FUNDS NEEDED FOR LAB STUDY; PANEL DISCUSSES RESEARCH ON SANTA SUSANA FACILITY.Byline: David Greenberg The creator of this article, or someone who has substantially contributed to it, may have a conflict of interest regarding its subject matter. It may require cleanup to comply with Wikipedia's content policies, particularly neutral point of view. Daily News Staff Writer An advisory panel revealed Saturday that researchers will need an estimated $450,000 to lay the groundwork for a study on whether residents living near Rocketdyne were exposed to radiation and chemicals linked to high cancer rates in employees. With $150,000 earmarked in Gov. Gray Davis' fiscal year 2000 budget proposal, the state Department of Health estimates an additional $300,000 is needed for a preliminary study to determine if sufficient records even exist for a full-blown study, panelists said. ``It's harder to study the community than the workers,'' said Daniel Hirsch, co-chairman of an independent oversight panel of scientists and residents. ``We've got much better records of the workers than the community. If it's possible, it would be a tougher job.'' He said researchers could at least examine past accidents and radioactive releases at the site - including the partial meltdown of a nuclear reactor in 1959 - cancer types tied to likely exposure and possible contamination of nearby soil and groundwater. The panel convened before two dozen residents, former and current Rocketdyne employees and government officials at the Clarion Hotel Posada po·sa·da n. A Christmas festival originating in Latin America that dramatizes the search of Joseph and Mary for lodging. [American Spanish, from Spanish, lodging, from posar, Royale in the second of a two-day meeting to discuss the risks from exposure to chemicals at the Santa Susana Santa Susana can refer to several places:
Mechanics and technicians exposed to hydrazine hydrazine (hī`drəzēn'), chemical compound, formula NH2NH2, m.p. 1.4°C;, b.p. 113.5°C;, specific gravity 1.011 at 15°C;. It is very soluble in water and soluble in alcohol. fuel while testing rocket engines at the site were twice as likely to have died from lung and other cancers as unexposed co-workers, a University of California, Los Angeles UCLA comprises the College of Letters and Science (the primary undergraduate college), seven professional schools, and five professional Health Science schools. Since 2001, UCLA has enrolled over 33,000 total students, and that number is steadily rising. , study released Friday concluded. The study also said other chemicals may be involved. ``The study today tells us nothing about the risks to the off-site population,'' Hirsch said. ``They should neither be alarmed or reassured.'' While Rocketdyne officials did not challenge the validity of the report, they said it left many questions unanswered because Rocketdyne's chemical exposure records are inadequate and it used a limited sample of people. ``We take the results of the study very seriously,'' said Steve Lafflam, Rocketdyne's division health and safety director. ``The health and safety of our employees is a No. 1 priority. (But) the study is very inconclusive in many ways.'' He said the company will spend an estimated $1 million to $2 million over the next two years to complete its own health study of current and former employees. But the study will focus on more than hydrazine and asbestos. ``Any future study will have to look at a much broader list of chemicals,'' said Rocketdyne spokeswoman Lori Circle, adding that only a handful of studies have ever been conducted on the affects of hydrazine exposure. Hirsch said he would like to see a study completed within a year but fears it will take much longer. ``Part of it has to do with cooperation from Rocketdyne in getting their records,'' Hirsch said. ``They have not been very cooperative in the past.'' The UCLA UCLA University of California at Los Angeles UCLA University Center for Learning Assistance (Illinois State University) UCLA University of Carrollton, TX and Lower Addison, TX report is a companion study to the landmark 1997 findings that workers exposed to radiation at the facility had higher cancer death rates. The latest report is based on the examination of health records of 6,107 men who worked at the 12 engine test sites from the 1950s - when testing began - to 1980. Among the 404 cancer deaths were 146 from lung cancer lung cancer, cancer that originates in the tissues of the lungs. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the United States in both men and women. Like other cancers, lung cancer occurs after repeated insults to the genetic material of the cell. , with the remainder from blood, bladder, kidney and lymphatic lymphatic /lym·phat·ic/ (lim-fat´ik) 1. pertaining to lymph or to a lymphatic vessel. 2. a lymphatic vessel. lym·phat·ic adj. cancers. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), independent agency of the U.S. government, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1970 to reduce and control air and water pollution, noise pollution, and radiation and to ensure the safe handling and has listed hydrazine as a suspected carcinogen carcinogen: see cancer. carcinogen Agent that can cause cancer. Exposure to one or more carcinogens, including certain chemicals, radiation, and certain viruses, can initiate cancer under conditions not completely understood. in humans. It has already been proven to cause cancer in animals. CAPTION(S): 2 Photos PHOTO (1--Color--Ran in Conejo and Simi Editions only) Jack Geiger, left, co-chairman of an advisory panel studying Rocketdyne's Santa Susana Field Lab, answers a question Saturday in Simi Valley Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. . (2--Ran in Conejo and Simi Editions only) E.J. Santellano, a former employee at the Rocketdyne site, listens to Saturday's forum in Simi Valley. Evan Yee/Daily News |
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