North Carolina ? The Environmental Protection Agency is investigating whether cancer-causing radioactive material was buried in the 1980s near a rifle range at Camp Lejeune, the Marine Corps’ primary base on the Atlantic Ocean.

A recently recovered Navy document dated 1981 said the material included 160 pounds of soil and two animal carcasses laced with strontium-90, an isotope that causes cancer and leukemia.

The document said the dirt, carcasses and other materials containing strontium-90 originated at a naval research lab near the base and were buried in a remote area.

According to the paperwork, the waste was later recovered, “safely stored” and was awaiting shipment to an approved disposal site in South Carolina.

But base spokesman 2nd Lt. Craig Thomas said that because of record-keeping practices in the early 1980s, the Marine Corps can’t find any proof the material was shipped to South Carolina.

The Marines informed the EPA of the past contamination while discussing the possible construction of a building nearby, Thomas said, adding that recent testing found there are “no harmful materials” at the site.