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Tuesday, November 03, 1998
High court keeps Groom Lake secret
Workers from the military base known as Area 51 are not entitled to know about hazardous materials there.
By Keith Rogers
Review-Journal
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday turned away an appeal by workers at the Air Force's classified Groom Lake base -- known as Area 51 -- who claimed they were exposed to toxic fumes from hazardous waste burned in open trenches.
The court's decision not to hear the case upholds a ruling in January by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco that the workers and widows are not entitled to learn what hazardous substances existed or how they were handled at the base, located near the dry Groom Lake bed 90 miles north of Las Vegas.
The court, without comment, let stand rulings in the government's favor despite claims by workers that toxic materials, including coatings used for radar-evading Stealth aircraft, were burned routinely in open trenches in violation of federal law.
In the appellate proceeding, former Air Force Secretary Sheila Widnall told the court that certain chemicals that may be in the soil or water at the Groom Lake base could reveal military capabilities or the scope of classified operations.
Jonathan Turley, the George Washington University law professor who represented the plaintiffs, said though the Supreme Court won't review the case, "we succeeded in opening a door to the courts that we intend to pursue for other workers."
"We have other workers at the facility who have come forward with additional injuries and possible violations of federal law. We will continue to file these cases," said Turley, director of the Environmental Law Advocacy Center at the university.
Nevertheless, the Justice Department declared a victory, saying through spokeswoman Jennifer Rose, "We are pleased the Supreme Court let stand a 9th Circuit decision that appropriately applied the law to the facts of the case."
Officials for Nellis Air Force Range, which includes the Groom Lake base, declined comment.
The Supreme Court's decision came nearly one year after Turley urged a three-judge panel of the circuit court to rule against the Air Force's claim that national security would be compromised if materials used at the base, the results of an inspection or even the base's name were revealed. A 1995 order by President Clinton further restricted disclosure, which Turley challenged.
The panel ruled 3-0 in January to uphold the Air Force's claim.
The allegations were made by five former or current workers at the facility, identified in court documents as "five John Does," and Helen Frost and Stella Kasza, widows of two men who worked there.
Kasza alleged that her husband, Walter, died in 1995 of cancer that might have been the result of his employment. It also was claimed that Frost's husband, Robert, had suffered from a rare skin disease most likely caused by exposure to burning hazardous materials.
The actions were brought against the Environmental Protection Agency and the Air Force. Turley estimated the cost of bringing the litigation was $1 million.
"There still remains a long road ahead in litigating the remaining issues and pursuing additional relief from the court. This is at best a midpoint," he said.
"Whatever the costs, they pale in comparison to the price paid by Helen Frost and Stella Kasza," Turley said.
He said even though the Supreme Court won't review the case, the litigation was successful because "workers at classified facilities now know that they do have access to the courts and can compel compliance at secret facilities" that are subject to environmental laws.
"These workers were told that they could not sue and any consultation with an attorney would violate national security," Turley said. "These workers proved for the first time that workers at secret facilities could retain lawyers, litigate cases and prevail."
By taking the Air Force and the EPA to court, Turley said he forced the government to agree to a program of environmental compliance even though the results of inspections that ensure compliance will be kept secret.
"Congress oversees the conduct of the EPA to guarantee compliance," Turley explained.
In interviews in 1994, former workers at the Groom Lake base said trucks hauling poisonous waste from California routinely arrived at the base during the 1980s.
They said the trucks would back up to 300-foot-long trenches, into which workers would roll barrels. The drums and their classified contents would be doused with flammable liquids and ignited, they said. They estimated that more than 3,000 drums partially filled with toxic materials were dumped in the trenches.
Turley has said the materials included dioxins, trichloroethylene and dibenzofurans -- suspected cancer-causing agents linked to physical disorders ranging from liver damage to skin problems.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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