Ahmanson Foes Point to Chemicals

Opponents of development at Ahmanson Ranch said Friday that their tests show toxic chemicals from Rocketdyne reached a portion of the 2,800-acre parcel near Hidden Hills.

The water samples, collected in October 1999, revealed traces of two chemicals common to solvents. The results, described in a Thursday letter to the news media by the Westlake Village law firm of Masry and Vititoe, did not indicate the concentration or origin of the substances. The firm works with a community group opposed to the housing project.

Jim Drury, a hazardous waste specialist with the firm, said the test results are intended to refute results by Washington Mutual, the property owner, that gave the site a clean bill of health.

Mary Wiesbrock, director of Save Open Space, which opposes the development, alleges that the chemicals come from Rocketdyne’s Santa Susana Field Laboratory near Simi Valley. Solvents and radioactive materials were used there to make rocket engines.

But spokesmen for the developers said the chemicals they found are in extremely low concentrations and occur in a single pond that is not a part of the Ahmanson property. They more likely originated from motorcycles driven through the hills, said Peter Hayden, manager of environmental services for Washington Mutual. He said the chemicals pose no health threat.

Officials for Rocketdyne could not be reached for comment late Friday afternoon. However, the company has maintained that while toxic pollution is present at the lab site, it has not escaped into the community and is being cleaned up.

About 3,000 homes, plus schools and golf courses, are proposed for the Ahmanson Ranch project in eastern Ventura County. Groundbreaking could begin by early 2002, although concerns about endangered species and contamination are prompting environmentalists to call for more studies.