SOIL CLEANUP ORDERED AT FIELD LAB SITE HEARING MAY DELAY PROJECT.Byline: ERIC LEACH Staff Writer 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. -- The Boeing Co. must dig up and remove up to 6,500 cubic yards of contaminated contaminated, v 1. made radioactive by the addition of small quantities of radioactive material. 2. made contaminated by adding infective or radiographic materials. 3. an infective surface or object. soil -- some 400 truckloads -- from its Santa Susana Santa Susana can refer to several places:
State officials initially wanted the soil containing chromium and dioxins removed this summer -- before rain increases the possibility of toxic runoff -- but demands by two local lawmakers for a public hearing on the proposal will likely delay the project until at least the fall. Officials estimated the effort will involve the removal of 325 to 400 truckloads of debris from the so-called Area I Burn Pit. The soil will be dug up and loaded onto plastic, where it will be tested and classified for disposal. Hazardous waste Hazardous waste Any solid, liquid, or gaseous waste materials that, if improperly managed or disposed of, may pose substantial hazards to human health and the environment. Every industrial country in the world has had problems with managing hazardous wastes. will be taken to the Kettleman Hills Landfill along Interstate 5 in Central California Central California can refer to one of several divisions or regions of the U.S state of California:
The Antelope Valley . Contaminated dirt has been trucked off the site in previous cleanup efforts, which raised concerns among residents over how the trucks would be covered to seal in Verb 1. seal in - close with or as if with a tight seal; "This vacuum pack locks in the flavor!" lock in confine - prevent from leaving or from being removed the toxins and how they would be routed to avoid residential areas. The new operation will involve dust control and equipment cleanup to make sure contaminated soil does not escape, officials said. The Area I Burn Pit was used by workers to burn chemical waste at the lab, which was used for decades to conduct rocket-engine testing for NASA NASA: see National Aeronautics and Space Administration. NASA in full National Aeronautics and Space Administration Independent U.S. and the Department of Defense. The lab has been operating in the mountains between the Simi SIMI Sea Ice Mechanics Initiative SIMI Search for Intelligent Monkeys on the Internet SIMI Students Islamic Movement in India SIMI Society of Irish Motor Industry SIMI Smallholder Irrigation Markets Initiative and San Fernando valleys since the 1950s, and at one point contracted with the Department of Defense to do nuclear research. The state agency had originally set July 26 as the deadline for public comment on the project. But state Sen. Sheila Kuehl, D-Los Angeles, and Assemblywoman Fran Pavley, D-Woodland Hills, wrote a letter Tuesday asking for a hearing with an extended comment period. ``As you know, for many years this site has been an ongoing cause for serious concern in the surrounding communities,'' they wrote, citing their constituents' concerns about possible health risks from years of rocket testing, a partial nuclear meltdown and the burning of hazardous material in open pits. ``We think it is incumbent upon us to take a little extra time and precaution in order to assure the people in the region that we are open to listening to their comments in a public forum and doing all that we can to make sure the cleanup is properly handled before deciding on the testing protocol.'' Dan Hirsch, president of the Committee to Bridge the Gap, which has been acting as a environmental watchdog on the lab for more than 25 years, said the cleanup plan was issued in early June, and that state officials should have scheduled a public hearing then. Not only is the burn pit area contaminated, he said, but much of the surrounding site is, as well. ``It seems that DTSC DTSC Department of Toxic Substances Control DTSC DARCOM Technical Steering Committee is moving forward to clean up only a tiny, tiny fraction of the contamination,'' he said, expressing concern the land might eventually be released for residential development. Jeanne Garcia, a spokeswoman for the Department of Toxic Substances Control, said a public hearing on the cleanup has yet to be scheduled but will probably be held in the next two months, followed by the 30-day comment period. She could not say when the cleanup work would start, although officials were hoping to do it this year. ``We would like the soil removed before the rainy season because we don't want any further runoff,'' Garcia said. Boeing Co. officials did not return calls for comment. The field lab site has been involved in state and federally ordered environmental monitoring and cleanup operations for decades. The Area I burn pit consisted of earthen earth·en adj. 1. Made of earth or clay: an earthen fortification; an earthen pot. 2. Earthly; worldly. and concrete-lined ponds, a control center and two explosives storage sheds. The ponds were used to burn waste, including solvents and fuels, from about 1958 through the early 1980s. Elevated levels of dioxins, trichloroethene, chromium, petroleum hydrocarbons and perchlorate perchlorate: see chlorate. have been found in the burn pit area, officials said. eric.leach(at)dailynews.com (805) 583-7602 For more information about the proposal to remove toxics from the Santa Susana Field Lab, click on Hot Topics at www.dtsc.ca.gov. |
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