August 17‚ 2001 — For many years‚ Rocketdyne‚ a manufacturer of rocket propulsion systems‚ failed to disclose the use of beryllium at its plant in Canoga Park‚ California‚ according to an article in the Los Angeles Daily News (Toxic Alert Delayed‚ July 25‚ 2001). Health investigators believe that the delay may have endangered workers as well as some community residents‚ who should have been tested for beryllium sensitivity‚ one indicator of berylliosis or chronic beryllium disease. This debilitating disease reduces respiratory function‚ leads to scarring of lung tissue‚ and can cause death.

A former beryllium worker‚ Sylvester Long‚ described working with beryllium at the Canoga Park plant for 30 years without special safety training or protection other than goggles‚ according to the News. When confronted with Long’s story‚ Boeing‚ the company that purchased Rockwell International’s Rocketdyne division‚ finally admitted that the “beryllium shop” had been operating for decades.

Beryllium was used at the Canoga Park plant for Department of Energy (DOE) projects and other work. It was also used for DOE projects at the Santa Susana Field Laboratory between Chatsworth and Simi Valley‚ California. Epidemiological studies are currently underway in that area to access the rate of cancer and other health problems among beryllium workers.