DELAND, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35 ORLANDO) -
Hundreds of DeLand residents on Tuesday attended an informational meeting hosted by the Department of Environmental Protection to learn more about the chemical Dieldrin, effecting hundreds of homes in DeLand Country Club Estates.
The DEP said the main source of Dieldrin was found on the foundations of homes as well as on lawns, due to pesticides used to treat termites and provide insect control. The DEP identified 120 homes that had levels of Deildrin over the health advisory level, those homes were provided with filters for their water and are in the in the process of being connected to city water, however many residents are still afraid to garden and do lawn work. The goal of the meeting was to keep residents informed but many say they left feeling frustrated over heath concerns and plummeting property values.
"The 11 animals that have cancer on my street and the two people with neurological disorders, they don' t know those people, those people need to walk in our shoes and then maybe they would have more compassion," said Jan Potter of DeLand
"How can I, in good conscious sell my home to another person, can they really play in the yard, do they really want to have a garden, do they really want to have salad from our garden from our soil, it changes everything," said Sherry Keegan of DeLand.
According to the DEP there's no evidence that Dieldrin causes cancer in humans, but it has been linked cancer in mice, they also say they will resample the water and soil in 3 to 5 years.
