A bill passed by the Florida state legislature would require the state to carry out a study into the use of “a radioactive waste byproduct of fertilizer production” in the construction of roads, the Associated Press reports.
Following a signature from Governor Ron DeSantis, the proposal would require the state to study how phosphogypsum could be used for “road construction aggregate materials.”
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, phosphogypsum must be placed “in ”stacks” that resemble enormous ponds.” Florida has 24 of these stacks and creates 30 million new tons of phosphogypsum annually as a result of the phosphate fertilizer mining industry.
Criticisms of the use of phosphogypsum in road construction have been voiced by environmental groups, citing that it poses risks of “spilling into waterways and elsewhere during storms,” such as in March 2021 when the Piney Point stack leaked and caused an estimated 215 million gallons of polluted water to enter Tampa Bay, killing large amounts of fish.
Phosphogypsum is regulated by the EPA due to it containing radium-226, which produces the hazardous air pollutant radon gas.
