Thursday, September 1, 2011

Friendswood, Texas

In March 1989 the Brio Industrial site in Friendswood, Texas was listed as a Federal Superfund site, giving Federal authority to come in and clean up hazardous waste that would endanger public health and the environment.
After irresponsible disposal practices of toxic waste, the groundwater became contaminated, resulting in illnesses, elevated miscarriage rates, birth defects, and the deaths of 3 young children. The surrounding neighborhood was quickly cleared out.
During the clean up, a large incinerator was built with the intention of burning the waste, but the San Jacinto South campus Science department was crucial in shutting down the incinerator before it was ever used, as it would endanger the health of people for miles all around.

All the official legal documents for the Brio Superfund site are located in the San Jacinto South campus library across the street, they are open for public viewing.


December, 1989


December, 2002

March, 2011



You can find it yourself on Google Earth using these coords:     29°34'30.55"N    95°12'33.52"W


Check back next week to see the creation of a man-made island.

2 comments:

  1. DanielleMay 01, 2013

    I want to see the google earth image of the neighborhood when the houses were still there, how do you get to that map? I did the coordinates you gave and it just shows what the brio neighborhood looks like today.

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    Replies
    1. Danielle, here are the directions to get the historical imagery:

      1) Make sure you are using Google Earth and not Google Maps. Google Maps does not have all of the same capabilities as Google Earth. You can download Google Earth for free

      2) On your google Earth toolbar (usually near the top of the map) you should see a clock with a green arrow pointing in a counterclockwise direction. Clicking this icon brings up the historical imagery.

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