Water officials threaten Santa Monica and others with fines for polluting bay
CITY HALL Santa Monica, along with 19 other cities and the county of Los Angeles, received violation notices on Tuesday from regional water officials threatening them with tens of thousands of dollars in daily fines for repeatedly polluting Santa Monica Bay.
The move is the culmination of a decades-long effort to clean up the bay’s bacteria pollution, which has the potential to cause swimmers to become ill after coming into contact with contaminated water. In 2006, the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board voted to start fining cities $10,000 a day if the water at their beaches did not meet clean-water standards.
The notices come just one day after Santa Monica Baykeeper and the Natural Resources Defense Council filed two federal lawsuits against the county and Malibu for failing to keep pollutants out of the bay.
In an e-mailed statement, board chair Francine Diamond said she could not comment on the specifics of the violations but said “it is critical that water quality laws be followed.”
“The health of our residents, visitors, multibillion-dollar coastal economy, and environment depends upon it,” she said.
The city of Santa Monica was one of the top violators with 795 instances in which bacteria levels were too high. The water was tested in 2006 from September through October and again in 2007 from April through October.
The notice required the city to provide a variety of information including the causes of the violations, the results of investigations into the sources of the bacteria and the city’s plan to clean up the problem.
The letter also issues a stern warning to any city that decides to ignore the requirements. In addition to the $10,000 a day fine, the letter also warns of fines of $10,000 or more if any requirement in the order was violated. The board could also ask the state’s attorney general to seek civil liabilities in court of up to $25,000 each day a violation persists.
Representatives from City Hall said they are taking the notice very seriously and will offer a detailed response that will include Santa Monica’s long history of investing in projects to protect the bay. The officials pointed out that Santa Monica is downstream from most Los Angeles cities and therefore has the challenge of cleaning up more than its fair share.
“These notices are really a regional wake-up call,” said Gil Borboa, City Hall’s water resource manager. “I think we have done more than just about all other cities in addressing this problem with specific responses and projects. These notices let others know that they have to do more.”
Some of the projects City Hall has completed to protect the bay from pollutants include the Santa Monica Urban Runoff Reclamation Facility, and stormwater collection sites underground at Montana and Ocean avenues, and Wilshire Boulevard and Ocean.
As a sign of Santa Monica’s commitment to reducing urban runoff, voters last November passed Measure V, a special parcel tax that will raise an estimated $2.3 million a year to help pay for additional projects, including the enhancement of the SMURFF facility and improvements to the Santa Monica Pier storm drain system, which drains directly under the pier.
“The voters in Santa Monica have stepped up again and passed Measure V, which will provide us with a guaranteed income stream to do the kinds of projects required to clean up the bay, at least what is under our control,” said Kate Vernez, assistant to the city manager, community and government relations.
Representatives from the regional water quality control board said they recognize Santa Monica’s efforts and do not believe fines will have to be issued, however, other cities may not be so lucky.
Other top polluters included Los Angeles County and the cities of Los Angeles, Malibu and Culver City, the board said.
The ongoing effort to clean up the bacteria pollution stems from a larger plan outlined in a 1999 settlement of a lawsuit between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the environmental groups Heal the Bay and Santa Monica Baykeeper. The federal lawsuit filed by the environmental organizations argued that the EPA had for 20 years failed to ensure the state’s waters were clean, as mandated by federal law.
Government officials and the groups worked out a schedule to set limits on a variety of pollutants that end up in Los Angeles and Ventura counties’ waters including bacteria, trash, toxic metals and chemical pollutants.
Local governments must meet “total maximum daily loads” or limits on these pollutants that make their way into the county’s numerous watersheds.
Setting and enforcing bacteria limits was the first of nearly 100 regulations that conservationists hoped would eventually be enforced.
But in the near decade since the federal consent decree, however, many of the beaches still aren’t clean.
Most contamination happens during the winter when rains overload storm drains and sewage systems, washing waste directly into the ocean.
Swimming in such waters can cause gastrointestinal, respiratory and other illnesses. A study released last year found that there were an estimated 1.5 million cases of gastrointestinal illness as a result of swimming in polluted waters, resulting in roughly $50 million in medical costs and lost wages.
Kirsten James, water quality director of Heal the Bay, said the board’s action Tuesday set a precedent, representing the first time an agency has tried to enforce bacterial limits in storm water permits.
“We really commend the regional board for taking this step,” James said. “They are showing that public health is a priority for them …. This is a great step forward.”
James praised City Hall for its efforts, but said if cities do not comply with the notices then fines should be issued.
The deadline to reply to the board is April 21.
“We’re on it,” Vernez said.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on March 5, 2008. Read the original PDF.