PERCHLORATE AT ORCUTT RANCH RESIDENTS FEAR LAB CONTAMINATION HAS SPREAD.Byline: Kerry Cavanaugh Staff Writer WEST HILLS - State toxics officials detected low levels of perchlorate perchlorate: see chlorate. in the soil at city-owned Orcutt Ranch, prompting more tests for the rocket-fuel ingredient at nearby Justice Street Elementary School elementary school: see school. . California Department of Toxic Substances Control The California Department of Toxic Substances Control (or DTSC) is an agency of the government of the state of California. The agency monitors exposure to hazardous, radioactive, and toxic wastes in addition to enforcement of compliance by individual businesses, officials said the perchlorate levels are too low to jeopardize neighbors or ranch visitors, although residents fear that chemical contamination See: contamination. from the nearby Santa Susana Santa Susana can refer to several places:
``This confirms our worst fears. Everywhere they look for contamination, they find it, which is why we have been so insistent about testing,'' said Elizabeth Crawford, senior environmental analyst with Physicians for Social Responsibility. Sara Amir, chief of DTSC's Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, branch, said her agency cannot yet determine the source of the perchlorate. ``These are very low levels, and we are going to do more testing to find out. We can't make conclusions at this time. We are looking at all possibilities.'' A chemical used in rocket fuel, perchlorate has been linked to thyroid problems when consumed in drinking water drinking water supply of water available to animals for drinking supplied via nipples, in troughs, dams, ponds and larger natural water sources; an insufficient supply leads to dehydration; it can be the source of infection, e.g. leptospirosis, salmonellosis, or of poisoning, e.g. or food. The new perchlorate findings come after Centex Homes last year discovered very high levels of perchlorate along Dayton Creek in a planned housing development at Roscoe and Valley Circle boulevards, just a few blocks from Orcutt Ranch and 1.5 miles downhill from the field lab. Dayton Creek drains the field lab's Happy Valley area, where massive amounts of perchlorate used in rocket engine tests tainted the soil and leached into groundwater. The Boeing Co., which took over the lab after Rocketdyne, removed the polluted soil in 2003. Boeing spokeswoman Inger Hodgson said the company just learned of the new perchlorate hits. ``We haven't seen any data and we have no reason to believe it's from our site operations.'' However, activists have tried to link the lab to off-site contamination. For more than five years they pushed for testing at Orcutt Ranch, a city park that serves as a popular wedding venue and holds annual citrus-picking events at its orchard. The state tested a few oranges and lemons
The DTSC DTSC Department of Toxic Substances Control DTSC DARCOM Technical Steering Committee finally agreed to test the land in March, taking scoops of soil at 11 spots along a drainage ditch running through the ranch. Officials found perchlorate at a depth of three feet at two sites. The levels were 130 and 200 parts per billion. The DTSC usually deems soil unsafe for contact and growing vegetables at 500 ppb, Amir said. Still, the DTSC will begin testing the soil around the hits to see if the contamination is more widespread. Tests near Justice Street Elementary School will be conducted over a weekend in mid-April when the campus is closed. ``I don't think you can consider this a random occurrence; this is downhill from the last place they found it,'' said Christina Walsh, with Cleanuprocketdyne.org and a West Hills resident. ``The fact that they found it at low levels convinces me it's in the area and it's been pouring into the area from Rocketdyne for years.'' Kerry Cavanaugh, (818) 713-3746 kerry.cavanaugh(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): map Map: Orcutt Ranch Park Daily News |
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