Health officials in 1980s warned of health hazards in Acreage

Tonight, an I-Team Investigation reveals there was possible ground contamination discovered years ago in the Acreage.

It happened long before the pediatric cancer cluster was ever confirmed.

A new report shows state health officials likely knew about environmental contamination in the Acreage decades ago.

We just got our hands on a report that shows authorities knew there was a problem.

They were asking about contamination then, and they are asking about it today.

 The report is dated October 1988.

And it basically says investigators determined that Pratt and Whitney, located just miles from the Acreage, had contaminants that posed a human health threat. This week, health officials are taking soil samples, looking for the cause of the Acreage cancer cluster.

But this report points the finger at Pratt and Whitney as one possible source.

The report, prepared in October 1988 by the Florida Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services, says Pratt produced a number of hazardous wastes that it stored and buried on its property.

Even back then, 22 years ago, authorities found Pratt was a potential threat to public health.

As this aerial map shows, Pratt and Whitney, a major defense contractor, is only about 7 miles from the Acreage in northern Palm Beach County.

The report says: "...this site is considered to be of potential public health concern because of the risk to human health caused by the possibility of exposure to hazardous chemicals in the ground water and air..."

Among the stuff that Pratt disposed of in landfill and incineration trenches on its site were solvents, sludges, pesticide and herbicide residue, fuel, mercury, asbestos and unnamed commercial and laboratory chemicals.

The report says: "Human exposure to contaminated ground water is of concern."

And it also says: "Surface water runoff and flooding may introduce contaminants to the wetlands and canals that drain the site."  It also says contaminated, wind-blown dust is  a concern at the Pratt site.  Again, that was in October 1988.

Richard Cotromano and his wife live have lived in the Acreage for almost 8 years and they have a 6 year old girl, Elizabeth,  with an inoperable brain tumor.

"They should've cleaned it up. I mean, that to me is unacceptable."

It angers him he says, to know that Pratt was identified as a concern 22 years ago.

"Being the area was not very heavily populated at that time...who knows what could've been dumped out there."

We just received a statement from Pratt and Whitney.

It says in part "We maintain a comprehensive network of groundwater monitoring wells at this facility, overseen by state agencies, that shows our past and current operations pose no threat to human health. We continue to cooperate fully with all regulatory agencies in their investigation of health concerns in The Acreage."