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CANON CITY, COLO. -- Thousands of gallons of radioactive sludge may soon be dumped into a pond in Canon City, potentially contaminating the city's groundwater.

Cotter Corp. was recently given permission from state health officials to get rid of 90,000 gallons of toxic solvent by disposing it in an inpoundment pond. However, the pond has reportedly been leaking for several years. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) believe the sludge will not worsen the groundwater contamination, but residents said it will only add to the problem they have been dealing with for years.

"Cotter Corporation is not a good citizen in our community," Carol Dunn, co-chair of environmental advocacy group Colorado Citizens Against Toxic Water (CCAT), said.

Since the uranium mill was built in 1958, residents said Cotter Corp. has been a health hazard to the Canon City community.

"On Cotter's property is high groundwater contamination with radioactive, hazardous materials and chemicals," Sharyn Cunningham, co-chair of CCAT, said. "Off their property in Lincoln Park is contaminated, too."

Cotter has a long history of disposing toxic materials like kerosene into unlined ponds. More than 50 years after their first hazardous disposal, the company has been approved to do it again.

"We're very concerned about them putting this into a 157-acre impoundment pond they declared was leaking in 2007," Cunningham said. "It is well-known that these materials cause health problems like kidney disease, auto-immune disease and cancers."

Jeri Fry, one of the founders of CCAT, understands the health hazards Cotter Corp. has on the community all too well. She lost her father to cancer caused by toxic exposure after he spent several years working at the Cotter mill.

"My father is gone now, so I cannot be silent about it," Fry said.

Fry, Dunn and Cunningham are working together to educate the public about the issue and hope to put a stop to the toxic situation.

"We can't label them the bad guys and they can't label us the bad guys," Fry said. "We all have to come together and try to find a way to find solutions to this. My motivations are much different than an industry that is trying to make money. There is nothing wrong with wanting to make money, just don't do it at this kind of expense."

It has not been confirmed when the sludge will be dumped in Canon City.

CCAT is also in the middle of a lawsuit against the CDPHE, which is expected to be resolved early next year.