O.C. Moves to Cut Pollution From Runoff

The county Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved more than $460,000 to help five coastal cities and a county agency divert urban runoff from storm drains, a major cause of area beach contamination.

Part of the money will be used to help determine the source of high bacteria levels found in some sections of Huntington Beach last summer.

The cities--Huntington Beach, Dana Point, Laguna Beach, Newport Beach and San Clemente--will use the matching grant funds to pay for some of the $1.3 million in coastal water quality projects that they have proposed.

“We’re pleased with what the county has done,� said Richard Barnard, Huntington Beach deputy city administrator. “Much of our runoff goes through the county’s flood control channels and then on out into the ocean. It’s good news for us.�

Huntington Beach submitted plans for several projects that would divert 1 million gallons in urban runoff--the trash, chemicals, fertilizers and pollutants that are swept from streets and lawns into storm drains--into the sewer system for treatment before it’s pumped into the ocean.

Supervisors also approved more than $211,000 to help Huntington Beach hire a consultant to find the source of the mysterious bacteria that led to the closure of as many as 4.2 miles of Huntington Beach oceanfront last summer.

Supervisor Tom Wilson said it’s part of the county’s efforts to identify the effects of urban runoff on coastal waters. The diversion projects are the first to be funded through the Orange County Coastal Coalition, which Wilson helped form last year.

“We need to demonstrate that these programs are good programs and can help fight urban runoff,� Wilson said. “Storm drain diversions are just one way of doing this, and it’s only the beginning.�

The economic stakes are high, Wilson said, pointing out that the county’s coastline attracts more than 35 million visitors a year.

Cities such as Santa Monica and Los Angeles already have begun diverting storm drains on a small scale. In Orange County, Laguna Beach now handles 38% of its runoff during the dry season by diverting its drains and hopes to have all city drains diverted by 2007.

Diverting the drains cost Laguna Beach $15,000 to $20,000 each.

The cities’ proposals call for diverting nearly 30 storm drains along the county’s coast.

In Dana Point, plans call for diverting 1 million gallons through 26 storm drains, beginning at the south end of Doheny Beach through the unincorporated Capistrano Beach community.

In Laguna Beach, eight storm drains have been targeted for diversion, which would send 14 million gallons of runoff to treatment facilities before going into the ocean. This would complete the city’s storm drain projects.

Newport Beach has proposed diverting three storm drains and a portion of Buck Gully and Little Corona stream into the sewer system.

San Clemente has proposed two storm drain diversion projects. In addition, the county Harbors, Beaches and Parks Division will plug two drains at Baby Beach in Dana Point Harbor and pump runoff into nearby manholes.

Urban runoff also is the focus of controversy involving a proposed Irvine Co. development above Crystal Cove State Park. The developer Tuesday asked the California Coastal Commission to postpone a hearing scheduled for today to determine whether county planning officials improperly approved the developer’s way of handling runoff.

Irvine Co. spokesman Paul Kranhold said the company sought the delay to study other ways of handling runoff from the 635-home development. Commission staff last month said present runoff plans would create environmental problems.

Kranhold said an alternative that involves diverting runoff onto adjacent Irvine Co. property is being developed, but he declined to elaborate. The hearing is expected to be postponed until March or April.