heavy metals remain in the groundwater under a former DOE site.

The DOE swears it’s cleaned up. The state says the water is safe. But the science says otherwise.

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Legacy Contamination, Lingering Risks

The Luckey site—used first during the Manhattan Project and later, during the Cold War, for uranium processing and beryllium production under the Atomic Energy Commission. Waste materials, including uranium, thorium, and beryllium, were dumped on-site for decades. Cleanup under FUSRAP (Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program) started in the late 1990s, but nearly 30 years later, groundwater samples show radioactive signatures that should have been cleaned up a long time ago.

In May 2025, GEL Laboratories tested groundwater samples collected near the site. Their findings? Detectable uranium in four separate wells:

Sample ID	Uranium (µg/L)
S02-PV2	0.358
S03-PL	2.45
S07-LL	0.279
S10-BP	0.143

All levels fall below the EPA’s federal drinking water limit of 30 µg/L. But let’s be clear—“legal” doesn’t mean “safe.” The EPA’s Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) are regulatory thresholds built on outdated, short-term exposure models, not lifetime risk.

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Heavy Metals and a Dangerous Cocktail

The same report flagged elevated levels of several heavy metals:

• Manganese: 6.16 µg/L – neurotoxic with long-term exposure
• Iron: 476 µg/L – causes taste and discoloration issues
• Nickel: 3.05 µg/L – known allergen and toxic agent
• Zinc: 45.8 µg/L – typically benign, but high levels matter in mixtures
• Sodium: 189,000 µg/L (189 mg/L) – alarmingly high, potential cardiovascular risks

The toxic synergy of radioactive isotopes and heavy metals isn’t modeled by EPA risk standards. Regulators look at each chemical in isolation. But real-world exposure doesn’t work that way—especially when groundwater delivers a radioactive cocktail to people’s homes.

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Ohio EPA Downplays the Threat

On June 18, 2025, Ohio EPA issued a press release declaring local drinking water “safe.” They cited independent testing of nine public water sites in Luckey and Pemberville, saying uranium levels were low and that no beryllium, cobalt-60, or bismuth-214 were found.

Ohio EPA Director John Logue said the findings “offer peace of mind.”

But the watchdog data paints a murkier picture: while surface-level municipal water may test clean for now, the groundwater beneath remains contaminated. Uranium is still mobile. That means the risk of future migration into private wells or water supplies is real—and regulators are simply crossing their fingers.

Ohio EPA’s own results showed uranium in 7 out of 9 public water samples, with values as high as 4.68 µg/L—still under the federal limit, but far from comforting.

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Lies by Omission: What They Don’t Tell You

Ohio EPA’s narrative leaves out several key concerns:

• Decay Products: Bismuth-214, a uranium decay product, appeared in prior Toledo Blade testing, suggesting active decay chains in groundwater. EPA’s dismissive tone contrasts with the known behavior of radioactive decay pathways.
• Data Uncertainty: The GEL report was riddled with data quality flags: field blank contamination with mercury, estimated values (“J” qualifiers), and dilutions due to matrix interference. Yet, it was still signed off under NELAP standards—highlighting just how elastic “certified” results can be.
• No Public Advisory: Despite repeated detections of radioactive and toxic substances, Ohio EPA has issued no warnings, no advisories, and no direct outreach to nearby residents.

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Remediation? Or Just a PR Shell Game?

The DOE considers the site under long-term “stewardship,” a bureaucratic phrase meaning “we’re done spending money, good luck.” But radioactive materials aren’t done. They persist. They move. And when no safe level of radiation exposure has been identified, calling low levels “acceptable” is a betrayal of public trust.

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Community Ignored, Science Twisted

Experts warn that chronic exposure—even at low levels—can cause kidney damage, cancer, and developmental harm, especially in children. But Ohio’s regulators continue leaning on federal limits that fail to consider cumulative, long-term, multi-contaminant exposure.

And while public officials rush to reassure the community, the watchdog data continues to surface a deeper truth: Luckey’s radioactive legacy hasn’t gone anywhere.

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The Bottom Line

Key Findings from GEL Labs Report
Uranium detected in 4 groundwater samples	Up to 2.45 µg/L
Elevated metals in same samples	Sodium up to 189,000 µg/L
Mercury found in field blanks	Data compromised
Quality flags on several results	Indicates low confidence
No bismuth-214 detected by Ohio EPA	Contradicts earlier findings

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