A BOOST FOR TOXIC CLEANUP IN STATE FEDS BACK STATE ON PERCHLORATE.

Byline: Heather MacDonald Staff Writer

SANTA CLARITA - The Department of Defense agreed Thursday to obey California's drinking water standards for perchlorate and not try to avoid paying for cleanup of the toxic rocket fuel byproduct.

The agreement, announced by U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer and Pentagon officials during a visit to a contaminated site in Rialto, could help speed the cleanup of the defunct Bermite explosives factory in the center of Santa Clarita, and dozens of other polluted sites all over California, officials said.

``This is an important breakthrough,'' said Boxer, a California Democrat. ``Defense Department activities have been a major source of perchlorate contamination in California. This kind of active cooperation will help us find and fix perchlorate problems throughout the state.''

The agreement also appeared to put to rest concerns expressed by Santa Clarita leaders that legislation introduced by President Bush would exempt some defense contractors from having to pay for environmental cleanups in the name of military readiness.

The Newhall County Water District board of directors was afraid the language of the bill could be used to let Whittaker Corp., which operated the site until 1987 and has recently begun studying the best ways to clean up the pollution, off the hook.

``The well-being of millions of Californians depends on this agreement,'' Boxer said.

More than 7 million Californians drink water with at least traces of perchlorate, which can damage the thyroid gland and be risky for pregnant women, whose fetuses can be affected, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

A provisional standard set by the EPA recommends that drinking water have no more than 1 part per billion of perchlorate. The old standard considered water with 32 parts per billion of perchlorate safe.

Although the EPA is not expected to set a final standard until at least 2008, Boxer has called for the agency to act next year because of the threat perchlorate poses to California residents.

Five wells in Santa Clarita have been shut down because of high levels of perchlorate, with tests showing as much as 40 parts per billion of the toxin in the water, officials said. The wells draw on the Saugus Aquifer, which serves as a backup water supply for the Santa Clarita Valley in times of drought.

State officials believe the pollution is coming from the Bermite property near the Santa Clarita Metrolink Station on Soledad Canyon Road. From World War II to the end of the Cold War, several companies manufactured and tested munitions and explosives for the U.S. military on the 996-acre site.

While the California Department of Health Services requires that wells with more than 4 parts per billion of perchlorate be shut down, the state Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment has found that water with as much as 6 parts per billion is safe to drink.

State law requires officials to begin enforcing a perchlorate standard for drinking water by Jan. 1. That progress is ongoing, officials said.

Heather MacDonald, [phone]

heather.macdonald(at)dailynews.com