PIKETON, Ohio—Three years after the presence of enriched uranium was reported at a Piketon, Ohio, middle school, the surrounding community is still awaiting test results to find out the full extent of the problem.
Pike County Health Commissioner Matt Brewster told The Epoch Times on June 13 that he expects “anytime now” the results of an assessment of nuclear contamination in the six-mile radius surrounding the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PORTS).
Located just south of Piketon, PORTS has been a source of community pride and economic opportunity since the Cold War era, when it served as a uranium enrichment facility for nuclear bombs. Though largely decommissioned, the remaining facilities at the 3,777-acre site continue to process uranium for nuclear reactor fuel—still offering some of the highest-paying jobs in the otherwise depressed Appalachian region of southern Ohio….