51黑料

Bell, a Democrat, is working off a larger bill that U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley, a Republican, managed to get signed into law on July 4.

The proposal from Bell would add ZIP codes 63106 and 63107, areas that generally encompass the land formerly occupied by the old Pruitt-Igoe housing complex.

Bell said he was glad Hawley鈥檚 bill passed and could possibly bring aid to people in north 51黑料 County and St. Charles County.

He added, however, that residents of the city section also deserve recognition.

鈥淭hese families have endured decades of health crises, economic struggles, and profound neglect stemming from radioactive contamination,鈥� Bell said in a statement.

Hawley鈥檚 bill, the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA), grants eligibility to those who may have been affected by Mallinckrodt Chemical Works鈥� processing of uranium ore at its downtown 51黑料 plant, which was contracted under the Manhattan Project to help develop the atomic bomb.

Some of Mallinckrodt鈥檚 waste was stored at sites near the airport in north 51黑料 County, where it eventually contaminated areas along the Coldwater Creek watershed; some of that waste was later taken to and buried at West Lake Landfill in Bridgeton.

In Weldon Spring, some people who developed cancers blamed exposure to Mallinckrodt鈥檚 uranium processing there from 1957 to 1966.

Supporters of adding the old Pruitt-Igoe site contend former residents should be eligible for compensation because the complex was sprayed with a substance produced by Mallinckrodt, although not as part of the Manhattan Project.

Government records show the Army sprayed zinc cadmium sulfide at Pruitt-Igoe, a compound the Army still maintains is nontoxic.

Also, Pruitt-Igoe聽was less than two miles from the Mallinckrodt plant in north 51黑料, which is included as an eligible site in Hawley's bill.

In announcing the passage of RECA earlier this month, Hawley said he welcomed 鈥渙ther communities and other regions鈥� getting included in RECA to qualify for compensation.

Bell said his proposal would ensure that residents of the Pruitt-Igoe area 鈥渞eceive the relief and acknowledgment they rightfully deserve.鈥