Projects and Investigations
Florida Phosphate Radiation Investigation
There are 27 phosphate mines in Florida, covering more than 450,000 acres. Of those, nine phosphate mines are currently active. The Genetic Justice Team is investigating potential radioactive contamination as a result of phosphate mining and subsequent processing in Florida.
If you live near this mining activity and you are concerned about radiation contamination on your property, click the link below to sign up for FREE radiation testing.
Phosphate Mining and Radioactivity
Phosphate rock contains naturally-occurring radionuclides, mostly uranium and radium. Uranium decays to radium and radium decays to radon, a radioactive gas. When processing phosphate rock to make fertilizer, the phosphorous is removed by dissolving the rock in an acidic solution. The waste that is left behind ends up in mountainous structures called phosphogypsum stacks.
The radionuclides from the phosphate rock are concentrated in the phosphogypsum waste and its radioactivity presents hazards, if managed improperly.
