Community members staged a “funeral” in front of a Boeing building in Van Nuys this week, claiming the company killed the cleanup of the toxic and radioactive site at the Santa Susana Field Lab near their homes — a site in Simi Hills overlooking the San Fernando Valley where rocket engine and nuclear reactor testing occurred, leaving behind chemical and radioactive contamination.
Dressed in black, protestors stood outside Boeing’s Van Nuys facility to mourn what they called “the broken promises of a full cleanup” at the contaminated site. In front of the building, they arranged flowers spelling out “SSFL” — Santa Susana Field Lab — as a black hearse awaited.
Parents Against Santa Susana Field Lab led the protest to warn the public that a new study highlighted what they describe as the imminent death of a meaningful cleanup at the Santa Susana Field Lab. They say Boeing’s newly released Corrective Measures Study for soil cleanup outlines a plan that would leave about 90% of contaminated soil onsite, and the long range plan is to turn the area into a public park.
Deva Andrews, who joined the protest said, “I was looking at the hearse and remembering the pain and suffering my family went through because of the exposure to the contamination from SSFL. I was thinking about the children’s funerals I have attended in the past ten years and seeing the deep anguish of their parents. I don’t understand how the Boeing Company can turn their backs on us when they have the opportunity to save lives by cleaning up the site.”
Melissa Bumstead, founder and co-director of Parents Against Santa Susana Field, joined the protest and said: “My daughter spent her childhood fighting a rare form of cancer twice. She buried several of her friends. Their cancers may have been prevented if Boeing had cleaned up the Santa Susana Field Lab by 2017, like they promised. Instead, they plan to walk away from a meaningful cleanup before turning into into a park. They know about us. They know our community is hurting, but they care more about profit than they do about people.”
Tiffany Pitts, communications specialist at Boeing, said in a prepared statement, “We welcome (California Department of Toxic Substances Control’s) release of the draft decision for Boeing’s final soil cleanup in our areas of responsibility at the Santa Susana Field Laboratory. The Corrective Measure Study, prepared by Boeing, complies with the 2007 Consent Order Boeing signed.”
She added, “We are reviewing DTSC’s draft statement of basis and look forward to beginning the soil cleanup in support of Boeing’s commitment to a thorough, protective remediation of our areas of responsibility. We remain focused on protecting future users of the site, surrounding communities, cultural resources and sensitive habitats throughout the cleanup process.”