WHERE THE BODIES ARE BURIED
In a clinical report from the summer of 1961, a UCLA doctor justified radiation-induced human cancers so long as the lab environment was safe for the scientists: “The evidence for induction of cancer by inhaled radioactive materials in experimental animals is convincing. There is no reason to think this cannot occur in man despite the lack of definitive evidence at present. Therefore, continued study of inhalation hazards is urgent, and the continuation of stringent environmental control measures is justified pending the completion of adequate studies.”
In other words, UCLA doctors and scientists knew inhaled radiation was probably cancerous for humans but they had to do radiations tests on people to prove it. When the university got their new Total Body Counter Facility in 1961 – a bank-vault like device that could measure radiation on the whole body of large subjects like humans or burros – one report noted: “From the beginning however, it was generally recognized that equipment to meet such emergency needs would be equally valuable in studying gamma-emitting radioisotopes intentionally (their emphasis) administered to human subjects for purposes of research or medical diagnosis.”
Once housed at the VA, and now at UCLA with new software, the counter resembled a bank-like vault with six inch steel doors and walls that could freak people out as researchers noted. “In the interest of soothing patients who might become disturbed by a sense of confinement, the cubicle walls are covered with fabric draperies, and a floor lamp, intercommunication system, and loudspeaker for radio music are also provided.”
Given this extensive human radiation testing, what to do with bodies became a concern at the VA and UCLA. Records gleaned from the 1982 FOIA request to the VA indicate one 1964 meeting of the VA Center Radioisotope Committee that discussed “safe handling of cadavers containing radioactive isotopes.” The committee’s conclusions were blacked out by FOIA censors.
Other parts of this FOIA were blacked out but with an explanation. In a 1982 letter from the federal district counsel to the Los Angeles Federation of Scientists, which had submitted the FOIA request, the government wrote: “That information was withheld on the basis of potential employee misconduct leading to a civil and/or criminal investigation.” There is not, however, any evidence that human remains are in the dump.
This wasn’t the last time the government blackened out documents and hid information regarding the Brentwood nuclear waste site. That information may be crucial to development considerations when assessing the VA property and its forgotten dump.
