Parkside Elementary School (Des Moines, WA). The original school was built in 1956. The current campus was rebuilt in the early 21st century. The campus is East of the flight path of Sea Tac Airport (5 1/2 miles of the South approach).

The campus has had concerns from exposure from Asarco, the Midway Landfill, and another hazardous materials site (West of Pacific Highway South) that could have contaminated the playground from 1956 through the 1980's resulting in an increase of cancer cases from students, faculty, and staff.

Highline High School is considered part of the area contaminated. It wasn't added in this podcast since it was covered in another podcast.

This podcast focuses on a major institution that can be in the flight path many times, the educational system.

For those that were going to school in Highline, Federal Way, or Seattle, even for a short time frame (student, staff, or faculty) where airplanes were flying overhead, it can still answer some questions.

This podcast will cover every school from South Park (Seattle) up to Federal Way that are or were in operation after World War 2 in or near the flight path East of State Route 509 and West of Pacific Highway South/International Boulevard (SR 99).

Highline Community College is included. It is a major learning institution with 15,000 students on the 80 acre campus in the flight path from the South end of Sea Tac.

There is some emphasis on Parkside Elementary School (Des Moines) that not only is impacted by the airplanes today but was also impacted by Asarco, the Midway Landfill, and another hazmat site East of the school property since it's opening through the 1980's.

While McSorley Creek removed some of the contamination that was happening up the hill (from Parkside) those particulates would make their way down the hill into Saltwater State Park and into the Puget Sound.

Playing in that creek isn't a good idea and thankfully, steps are now being taken to clean it up.

Many of these toxic concerns impacted many in the Woodmont area as well.

Some of these schools were utilized as private schools by Seattle Christian School (before the current campus on Military Road was built) and others. They will be referenced by their public school name.

Other private schools that are or were impacted by the flight path include:

St. Philomena

Evergreen Lutheran (when using the Holy Trinity Lutheran campus in Des Moines)

Des Moines Assembly of God

Pacific Christian School (when Christian Faith Center was located on the Sea Tac campus)

Washington State Dept of Ecology-Dirt Alert website

While working on Evironmental Anthropology studies at Oregon State, this website was discussed:

https://ecology.wa.gov/Spills-Cleanup/Contamination-cleanup/Dirt-Alert-program

It is a good resource to show the effects of what Asarco did within the Puget Sound area.

As the smokestack has been deomolished and the property has been cleaned up into a very nice park in recent years

the remnants of lead and arsenic (on the topsoil) have diminished in 40 years from the rain but the contamination exists deeper in the ground and the sound.