State: Uranium in Juliette wells is from nature, not Scherer | Local & State | Macon.com

A draft state report places the blame for uranium-contaminated drinking water around Juliette squarely on Mother Nature rather than Plant Scherer.

The Department of Public Health report says wells around Juliette are more likely to have high levels of uranium than the rest of the state, and the highest levels found anywhere in Georgia have been found in Juliette.

The state agency said it looked at land use, water tests, lists of hazardous materials, industry regulations, geology and research before it “determined that uranium is naturally occurring at elevated levels in some areas of Georgia, including the Juliette area.”

The Telegraph received the draft report through Georgia’s Open Records Act.

Some Juliette residents are working with attorneys from Macon and New York to sue Georgia Power and the owners of Plant Scherer, a large coal-fired plant that uses unlined ash storage ponds. They say the plant’s waste effectively concentrates uranium and other contaminants, which can then work their way into nearby wells, air and soil.

via State: Uranium in Juliette wells is from nature, not Scherer | Local & State | Macon.com.