Whilst doing some research for a couple of future blog posts, I came upon the latest in the long line of Bullshit concerning names associated with Rattlechain lagoon.
We have had various names over the years, all with the deliberate intention of trying to divert attention away from the hazardous waste site containing toxic chemicals. “Rattlechain tip”morphed into “Rattlechain mere” and then into “Rattlechain lagoon.” It would all sound Scooby Doo but for the fact that Albright and Wilson the chemical manufacturers dumped white phosphorus contaminated material into one single pit starting in the early 1940’s when they were manufacturing Second World War weapons. Associations away from the company are what these name amendments were all about, as is the fact that Rhodia’s name appears on the front gate and not the Solvay brand.
In the days of dumping we had “the clean side lagoon” and ” the dirty side lagoon”, even though the Hazardous waste unit/Environment Agency recorders appeared ignorant of the fact that there was only ever one real pit and lagoon , that by sleight of hand of a manmade causeway path in 1961 became divided into two. Of course they also were fool enough to allow discharge from the said “clean side” which we know contained unregulated white phosphorus dumping before licensing, into The Birmingham Mainline Canal.
So imagine my surprise when finding the map above which some asshole has decided to rechristen “Upper Rattlechain Lagoon” and “Lower Rattlechain lagoon”. Even more bizarrely the ignoramuses behind this term label the subsidiary smaller area of water and not the whole of the site as “toxic”.
Of course Rhodia/Solvay claimed that this side of the site had had its toxic crap pumped into the larger lagoon and was all “safely” tucked up in bed under a blanket and then sand during their 2013 cover up works. What we have in the narrow manmade causeway path and the manmade material separating these two areas appears to have gone unregistered. It isn’t marl and it isn’t non porous.
So is this all part of the ludicrous attempt at trying to rewrite history and sweeping “the toxic” part of the site to the West to try and facilitate housing on the East? Well it ain’t going to happen, because the history of this site is not going to be swept under the carpet and be top soiled with toxic tips masquerading as “Garden Cities”.