More than 2,000 residents of this Missouri town, located about 30 mi (48 km) southwest of St. Louis, were evacuated after it was contaminated with dioxin. In 1971, chemical wastes containing dioxin were mixed with oil and sprayed along the streets of Times Beach to keep down the dust. The spraying was done by Russell M. Bliss, whose company collected and disposed of waste oils and chemicals from service stations and industrial plants. Much of this toxic waste oil was sprayed on roads throughout Missouri.

Shortly after the spraying around Times Beach, horses on local farms began dying mysteriously. At one breeding stable, from 1971 to 1973, 62 horses died, as well as several dogs and cats. Soil samples were sent to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta for analysis, and after three years of testing, the agency determined that dangerous levels of dioxin were present in the soil.

A decade...