The St. Louis region has been struggling with nuclear waste since uranium was first processed at a plant near downtown starting in the early 1940s. Decades later, the federal government is still removing soil from a creek and cleaning up a landfill, both sites where nuclear waste was dumped. Last year, a grade school closed amid worries that contamination got into the building and on the playground. Many people with cancer who live near the waste sites believe their illnesses are from exposure to the radiation. The AP examined hundreds of pages of files, inspection reports and other documents that showed nonchalance or indifference to how nuclear waste was treated decades ago.
