Damage control.....

Sinkhole at fertilizer plant leaks 'slightly radioactive' water into Florida aquifer

A massive sinkhole has opened up at a fertilizer facility in the US state of Florida, releasing millions of liters of contaminated waste water into a major aquifer. The company says it's detected no risk to the public.

Jacki Lopez, Florida director of the Center for Biological Diversity, told the Reuters news agency that the three-week gap between detecting the sinkhole and reporting it to the public was alarming. She said the release of uranium, radium and radon gas were of particular concern, adding that once contaminants reach the aquifer, they can potentially travel hundreds of miles.

"We don't know what the long-term effects will be," Lopez said. "If I were living in this area, and I had well water, I would be worried about my health."

Mosaic, the world's largest supplier of phosphate, said it was monitoring groundwater and had found no offsite impacts so far. It also said it had pumped water out of the affected pond to reduce the leakage, and was working to recover the contaminated discharge.