H2Oh
No!!!
Filmmaker William
Bowling is a resident of Topanga Canyon
who has been following the issue of the
Boeing/ Rocketdyne Santa Susana Field Laboratory (SSFL)
for the past several years.
He has now launched ACMEla.org
Dare
to Educate Yourself about Boeing'sSanta
Susana Field Laboratory
Community
EIR
Calendar Reminders:
Order our new book: Click HereThe Santa Susana Field Laboratory by
Christina Walsh and William Preston Bowling
Book-Signing on 10/10/08 at the Museum (ACMELA.ORG)
Minimum donation for Book: $35.00
Minimum donation for T-Shirt: $25.00
Minimum donation for book and pictograph canvas:
$500.00
Exhibit Sponsorship $1000.00
The "Companion Source Book" which is the
narrative companion to our first volume of the Santa Susana Field
Laboratory will be available this winter for $100 minimum donation and
$75 for those who already purchased Volume 1, the Photographs.
Headlines
Dayton Canyon Decision 10/10/08
Cover
LetterFinalResponse
to Comments
Dan Hirsch of Committee to Bridge the Gap
testifies before US Senate and clean up of federal facilities. 9/18/08
Click here to view
Click here to download
This is really important testimony that
illustrates the issues so perfectly to help all of us better understand
the challenges before them then, in 1959 as well as the many challenges
we face today in getting the promised clean-up to SB990 California Law.
A message from Blythe Jameson from Boeing regarding an
update on the igniters found in the northern drainage (Sage Ranch
Park) adjacent to the lab: Download recent report here.
9/22/08More
Igniters!!!
An estimated 100 igniters and an additional 300...no, now it's
over a thousand "squib
igniters" which you can learn more about here. Buried
debris, igniters, other industrial "lab" materials found
in the streambed, buried beneath the surface. Initial
sampling indicates toxins. The stockpiled contaminated soils
will be going to McKitrick and the debris covered in roll-off bins
will go to a class-1 landfill such as Kettleman Hills. The
trucks have begun to go down the hill!
Perchlorate
not health problem, EPA concludes
Field lab cleanup advocate denounces report
Erica Werner - Associated Press 9/22/08
DOE
to follow state law in lab cleanup
Ventura County Star - Michael Collins
9/19/08
WASHINGTON — A top official with the U.S. Department of
Energy promised Thursday that the federal agency would comply with
a new California law during the cleanup of the Santa Susana Field
Laboratory.
Igniters
found near the Field Lab 9/3/08
The more contractors tasked with removing debris linked to
the Santa Susana Field Laboratory from a public park, the more
they seem to find. The most recent discovery, made on Aug.
28, was 58 igniters found buried one to three feet beneath the
surface of a portion of Sage Ranch Park
more
Ventura County Star - Teresa Rochester 9/3/08Igniters
discovered during excavation at Sage Ranch 9/2/08
DTSC Fact Sheet NEWDebris
from Field Lab found in nearby Park
Authorities are testing material found in a
40,000-square-foot debris field unearthed last week on public
parkland next to the polluted Santa Susana Field Laboratory near
Simi Valley, officials said Wednesday.
more
Ventura County Star - Teresa Rochester 8/21/08
DTSC Factsheet here:NEWLab
debris discovered at rifle range
Workers cleaning up an old shooting range in Sage Ranch Park
discovered buried debris from the adjacent Santa Susana Field Lab,
state officials said Wednesday. The material was found in a 6-foot-deep layer and included
industrial glass, piping, metal fragments and garbage that will be
tested for chemical and radiological contamination, said Norman
Riley, project director with the California Department of Toxic
Substances Control. moreBy Kerry Cavanaugh, Staff Writer 8/20/08
USEPA Press Release 7/28/08
U.S. EPA to perform $1.5
million radiological
study at Santa Susana Field Lab
EPA and Department of Energy finalize
interagency agreement
Radiation
contamination survey at field lab OK'd
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency gained the authority
Thursday to conduct a long-awaited survey of radiation
contamination at the Santa Susana Field Laboratory in the hills
south of Simi Valley.
Ventura County Star - Teresa Rochester 7/25/08
EPA
set to take charge of survey at Field Lab
Ventura County Star - Teresa Rochester 7/20/08
EPA
threatens to pull out of Field Lab study
By Kerry Cavanaugh, Staff Writer 7/09/08
Frustrated with a lack of transparency in the cleanup of the Santa
Susana Field Lab, the U.S. EPA has fired off a harsh letter to the
Energy Department threatening to pull out of a long-awaited
radiation study at the former nuclear research site.
