Washington– Debris from Demolishing the East Wing of the White House The National Park Service said the dumped material at a nearby public golf course tested positive for lead, chromium and other toxic metals.
Interim report Toxic metals, along with PCBs, pesticides, petroleum byproducts and other chemicals, have been detected at levels above laboratory reporting limits in soil at East Potomac Golf Links, a Virginia engineering firm says. Historic golf course Which President Donald Trump plans to renew.
The Park Service began dumping debris from the East Wing onto the golf course in October, and more than 30,000 cubic yards (810,000 cubic feet) of excavated soil had been moved to the site as of last month, the Jacobs Engineering Group report said. The report was requested by the Park Service.
The nonprofit DC Preservation League has sued the Trump administration, arguing that the dumping was illegal and potentially dangerous. The group is also challenging the Republican administration’s control of the golf course, about 2 miles (3 kilometers) southeast of the White House, and other courses in the city.
The lawsuit is one of several legal battles challenging Trump’s extraordinary efforts to put his mark on public spaces in the nation’s capital, including… Renaming and closing of the Kennedy Center And build a 250-foot (76 m) tall tower. Arc de Triomphe Close to the Lincoln Memorial.
At the end of last year, a separate group of conservationists I filed a lawsuit It seeks to prevent the administration from demolishing the East Wing so it can build a ballroom, a project scheduled to cost $400 million.
A spokesman for the Interior Department, which oversees the park service, said in an email Tuesday that the soil removed from the White House “has been tested numerous times by multiple parties, and this project has passed all standards set by law.”
Agency spokeswoman Katie Martin said that while the agency does not comment on lawsuits, this comprehensive process has been followed to ensure transportation is safe for the public.
Experts are still analyzing the engineering report, Rebecca Miller, executive director of the Conservation League, said Tuesday. She said the group is also concerned about whether the Trump administration is adhering to federal laws, including the National Historic Preservation Act and the National Environmental Policy Act.
Debris from the East Wing demolition is so widespread that it causes golfers to turn around piles of it, Miller said. “If you Google it, you’ll see a lot of pictures of golfers walking by,” she said in an interview.
Miller said the Trump administration’s plans to revamp the 105-year-old course to make it a professional-level course would permanently change its historic character and design.
A federal judge told the government on Monday Do not cut more than 10 trees Without providing notice first in the middle of a legal dispute.
U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes said during a remote hearing that she would not issue a temporary restraining order yet, but indicated she would take a harsh view of any major modifications made without advance notice.
Democracy Forward, a national legal organization co-representing the Preservation League, said in a press release that “more scrutiny will be needed regarding potential toxins dumped by the administration in East Potomac Park as part of the destruction of the East Wing of the White House.”
The group said that test results released by the government “indicate that the defendants dumped a range of contaminants — and despite indications of the contents of the waste, they continued to dump it.”
Kevin Grace, superintendent of the National Park and Memorial Parks for the Park Service, said during Monday’s court hearing that there was no immediate plan to begin removing the trees, but he added that a safety assessment was underway.
Trump, an avid golfer, also plans to renovate Military golf course Just outside Washington, which former presidents have used for decades.
In her statement, Martin said the Interior Department is “committed to continuing the relationships we have built with local golf communities to ensure these courses are safe, beautiful, open, affordable, fun, accessible and world-class for people who live in and visit the world’s greatest capital.”