BOSTON TOWNSHIP, Ohio — With the announcement this week that former President Jimmy Carter is entering hospice care, many are looking back at the legacy the longest-living president left behind.
President Carter’s time in office included several environmental efforts, many of which continue to affect areas across Ohio.
Once a junkyard until 1980, the Krecji Dump, nearly 50 acres in size, sat along Hines Hill Road in Boston Township, Summit County.
For nearly 30 years, the dump was full of rusted cars, along with barrels of toxic chemicals.
In 1985, Cuyahoga Valley National Park acquired the property. According to the National Park Service, the Krajci Dump received solid and hazardous wastes from nearby cities, towns, and many companies.
The National Park Service soon realized the scale of the pollution caused by the former wasteland.
The level of contamination qualified the site for the EPA’s Superfund program, a bill signed into law in 1980 by former President Carter.
According to the EPA, the program is responsible for cleaning up some of the nation’s most contaminated land, along with holding those who polluted the land financially responsible.
Many major corporations were discovered to have disposed of industrial waste at the Krajci Dump, including Ford Motor Company, General Motors, Chrysler and Chevron, according to the National Park Service.
Under the Superfund law, those companies that disposed of hazardous materials at the site were liable for the costs related to cleaning up the contamination.
“I would have never known it was a dump,” said Calvin Locklear, who visited the Cuyahoga Valley National Park Tuesday with his two kids. “I’m so glad they actually did something with the space.”
The renovated area is now enjoyed by many today, including the Locklear Family.
Calvin said he’s happy to see a stance taken against polluters and hopes the initiative continues for many years to come.
“I think it’s important that we as a society take a stance and step up, because a lot of these things we’re not aware of,” he said.
