Rockwell Offers Tours of Lab

Rockwell International is inviting residents of the San Fernando, Simi and Conejo valleys to tour its Santa Susana Field Laboratory on Feb. 17, company officials announced.

Bus tours are scheduled for 8 a.m., 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., with each expected to last about 2 1/2 hours. Each tour will include a stop at a conference room for a question-and-answer session and refreshments.

The tours are restricted to non-employees 15 years of age and older, and admittance will be by reservation only. Those wishing to sign up for a tour can reserve one or two seats by calling (818) 710-2791 weekdays between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m, company officials said.

The 2,668-acre field lab west of Chatsworth, run by Rockwell’s Rocketdyne division, has been used for rocket testing and nuclear research and development.

In recent months, the company has come under heavy criticism from environmental and homeowner activists because of chemical and low-level radioactive contamination at the field laboratory. Company officials said the tour is part of its effort to persuade neighbors that the field lab poses no danger.