Navy Withholding Information on Radar Facility, Panel Says

State coastal commissioners chided Navy officials Thursday for what they said was a lack of cooperation with the state panel over a controversial radar-test facility at Port Hueneme.

Opponents of the facility contend the Navy hasn’t kept an agreement to disclose some of the operations at the building, including detailed information on how much microwave radiation the facility emits.

The Navy did send a letter to the Coastal Commission on Wednesday, answering a series of questions from commission staff, and agreeing to supply additional data in future reports to the board.

But, there were no Navy representatives present at a hearing Thursday in Redondo Beach, which irritated many on the panel.

“I think the commission is reaching the end of its patience,” said Commissioner Pedro Nava. “I would have expected them to show good faith and participate. It’s clear that we’ve been getting incomplete information” on their radiation-monitoring efforts.

A Navy spokeswoman said a representative was not sent because no specific action had been requested of them.

The commission asked its staff to research whether it can perform another review of the radar facility--in essence, conduct a full environmental review.

Last year, the Navy chose to move ahead with a plan to expand the radar building, formally known as the Surface Warfare Engineering Facility, despite a Coastal Commission ruling that the military could not proceed with the project.

Spokeswoman Jeanne Schick said the Navy is operating within the law.

An independent panel of scientists that reviewed the federal proposal last year said that though the facility would pose no risk to people or wildlife, some precautions--including better communication with the commission and residents--were required to ensure safety.

The Navy agreed to most of the conditions, but neighbors have complained that it is not living up to its promise.

Some neighbors say they are concerned that warship radar and high-energy radio waves beamed during tests could damage their health. And they say the Navy has been arrogant in its dealings with them and the Coastal Commission.

“You can’t cooperate with someone who doesn’t want to cooperate,” said Lee Quaintance, a member of the Beacon Foundation, which opposes the facility. “There’s no way to evaluate how they are operating this building.”

Local business leaders and politicians have supported the Navy in the past, saying it has been a good neighbor, and is important as the county’s largest employer. They argue that its coastal neighbors are just trying to wear the Navy down.

The facility “has been tested, tested and tested, and I’m willing to accept it,” said Ross Olney, president of the Oxnard Chamber of Commerce. “The Navy has families right there they don’t want hurt either.”

Last year, Supervisor Frank Schillo spearheaded a letter-writing campaign, arguing that the Coastal Commission should back down and that the opposition is limited to a small number of vocal neighbors in Oxnard’s Silver Strand neighborhood.

Quaintance said Thursday’s hearing was about more than the radar facility.

“It’s about the overall relationship of the Coastal Commission and the Navy,” he said. If they “just ignore [the commission], what precedent does that set for other dealings with the Navy?”