Seal Beach Naval Weapons Station, California

With the official closure of Concord Naval Weapons Center in northern California, Seal Beach is now the Navy's primary munitions storage and loading facility on the West Coast (with the exception of submarine activities, which take place in Washington State). About 50 ships are loaded and unloaded here every year, either at the wharf on the edge of the base, or at sea, with weapons transported by barge and helicopter. The 5,000 acre base was established in 1944, and contains 128 earthen munitions storage magazines. Seal Beach is surrounded by military and space related activities, from private companies to federal facilities. Most of the adjacent private weapons, satellite, and aerospace facilities are owned by Boeing, which acquired the McDonnell Douglas plant when it bought that company, and the Rockwell facilities, including the company's former headquarters, when it acquired that company. North of Seal Beach, the Los Alamitos Joint Forces Training base is the only other major and still active military site in Orange County.