Potential Contamination Concerns in Runkle Canyon and the Brandeis-Bardin Institute, Analysis of Boeing Cancer Risk Assessments, and Prospects for Cleanup – March 16 Meeting Report

Pictured above: Google Earth imagery of SSFL, the Brandeis-Bardin Institute, and Runkle Canyon

Google Earth imagery of SSFL, the Brandeis-Bardin Institute, and Runkle Canyon. Click to enlarge.

The SSFL Work Group meeting on March 16, 2016 featured presentations about potential SSFL contamination in Runkle Canyon and the Brandeis-Bardin Institute, an analysis of Boeing’s cancer risk assessments, efforts by local officials to ensure full cleanup, and a robust discussion on what community members can do to make sure that the 2010 cleanup commitments are enforced. Click here to sign a new petition to Senators Boxer and Feinstein.

The meeting began with a memorial to U.S. EPA senior scientists and radiation specialist Gregg Dempsy who died in December. Cleanup advocates and community members noted his honesty, ability to make complex information easier to understand, and enduring friendship. “We will all miss him greatly. He was a big part of our lives for almost 27 years,” said Rocketdyne Cleanup Coalition member Marie Mason. Click here to view the video.

We then utilized Google Earth imagery to give a virtual tour to help orient the audience to the location of SSFL above the City of Simi Valley, the Brandeis-Bardin Insitute and RUnkle Canyon. Click here to view the virtual tour.

Dan Hirsch presentationAfter a viewing segments from NBC4’s investigation “LA’s Nuclear Secret” that examined contamination issues at the Brandeis-Bardin Institute and Runkle Canyon, Dan Hirsch, Director of the Program on Nuclear and Environmental Policy at the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC) and President of Committee to Bridge the Gap, presented data on contamination findings. Hazardous contaminants found at SSFL have also been detected at both properties, Click here to view the video on Runkle Canyon, here to the view the video on the Brandeis-Bardin Institute, and here to view the PowerPoint presentation on both the Brandeis-Bardin Institute and Runkle Canyon.

Timothy Lippman, Senior Field Deputy for LA County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl presented on efforts by Supervisor Kuehl and other elected officials to ensure full cleanup, including a December 2015 letter sent to DTSC Director Barbara Lee. The letter concludes, “We urge an end to delays and diversions and efforts to undo the cleanup commitments. It is time to get the cleanup done, carefully and completely.” Click here to read the letter and here to view the video.

A presentation on Boeing’s cancer risk assessment was made by Michael Rincon and Jenna Mota Melville, students at UCSC, who reviewed thousands of pages of Boeing’s risk assessment documents to present a stark analysis of high contamination and risk, both before and after Boeing’s proposed cleanup. Click here to view the video on Boeing’s risk assessment and here to view the PowerPoint presentation.

AudienceThe meeting closed with a spirited conversation about what community members can do to ensure that the 2010 cleanup agreements are upheld. A new petition asking for help from longtime cleanup supporters, Senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein, has been launched. Click here to sign the petition, and please forward widely to your friends and neighbors!

All videos from this and other SSFL Work Group meetings can be viewed on our video page.

If you would like to get more involved, please contact us at info@ssflworkgroup.org.