PRESS RELEASE: ROCKY FLATS GREENWAY OPPONENTS NOTIFY FEDERAL COURT OF OFF-SITE, AIRBORNE PLUTONIUM DETECTION DURING “HIGH WIND EVENT”

Attorneys for groups seeking to protect the public from radioactive contamination at the former Rocky Flats nuclear weapons plant today notified a U.S. District Court in Washington, DC that measurable levels of plutonium were recently detected in air filters downwind of that facility. According to the plaintiffs, the finding reinforces their legal claim that constructing trails at Rocky Flats and opening them to the public threatens “irreparable harm” to neighbors.

The federal Court is currently considering plaintiffs’ motion for a Preliminary Injunction to block U.S. government agencies from building the “Greenway” trail through a contaminated portion of Rocky Flats. That legal action argues that walkers, bikers, and site neighbors risk exposure to particles of highly radioactive, cancer-causing plutonium that were never cleaned up. Demonstrating the threat of “irreparable harm” is necessary to win a federal court injunction.

The plutonium referenced in today’s notice was detected during an April 2024 “high wind event” in air filters directly downwind from Rocky Flats by Northern Arizona University Professor Emeritus Michael Ketterer. An analytical chemist, Dr. Ketterer found that, “The plutonium was from non-fallout sources and is from Rocky Flats.”

Dr. Ketterer concluded, “The air filter results demonstrate that plutonium is transported by wind events from Rocky Flats to neighboring communities.”

Jon Lipsky, the retired FBI agent who led the surprise raid that resulted in Rocky Flats being shut down, worked with Dr. Ketterer on setting up the air filter study. Lipsky added, "Today marks the 35th anniversary of the raid at Rocky Flats, which continues to threaten public health and the environment.” The FBI raid of Rocky Flats for “environmental crimes” took place on June 6, 1989.

The lawsuit was brought by Physicians for Social Responsibility and watchdog groups from communities near Rocky Flats. Boulder Attorney Randall Weiner co-represents the plaintiffs.