White
blight
Runkle Canyon's chromium conundrum
By Michael
Collins 06/26/2008
The men had been up that hot dusty trail before, high in the hills
above Simi Valley. Hawks flew overhead as vernal pools evaporated
in the late March heat. Tracks of critters led to the stream that
still had an oily sheen to it as it did in May 2007. That's when
these two "Radiation Rangers," self-styled concerned more...Click
here for the timeline developed by EnviroReporter.com
Daily News 5/9/08
Museum
will call attention to aerospace pollution
CHATSWORTH - Christina Walsh gazed toward the Simi
Hills from what might be the first museum ever devoted to aerospace
industry pollution. "People don't know there's this
invisible thing up there, where they did 30,000 rocket tests, each
one... more
Genetics vs. pollution debated in 11 children's cases of
rare retinoblastoma Researchers are
at odds over whether 11 cases of a rare eye cancer found in West
Valley children could be linked to pollution from the nearby Santa
Susana Field Lab.
NEW
WORKGROUP MEETING UPDATE
Last night 11/20/08 at the Simi
Valley Cultural Center we all thanked Laura Plotkin for your 14 years of
dedicated service and commitment to protecting our communities from
further harmful impacts from the Santa Susana Field Lab. As
Senator Sheila James Kuehl's District Director, Laura has been to all of
the meetings weighing in on behalf of the community, and after FIVE
tries at putting legislation on the books to make it LAW to clean-up the
lab, we have SB990 that requires clean-up to the strictest EPA
standards.
Q&A
FAQ on SB990
A spirited discussion on the recent
letters written by DOE and NASA to US EPA requesting Superfund Listing:
DOE's
letter 10/10/08NASA's
letter 10/28/08
We were pleased to see EPA's
commitment to not make any changes to the timeline normally followed for
Superfund Review, and NASA's commitment to clarify some points on their
intent with their letter. Clearly spoken from Mr. Hirsch and the
Community: SB990, Yes we can. It is law.
Dan Hirsch of Committee to Bridge the Gap
testifies before US Senate and clean up of federal facilities. 9/18/08
Click here to view
Click here to download
This is really important testimony that
illustrates the issues so perfectly to help all of us better understand
the challenges before them then, in 1959 as well as the many challenges
we face today in getting the promised clean-up to SB990 California Law.
(presentation begins at 5min30sec)
Click here for SSFL
Update 9/4/08
given at West Hills Neighborhood
Council 9/3/08
Community Technical Meetingfor those involved in the
written comment process.
10/6/08 at Chatworth Office 11:30am
This is a technical workshop for
specific agenda items:
Group 8 Technical Presentation
Groundwater Interim Measures
Please email scallery@dtsc.ca.gov
to confirm your attendance!
EPA
letter 7/2/08 from Mr. Mike Montgomery, ChiefFederal Facilities and Site Cleanup Branch
Thanks to a strong effort from EPA to make this right, DOE has now agreed to
let EPA lead the way. NRDC/CBG
letter (7/7/08)
cleanuprocketdyne.org and ACMELA.org's letter to
Congress here
(7/9/08)
DOE Scoping meetings to develop WorkplanNotice
of Intent to Perform EIS
We attended all six meetings and the response by the
public was very low.
8/14/08 DOE
Scoping Comments by cleanuprocketdyne.org
8/14/08 DOE
Scoping Comments by Committee to Bridge the Gap,
NRDC and City of Los Angeles
Special thanks and appreciation to Daniel Hirsch
of Committee to Bridge the Gap, for tirelessly
helping us understand the significance of these profoundly important
issues and standing up to what seemed a hopeless and endless battle of
details on behalf of the impacted communities surrounding the
site. Your commitment which spans three decades, is a
testament to all of us of what it means to stand up for our community
and do what is right.
Don't let anyone
ever say that using your voice doesn't help. With focused commitment
and collaborative effort, we can literally move mountains with it...or at
least clean one up.
Our sincerest thanks to US EPA for standing up tall for
all the communities surrounding the site.
9/11/07:Click
here to read the Notice of Conclusion which we are told, included a
check in the amount of $471,180 and waived it's right to hearing on this
issue.What
happened at the waterboard Meeting?11/02/07Boeing
is cut slack over dirty rainwater
Gregory Griggs - LA TImes
11/2/07
A revised permit by the
regional water board lessens the responsibility for contaminated
storm runoff at the Santa Susana lab...
________________________________
How did they vote in the assembly?
Click here to learn more:
________________________________
Click
here to read Dan's comments at the DOE meeting regarding the RMHF and
4024 buildings in Area IV.
________________________________
It is difficult for a man to understand something, if his salary
depends on him not understanding."
-Upton Sinclair
History
Channel's "Modern Marvels" about the Santa Susana Nuclear
Meltdown in 1959:
What needs
to be done?
Read
Committee to Bridge the Gap's official Comments on the Group 6 submittal
by Boeing for the RCRA Facility Investigation by Dan Hirsch.
________________
________________
"If
you back up optimism with action, amazing things will start to
happen." -unknown
________________
Read
the RCRA RFI Report. Group 6 is the first of
the 10 reports to be completed (Area IV)
It was rejected, so we should look
for new submittals and look at the EIS when it is completed.
