General Atomics Information

General Atomics was one of a number of private contractors that processed unirradiated scrap for the Atomic Energy Commission in the 1960s. In addition, the Hot Cell Facility was used for numerous post-irradiation examinations of Department fuels, structural materials, reactor dosimetry materials, and instrumentation. The Department-sponsored activities at the General Atomics Hot Cell Facility primarily supported the High Temperature Gas Cooled Reactor and the Reduced­ Enrichment Research Test Reactor programs. In December 1994, General Atomics notified the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the State of California Department of Health Services of its intent to cease operations in the Hot Cell Facility.

General Atomics was also the operating contractor for the AEC’s Experimental Beryllium Oxide Reactor (EBOR). General Atomics manufactured EBOR fuel elements (UO2-BeO) on site and examined them in the site’s hot cell.

 During the period of residual contamination, as designated by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and as noted in the dates above, employees of subsequent owners and operators of this facility are also covered under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act.

Alternative Names

• GA
• Division of General Dynamics
• John Jay Hopkins Laboratory for Pure and Applied Science

Type of Facility

• Atomic Weapons Employer
• Beryllium Vendor
• Department of Energy

Covered by EEOICPA

• Part B (AWE and beryllium vendor)
• Both Part B and Part E (DEO)

EEOICPA Covered Years

• 1959-1967 (beryllium vendor)
• 1960-1969 (AWE)
• 1970-1995 (residual radiation)
• 2000 (residual radiation)
• 1969-1999 (DOE-remediation)

DOE

• DOE Facility List by Name
• Legacy Management

DOL

• Tracking your DOL Claim Status
• Advisory Board on Toxic Substances and Worker Health
• Ombudsman’s Office
• Resource Center
• DOL Case and Claim Statistics
• Site Exposure Matrix
• Approved Special Exposure Cohorts
• Circular 15-02: Special Exposure Cohort (SEC) designation for the General Atomics Facility at La Jolla, CA from January 1, 1960 through December 31, 1969

NIOSH

• FAQs About Your Case
• Advisory Board on Radiation and Worker Health
• AWE Site Wide Documents
• NIOSH Case Statistics
• Special Exposure Cohort Status Table
  • Petition 064: “Atomic Weapons Employer (AWE) employees who were monitored or should have been monitored for exposure to ionizing radiation while working at the General Atomics facility in La Jolla, California at the following locations: Science Laboratories A, B, and C (Building 2); Experimental Building (Building 9); Maintenance (Building 10); Service Building (Building 11); Buildings 21 and 22; Hot Cell Facility (Building 23); Waste Yard (Buildings 25 and 26); Experimental Area (Buildings 27 and 27-1); LINAC Complex (Building 30); HTGR-TCF (Building 31); Fusion Building (Building 33); Fusion Doublet III (Building 34); SV-A (Building 37); SV-B (Building 39); and SV-D (no building number) for a number of work days aggregating at least 250 work days from January 1, 1960, through December 31, 1969, or in combination with work days within the parameters established for one or more other classes of employees in the SEC.”
  • Petition 218: “All Atomic Weapons Employees who worked for General Atomics at its facility in La Jolla, California, during the period from January 1, 1960 through December 31, 1969, for a number of work days aggregating at least 250 work days, occurring either solely under this employment or in combination with work days within the parameters established for one or more other classes of employees included in the Special Exposure Cohort.”
• Work Site Information

Other Resources

• Waste Lands-America’s Forgotten Nuclear Legacy Database