The Dirty Secrets of Rocky Flats.

NUCLEAR weapons industry -- United States; FACTORIES -- Environmental aspects; PLANT shutdowns -- United States; UNITED States. Dept. of Energy; CANCER -- United States; LYMPHOMAS; PLUTONIUM

The article discusses the Rocky Flats Nuclear Weapons Plant in Colorado, focusing on the site's history as a manufacturer of plutonium triggers for nuclear bombs, as well as the large number of reported cases of cancer, leukemia, and lymphoma in the area surrounding the plant. The plant was closed and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) stated that it would likely take 70 years to fully clean up the site. In 2005, the cleanup was reportedly complete. Nearly 1,000 acres of the site are reportedly so badly contaminated that they can never be cleaned up.