Dozens of environmental activists and residents gathered Thursday to call on local officials to conduct a “thorough” cleanup at the site of the 45-acre former Rocketdyne engine manufacturing facility in Canoga Park.
The protest was led by the organizations California Communities Against Toxics and Valley Residents for a Safe Environment, which claim to have gathered more than 4,000 signatures from locals in favor of urging the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board to require additional environmental testing at the site and to be conducted by following higher environmental standards.
The property is currently owned by United Technologies Corporation, which is accountable for restoring the soil and groundwater to the residential standards, as required by the zoning for the site under the Warner Center Specific Plan, the organizations argued.
“This facility needs to be made safe for future generations to live, work, play and pray on,” said Jane Williams, the executive director of CCAT. “The current proposal fails to deliver on that goal.”
The organizations contend that shallow groundwater has contributed to “very high” levels of contaminants in soil vapor. The site is adjacent to Arroyo Calabasas and Bell Creek, and remains “badly contaminated” with trichloroethylene, tetrachloroethylene and petroleum hydrocarbons left over from decades of rocket manufacturing. Those chemicals are cancerous and harmful to pregnant women and children, the organizations said.
“United Technologies has worked in close partnership with the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board for many years to ensure the proper remediation of the Canoga Park property,” Michele Quintaglie, a spokesperson for UTC, said via email. “Our priority has always been, and remains to be, to work with LARWCB to clean up the property so that it can be used for residential purposes, consistent with community goals.
“We are committed to ensuring that our efforts are in full compliance with all local, state and federal laws and regulations,” Quintaglie said. “We take seriously our environmental, health and safety responsibilities, and look forward to continuing to partner with all stakeholders on this matter.”
A development that is planned on the former Rocketdyne site, The Warner Center 2035 Specific Plan, was adopted by the Los Angeles City Council in 2013, which will include a mixed-use district for residences and businesses.
Residents said that UTC is asking the regional water board to allow cleanup with more lenient standards than an environmental review would require.
But UTC has asked the board for assistance in cleaning up the site. A request by the company to the board shows that on July 29, the company submitted an application for such efforts.
“This site needs to be fully cleaned up to residential standards, plain and simple,” said Faith Larson, a local resident and business owner. “Valley residents should not have to continue living next to a property that poses environmental and health risks. Environmental regulators should not let UTC off the hook.”
The organizations are specifically calling on Los Angeles City Councilman Bob Blumenfield, state Sen. Henry Stern and Assemblyman Jesse Gabriel to ensure residents do not have to live near the contaminated area.