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Heading into Memorial Day weekend, a roughly 300-foot section of Bartram’s Mile Trail along the Schuylkill River in Southwest Philadelphia remains closed and it’s unclear what agency needs to give the go-ahead to reopen it. More than a year ago, a hiker discovered a green substance along the trail, which was later determined to be cancer-causing hexavalent chromium leaking from a nearby former industrial site.
Bartram’s Garden, which controls access to the city-owned trail, says it is waiting for the green light from city public health officials to reopen it.
“We know how much people miss it,” said Bartram’s Garden Director of Development & Communications Caroline Winschel. “We want to know more to make sure that everybody is safe — visitors and staff.”
Pennsylvania health and environment officials say there’s little risk of exposure to the chemical for most park users, and the levels found along the trail posed no health hazard over the short term. Still, on its website, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection advises people to “continue to stay away from the closed area [of trail] in an abundance of caution.”
Philadelphia Department of Public Health spokesperson Jim Garrow said the city is not able to decide when the trail should be reopened, since it has not done soil testing. The Health Department will defer to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection on when to reopen the trail, he said.
The Department of Environmental Protection did not respond to a request for comment by press time.