Colorado School Districts Prohibited Field Trips to Rocky Flats

In April 2018, CBS Colorado reported that several Colorado school districts had prohibited school-sponsored field trips to the Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge, the site surrounding the former Rocky Flats nuclear weapons plant.

The Denver Public Schools Board brought forward a resolution prohibiting its nearly 100,000 students from participating in field trips to the refuge. Board members cited concerns that visiting the former nuclear weapons site posed too great a risk for schoolchildren.

Denver Public Schools joined Boulder Valley School District and St. Vrain Valley School District, which had adopted similar resolutions the previous year. Superintendents in Adams 12 Five Star Schools, Adams County School District 14, Westminster Public Schools and Jefferson County Public Schools had also issued directives prohibiting field trips to Rocky Flats.

The decisions came as the federal government prepared to open the wildlife refuge to the public. Although federal agencies maintained that the refuge was suitable for public recreation, the actions taken by these school districts reflected continuing concerns about Rocky Flats’ history, residual contamination and the potential risks of bringing children onto the property.

The former Rocky Flats Plant manufactured components for nuclear weapons from 1952 until 1989. Its history continIn April 2018, CBS Colorado reported that several Colorado school districts had prohibited school-sponsored field trips to the Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge, the site surrounding the former Rocky Flats nuclear weapons plant.

The Denver Public Schools Board brought forward a resolution prohibiting its nearly 100,000 students from participating in field trips to the refuge. Board members cited concerns that visiting the former nuclear weapons site posed too great a risk for schoolchildren.

Denver Public Schools joined Boulder Valley School District and St. Vrain Valley School District, which had adopted similar resolutions the previous year. Superintendents in Adams 12 Five Star Schools, Adams County School District 14, Westminster Public Schools and Jefferson County Public Schools had also issued directives prohibiting field trips to Rocky Flats.

The decisions came as the federal government prepared to open the wildlife refuge to the public. Although federal agencies maintained that the refuge was suitable for public recreation, the actions taken by these school districts reflected continuing concerns about Rocky Flats’ history, residual contamination and the potential risks of bringing children onto the property.

The former Rocky Flats Plant manufactured components for nuclear weapons from 1952 until 1989. Its history continues to raise important questions about public health, environmental monitoring and whether families receive enough information to make fully informed decisions about visiting the refuge.

The school districts’ precautionary actions are an important part of the continuing Rocky Flats story. They demonstrate that serious concerns about the site did not end with the plant’s closure or the completion of the federal cleanup.

Source: “School Districts Ban Trips to Former Nuclear Weapons Manufacturing Site,” CBS Colorado, April 30, 2018.u