City moves toward emergency readiness
Fears arise over toxic waste
By Sophia Fischer
sfischer@theacorn.com

The transportation of hazardous materials through Ventura County and public safety in the event of a terrorist attack or natural disaster have caught the attention of Thousand Oaks City Councilmember Dennis Gillette.

Gillette and Thousand Oaks City Manager Phil Gatch tackled these weighty subjects at a National League of Cities conference in Indianapolis, Ind.

The league’s 81st annual Congress of Cities and Exposition took place earlier this month. The group is the oldest and largest national organization representing 18,000 municipal governments across the country.

Gillette and Gatch took part in talks on the federal government’s construction of a nuclear waste repository in Nevada.

Gillette is concerned that toxic waste from U.S. nuclear plants in the Pacific coastal area could come through Port Hueneme en route to the Nevada facility.

"This stuff is going to be on our highways and streets and in population centers in our county," Gillette said. "I believe it’s going to happen, but every voice has to be raised to make sure this waste is handled as safely as humanly possible."

Located about 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas, the $56 billion Yucca Mountain underground dump site was approved by President Bush and Congress in 2002, after 13 years of scientific study to ensure the repository could safely house up to 77,000 tons of radioactive waste.

The waste would come from more than 100 nuclear power plants, military reactors and weapons facilities in 39 states.

As a member of the league’s public safety steering committee, Gillette recommended developing policies and measures to safeguard these materials. He expects storage to begin in the next five to 10 years.

Another public safety issue Gillette addressed during the conference was local security in the event of terrorism or a natural disaster.

Some federal money has been distributed to counties or cities to help purchase equipment and conduct training to respond to such events.

"Oklahoma City and Sept. 11 showed us how vulnerable we are," Gillette said. "The mechanism to get the funds out to where they’re needed is very slow. We cannot have homeland security if we don’t have hometown security."

He added, "Are we the best prepared? Probably not. Are we better prepared than others? Yes. Are we moving forward? Yes."

Federal money for local security is funneled to Thousand Oaks through Ventura County, according to Thousand Oaks Police Chief Keith Parks.

About $60,000 is being used this year for security camera installation at city hall, training of staff in the handling of hazardous materials, and purchasing gas masks and protective suits for response teams.

"Ventura County is unique in that we’ve had lots of fires, rains and earthquakes, so we’ve had lots of chances to hone our skills and it’s paid off," Parks said. "We have a system in place where we can jump right in should we have to."

The league offers two national conventions each year to U.S. elected officials who network, learn from their counterparts and help shape policy in Washington.

The league’s next national meeting is in March in Washington, D.C.; the next Public Safety Steering Committee is June in Reno, Nev. Gillette hopes to attend both.

"This conference gives me the opportunity to listen to what’s going on in the rest of the country," Gillette said. "We’re not in a vacuum. We’re actually very fortunate."