SOUNDING OFF:

The 1999-00 Grand Jury investigated the Ascon Toxic Waste Site in Huntington Beach.

They produced a report that brought back the memories of the horrible stench that permeated the neighborhood in the 1980s and again in the 1990s, which emanated from the styrene pit.

Each time, the pit was covered with plastic to remedy the odor problem. That experience has given us a preview of what cleanup could mean for our neighborhood. The report told a frightening story of indifference and neglect by public agencies charged with protecting the health and the safety of the public.

For many years there was no control over what was dumped there. The gate was open and inert solid waste, toxic waste and no one knows what else was dumped there. The only control was a sign-in sheet requesting a name and what was dumped, which was frequently ignored.

In addition to this unregulated dumping and the dangers posed by its contents, the site for most of those years had no security.

Gaping holes were created for easy access by homeless people. Homeless camps complete with cooking, trash and toilet areas were found there. When the homeless set the place on fire one night and the fire department had to enter the scene, the extent of the problem that residents had to live with for so many years suddenly became apparent to city officials.

There were no maps of the area that would tell firemen if they were on a safe road or driving into a styrene pit. They did not know if the fire was unleashing toxins, and they did not know if the conditions that night caused a danger to the people living in the area. Suddenly, after many years, city officials became aware of the dangers this site posed to the people of southeast Huntington Beach.

Without knowing the contents of this site, the city allowed a high school, a park and several hundred homes to be built on its perimeter.

Events have happened over the years that pointed out to residents the dangers that lurked beyond that fence. At a City Council meeting some years ago a neighbor of the site told a heart-wrenching story.

For an hour he and his neighbors heard a dog’s desperate cries. When they could not stand the agonizing cries any longer, they went to the site and found a dog trapped in one of the tar pits.

They quickly understood the reason for the horrible cries of that dog. He slowly had sunk into that toxic muck and was ingesting it. He could not be saved. It was a frightening lesson to families raising children in the area.

On Adelia Circle, which is directly across Magnolia from ASCON, there are 16 homes. In those 16 homes there are eight people who have had to face Parkinson’s disease, respiratory problems, cancer or auto immune disease. One of them has both cancer and Parkinson’s disease. Several died from these causes.

The Department of Toxic Substance Control found that there were potential risks “associated with the volatilization and subsequent inhalation of volatile organic compounds and oral and dermal contact with contaminants in the soil.”

They listed 64 toxic substances present on this site that could cause “potential health effects including cancer, circulatory, kidney and nervous system damage. Inhalation of some metals can also produce immune reactions including asthma.”

A history of neglect and indifference has surrounded the site. Given the fact that a school, a park and many homes exist on its perimeter, along with the threat to the health and safety of those people living there, it is important that we ensure that the primary objective of this cleanup is the health and safety of the residents and not the financial interest of the perpetrators.

JOHN F. SCOTT is a Huntington Beach resident.