The EPA is still cleaning up tainted items and soil and also will have to remove some paving.

BY HEATH DRUZIN - Published: 07/30/08

A former tenant of a Boise Bench apartment complex is likely responsible for liquid mercury contamination - one that prompted officials to rip up parts of a concrete driveway and sidewalk.

The investigation and clean-up, in its seventh day on Wednesday, could cost between $100,000 to $200,000. Environmental Protection Agency officials said the cleanup is important because as little as two tablespoons of mercury can be toxic.

Children like to play with mercury because of its consistency, said Mike Sibley, the EPA's on-scene coordinator.

"When it sits in your hand it's like Jell-O," Sibley said.

But heat can cause mercury to vaporize, and inhaling the metal is the most dangerous form of contact.

The mercury was discovered Thursday because children were playing with it outside an apartment complex in the 700 block of White Cloud Drive, near South Cole Road and West McMullen Street. Officials estimated there was between 12 and 16 ounces of mercury.

Workers in white haz-mat suits and masks continued the task of hauling away anything that had traces of mercury on it - furniture, clothing and even soil. So far, about 120 cubic yards of soil had been taken away in four dump trucks.

Officials said it was decided to remove parts of a driveway and sidewalk after workers were unable to lower mercury levels on the concrete.

Mercury poisoning can cause dizziness, memory loss, diarrhea, and vomiting. It can be fatal, and it is especially dangerous to children.

Neighbors told EPA investigators that a man who once lived in one of the contaminated buildings brought the mercury to the apartment complex, Sibley said. The agency is still searching for the man and is not releasing his name.

Investigators are not sure why the man had the mercury, though it is commonly used in mining, Sibley said.

"There's no reason to have mercury (in the home)," Sibley said.

Two apartment complexes have been cordoned off and two families evacuated from the buildings.

The Red Cross of Greater Idaho has been helping the families, said CEO Shawn Tolman.

Sibley said he hoped to allow the families to move back Wednesday. The EPA sometimes helps people replace contaminated furniture and clothes, on a case- by-case basis, Sibley said.

"We're not just going to go in and destroy a place and then leave," he said.

In March, Central District Health Department officials said there had been four mercury spills in three weeks in the Treasure Valley, including two in area schools, one in a private home and one on a public street. None of the incidents resulted in long-term problems for people or the environment.

In 2004, an antique barometer broke inside a Riggins home, spilling about eight ounces of the substance. The entire family became ill with mercury poisoning, and the EPA designated the home a Superfund cleanup site. A 15-year-old girl who lived there had to be hospitalized and had symptoms for several months.

Heath Druzin: 373-6617