Officials target West Newport storm drain

Paul Clinton

Newport Beach, Huntington Beach and the county could face sanctions

if they do not reduce polluted urban runoff flowing into the Santa

Ana River.

Among the tributaries that drain into the river, the Santa Ana

Regional Water Control Board is targeting in particular a large storm

drain in Newport Beach that empties into the mouth of the river at

Seashore Drive and Coast Highway.

“Storm drains are laden with bacteria,” Newport Beach Assistant

City Manager Dave Kiff said. “I just know I’ve got to stop the

bacteria from coming out of the pipe. ... The board is telling us

informally to solve this.”

If city and county officials fail to reduce the amount of bacteria

in the river, the board could issue a cease-and-desist order, which

would mandate a cleanup.

The move is the latest regulatory attempt to reduce bacterial

outbreaks along the shorelines of the two cities. Water-quality

regulators have been scrambling to solve these mysterious outbreaks

for almost four years.

At an April 3 meeting with city and county officials, Ken Theisen,

an environmental scientist with the water board, urged officials to

cut down polluted flow. Right now, the county is diverting about 30

million gallons per day from the river to a sewage treatment plant.

The concrete drain along Seashore and Coast Highway contributes

about 10,000 gallons per day to the river mouth.

“It’s very high in bacteria,” Theisen said. “More than 80% of the

time, it exceeds the [state] standard.”

Newport Beach leaders have started investigating what could be

done to reduce bacteria traveling in the drain, Kiff said.

However, Councilman Tod Ridgeway, a member of the Orange County

Sanitation Board, said he isn’t convinced the Santa Ana River is the

source of the problem. Ridgeway was one of 13 sanitation members who

cast key votes for increased treatment of wastewater released by the

district via an outfall pipe.

“I’m not prepared to say with authority that it’s the Santa Ana

River,” Ridgeway said. “I don’t think we can say that.”

Huntington Beach leaders could also face sanctions. That city saw

its summer tourism industry decimated in 1999 when its beaches were

closed after bacteria outbreaks.

Any blame that falls on Surf City’s shoulders should be shared by

inland cities, which also contribute pollution to the river,

Huntington Beach Mayor Connie Boardman said.

Huntington Beach implements an annual summer diversion program to

collect runoff heading to the Santa Ana River and send it to the

Orange County Sanitation District.

“The same administrative order should also be placed into effect

on the inland cities that contribute to the runoff in the river,”

Boardman said.

* PAUL CLINTON covers the environment, business and politics. He

may be reached at (949) 764-4330 or by e-mail at

[email protected].