________________
Click
here for DTSC Document Site because the most important thing you can
do is read this stuff and tell others to do the same.
Download and start reading Group4 here.
Boeing has agreed to unlock the
reports so the community can analyze them properly - 9/21/07.
Thank you DTSC!
Click here for Dan Hirsch's
Comments.. After seeing the number of giant steps backward, that
the regional board appears to be taking in removing compliance points in
the face of all these violations...he started with, "OK, we give
up."
But by the end, he made so many
spot-on points that it is made clear, that the polluter should have compliance
points added, not removed, based on decades of bad past
behavior. Dan says maybe he won't be giving up. We
won't either. In fact, I feel like we're just getting started.
________________________
Click here to read the letter sent to
Boeing by DTSC rejecting GroupVI as submitted by Boeing and its' partners
until all information is available in the EIS. Thank you DTSC!
Now let's see if the Waterboard can stand as strong, in defense of the
communities below.
Special thanks to all who communicated with Sacramento in support of
SB990. The only way anything gets done, is by using your
voice.
The U.S. Department of Energy said Thursday that it will stop its
controversial cleanup at the Santa Susana Field Lab and conduct a
long-awaited comprehensive environmental review of the former nuclear
research site. RELATED:Lawmakers
push bill to pay off all victimsView
Full Story
Frustrated that hundreds of sick former Santa Susana Field Lab
employees have been denied benefits under a program to aid former
nuclear workers, three legislators have proposed a new law to help
workers and their families get compensation. View
Full Story
Re "Boeing says runoff rules too strict,"
Dec. 12
Could Boeing possibly come up with any better way to flaunt its
irresponsibility than by requesting a relaxation of runoff limits? And
if the State Water Resources Control Board grants an amendment to
Boeing's permit, then we can add the board to the list of
environmental slackers that have no doubt seen the warning signs of
industrial waste — waters too polluted to swim in, cancers,...
Click here for the keys to the information vault!
Boeing
faces costly penalty Boeing Co. faces a nearly
half-million-dollar fine for allowing excessive levels of lead, mercury
and other toxins to flow from its Santa Susana Field Lab into the
exclusive West Valley community of Bell Canyon and the Los Angeles
River, regulators said Wednesday.
"Never
doubt that a small group of concerned citizens can change the
world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."
-Margaret Mead
The Rocketdyne
Information Society was created by William Preston
Bowling to help all interested in learning more about
this very important issue (to all of us). This is
a place to blog, to have discussion or to simply gather
more information shared by others. Check out:H2Oh
No!!! to see more about films by
William Preston Bowling about Rocketdyne.
________________________
Environmentalists hail a federal jurist's ruling that a Department
of Energy effort to rid the Santa Susana field lab of pollutants is
inadequate.
By Gregory W. Griggs, Times Staff Writer
May 3, 2007
Environmental activists won a major victory Wednesday when a judge
declared that the U.S. Department of Energy continues to violate
federal law in its cleanup of nuclear and chemical contamination at
Boeing's Rocketdyne field laboratory near Simi Valley.
U.S. District Judge Samuel Conti also barred the DOE from transferring
ownership of its Santa Susana property until it conducts a more
thorough environmental review of its cleanup operations at the former
nuclear and rocket engine testing facility....more
________________________________
READ
the U.S. District Court's decision
regarding the inadequate cleanup of the contaminated Santa Susana Field
Laboratory (PDF).
Five years after the Department of Energy adopted a controversial
cleanup plan for its portion of the Santa Susana Field Lab, a judge
ruled Wednesday that the plan violates federal law and that a thorough
environmental survey of the former nuclear research site is needed
before it can be declared safe....more
Judge orders better cleanup of Field Laboratory
property
By Teresa
Rochester (Contact)
Ventura County Star
Thursday, May 3, 2007
The U.S. Department of Energy was barred Wednesday from turning over
for residential development a portion of the Santa Susana Field
Laboratory contaminated with radiation until it conducts a stringent
environmental survey of the site and cleans it appropriately....more
1/10/07: Just like
Justice Street, the regulators are working overtime to keep the truth
away from the public. EPA, where are you?
Send us your thoughts at:bloggers@cleanuprocketdyne.orgRCRA RFI Group 4 -
In looking at the security settings of the report, it states that content
copying and page extraction are set to "not
allowed". Because of the enormous size of these reports,
Boeings' decision to lock down the data to be used only superficially,
is a decision to deliberately mislead, conceal, and thereby mis-represent
the facts that are necessary for this process to actually be beneficial
and effective. I see this as a material failure to comply
with the consent order signed by Boeing. Does the $15k
per day apply to all aspects of the report then? Would that be
$15,000 per day per page? Click
here:Click
here for Warren Olney's 4 Part Series on the SSFL SRE Meltdown that
originally aired in 1979.Click
here for Warren Olney's interview
Dan Hirsch of Committee to Bridge the Gap
testifies before US Senate and clean up of federal facilities. 9/18/08
Click here to 
