St. Joseph, Missouri, sits on the bluffs above the Missouri River, about 55 miles north of Kansas City. Home to roughly 72,000 people, it’s a city with deep roots — the starting point of the Pony Express, a major meatpacking center, and, less celebrated, a center of lead smelting that left lasting contamination.
The city draws its drinking water from the Missouri River, one of the most turbid and chemically complex rivers in the nation. Understanding what’s in that water — and what’s in the ground beneath the city — is important for everyone who lives here.
The Lead Smelting Legacy
St. Joseph was home to major lead smelting operations for over a century. The American Smelting and Refining Company (ASARCO) operated a lead smelter in the city that processed lead ore from Missouri’s extensive lead mining districts.
The smelting process released lead into the environment through multiple pathways:
- Air emissions — Lead particles from the smelter stack settled on neighborhoods, yards, and gardens across a wide area downwind.
- Slag disposal — Lead-contaminated slag was used as fill material throughout the city — in roads, parking lots, driveways, and construction sites.
- Waste disposal — Smelting waste was disposed in on-site and off-site locations, contaminating soil and groundwater.
The result: widespread lead contamination in residential soil, particularly in older neighborhoods near the former smelter site. The EPA has investigated and remediated properties with the highest lead levels, but the extent of soil contamination across the city is significant.
Missouri’s lead belt — the historic mining region that supplied the St. Joseph smelters — is one of the largest lead-producing regions in world history. The environmental legacy extends from the mines to the smelters to the communities that hosted them.
EPA Response and Soil Cleanup
The EPA has conducted multiple investigations of lead contamination in St. Joseph neighborhoods. Under the ASARCO bankruptcy settlement (ASARCO filed for bankruptcy in 2005, partly due to environmental liabilities), funds were allocated for cleanup of contaminated properties nationwide, including in St. Joseph.
Remediation has included:
- Soil sampling in residential yards near the former smelter.
- Excavation and replacement of contaminated soil at properties exceeding EPA’s residential screening level of 400 ppm for lead.
- Blood lead level testing for children in affected neighborhoods.
However, lead contamination in soil is widespread enough that many properties beyond the immediate remediation areas may still have elevated lead levels. Residents who garden, have children who play in yards, or disturb soil during renovation should be aware of this risk.
Missouri River: The Source Water
The Missouri River is one of the longest rivers in North America, draining a watershed that stretches from Montana to its confluence with the Mississippi at St. Louis. By the time it reaches St. Joseph, the river has collected:
- Agricultural runoff — Fertilizers (nitrogen, phosphorus), pesticides (atrazine, acetochlor), and sediment from one of the most intensively farmed regions in the world.
- Municipal wastewater — Treated effluent from upstream cities.
- Industrial discharge — From manufacturing facilities along the river corridor.
- Sediment — The Missouri is naturally one of the most sediment-laden rivers in the country. Lewis and Clark called it “the Big Muddy” for a reason.
The high sediment load actually serves a partial protective function — many contaminants bind to sediment particles and settle out during treatment. But it also makes treatment more challenging and energy-intensive.
Current Drinking Water Quality
The Missouri American Water Company operates St. Joseph’s water treatment plant, drawing from the Missouri River and treating through conventional plus advanced processes.
Key water quality factors:
- The system meets all EPA primary drinking water standards.
- Atrazine — This herbicide, widely used on corn and sorghum in the Missouri River watershed, is detected seasonally. Levels have remained below the EPA MCL of 3 ppb, but the compound is present.
- Disinfection byproducts — Trihalomethanes and haloacetic acids are detectable, as expected in a surface water system with significant organic loading. Levels remain within EPA limits.
- Nitrate — Agricultural nitrogen loading means nitrate is monitored closely. Levels in treated water stay below the 10 ppm MCL.
- Lead and copper — The system monitors under the Lead and Copper Rule. Source water lead is minimal, but homes with lead service lines or lead plumbing can have significant lead at the tap.
- Turbidity — Managed through treatment, but the high sediment load of the Missouri River means the plant must work harder than systems drawing from cleaner sources.
Lead at the Tap: Double Jeopardy
St. Joseph faces an unusual double lead exposure risk:
- Lead in soil from the smelting legacy — affecting children through hand-to-mouth contact, ingestion of contaminated garden vegetables, and dust tracking.
- Lead at the tap from aging plumbing — lead service lines, lead solder, and brass fixtures in older homes can leach lead into drinking water.
These two pathways are independent but additive. A child who’s exposed to lead in yard soil AND lead in drinking water gets a higher total dose than either source alone would produce. For St. Joseph’s older neighborhoods, where both risks are elevated, this is a serious public health concern.
PFAS: The Unknown
Missouri has been slower than some states to address PFAS contamination, but the federal PFAS standards apply. Potential PFAS sources in the St. Joseph area include:
- Rosecrans Air National Guard Base — Military installations nationwide have been identified as PFAS contamination sources from AFFF firefighting foam.
- Industrial facilities — Manufacturing operations that used PFAS-containing materials.
- Upstream sources — PFAS from wastewater treatment plants and industrial facilities along the Missouri River.
PFAS testing under the new federal requirements will provide the first comprehensive look at PFAS levels in St. Joseph’s drinking water. Residents should watch for these results.
What Residents Can Do
- Test your yard soil for lead if you live in an older neighborhood, especially near the former smelter site. The Buchanan County Health Department or Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services can provide guidance.
- Test your tap water for lead. Contact Missouri American Water for testing programs or have an independent test done.
- If you have children under 6, ask their pediatrician about blood lead level testing. This is recommended by the CDC regardless of known exposure, but it’s especially important in a community with documented lead contamination.
- Run cold water before drinking if the tap hasn’t been used for several hours. Use cold water for cooking and formula preparation.
- Install a point-of-use filter certified to NSF/ANSI 53 for lead reduction. For broader protection, a reverse osmosis system handles PFAS, VOCs, and lead.
- Cover bare soil in yards with mulch, grass, or ground cover to reduce lead dust exposure, especially in play areas.
- Wash hands and produce thoroughly if gardening in potentially contaminated soil. Consider raised beds with imported clean soil for food gardens.
The Bottom Line
St. Joseph’s treated drinking water meets federal standards, but the city’s lead contamination story is bigger than the water system alone. The smelting legacy contaminated the ground. Old plumbing contaminates the water at the tap. And the Missouri River carries the agricultural and industrial fingerprint of the entire upstream watershed.
These aren’t reasons to panic. They’re reasons to test, to filter, and to pay attention. Knowledge is the most effective water treatment.
If you’re concerned about your water quality, a certified water treatment professional can test your water and advise on solutions tailored to your specific situation.
Sources: EPA ASARCO Bankruptcy Environmental Cleanup, Missouri Department of Natural Resources Water Quality Reports, Missouri American Water Consumer Confidence Reports, USGS Missouri River Water-Quality Studies, CDC Lead Exposure Prevention, EPA PFAS National Primary Drinking Water Regulation (2024).