More radioactive metal found at plant

Tipped off by a former employee of a shuttered Oxnard metal recycling plant, federal investigators recently discovered more low-level radioactive material buried under concrete at the Ormond Beach site.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency workers last week found an unknown amount of thorium, a radioactive metal, under a former storage area adjacent to the now defunct Halaco Engineering Co. plant, said Rob Wise, the agency’s on-site coordinator. Radiation levels measured up to 100 times greater than normal, although this amount is still considered “low level” and poses no immediate risk to humans and wildlife, he said.

Thorium enters the body through inhaling or swallowing. Studies show that inhaling thorium dust causes increased risk of developing bone, lung or pancreatic cancers.

The EPA conducted a detailed assessment of the 43-acre Halaco site and confirmed the presence of thorium on the property last year, Wise said. But scientists recently learned that the material had also been buried.

The EPA is focused on an area of roughly 300 square feet, he said. Radioactivity has been detected as much as 15 feet below ground.

“I want to look at this from the perspective of, ‘If I’m going to dig this up, where am I going to stop digging?’ ” Wise said. “They have a term in radiation safety -- as low as reasonably achievable -- and that’s our goal, to minimize any exposure to public health.”

The Halaco smelting plant operated from 1965 until it was shut down in late 2004 after the company filed for bankruptcy.

James Macdonald, an Irvine lawyer representing the family that founded Halaco, said Wednesday that “extensive test results performed by the EPA in the waste management unit indicate that the materials do not pose a risk to the site or to the surrounding areas.”

The EPA plans a coordinated campaign to educate the public about the potential dangers and warn against trespassing.

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greg.griggs@latimes.com