DTSC Orders Cleanup of Simi Valley’s Sage Ranch Park
Regional Map (click map image for a larger view)
DTSC has ordered the cleanup of soil polluted by lead shot, skeet fragments, and clay pigeon debris in Simi Valley’s Sage Ranch Park, the site of a recreational gun club shooting range that operated from the 1970s through the 1990s.
The cleanup is being fast-tracked to protect the area’s birds and other wildlife from potential exposure to hazardous waste and to allow the reopening of the popular hiking area, the Loop Trail. The entrance to the trail is currently fenced off and closed to the public due to contamination.
The land is owned by the Mountains Recreation & Conservation Authority (a joint powers agency comprised of the Conservancy, the Conejo Recreation and Park District, and the Rancho Simi Recreation and Park District), but was previously leased by a prior owner to a gun club which consisted of employees of Rocketdyne and their families. Boeing acquired Rocketdyne-Atomics International as part of its purchase of Rockwell International in 1996.
Local Map (click map image for a larger view)
Boeing will fund and conduct the onsite cleanup operation and is currently drafting technical plans for the cleanup tentatively set to begin August 2022. DTSC will supervise the planning and operation. View the Project Summary web page for complete details as they develop.
Sage Ranch Park Links
“DTSC vigorously protects California’s environment from any shooting range that leaves spent ammunition and targets behind, creating a deadly risk to wildlife in the area,” says DTSC Director Dr. Meredith Williams. “Leaving contamination behind is not the California Way, and we move in to enforce our state’s rigorous, protective laws that safeguard our natural resources.”
– DTSC Director
Dr. Meredith Williams