Chemical Levels Not Excessive, Study Says

A study of soil and surface water samples on the Ahmanson Ranch property has found no chemicals that pose a health threat to residents, developers have announced.

Developers of the proposed 3,050-home community in southwestern Ventura County undertook the study after area residents became concerned about potential contaminants from the nearby Santa Susana Field Laboratory operated by Boeing Co.’s Rocketdyne Division, said Adrian Rodriguez, spokesman for Washington Mutual, which owns Ahmanson Land Co.

The study, conducted by Kleinfelder Inc. of Diamond Bar, found trace amounts of chemicals that did not exceed state and federal safety levels, developers said.

“It represents a clean bill of health for the project,� Rodriguez said. “The property is safe and clean of any toxic substances.�

The proposed housing tract has been beset by environmental protests and opposition from elected officials. Its critics fear that much of the traffic and pollution created by the development will dump into Los Angeles County while Ventura County reaps the property sales and tax revenues. Others say the project will eat up prized open space.

Meanwhile, endangered species of wildflowers and frogs have been found on the 2,800-acre parcel, prompting environmentalists to call for more studies, which are now being conducted.

Mary Wiesbrock, director of Save Open Space, which opposes the Ahmanson Ranch development, said her organization has a study showing trace levels of chemicals on the ranch believed to have come from Rocketdyne.

“Ahmanson was in charge of that study,� she said of the developer’s results. “The consultant was working for them. . . . It’s not acceptable in scientific circles. It’s like the fox in the henhouse.�

Rodriguez said the company still hopes to break ground on the housing community by late 2001 or early 2002. When completed, the project would include a hotel, two golf courses, two public schools and more than 900 acres of open space.