[Water_news] 4. DWR'S CALIFORNIA WATER NEWS: WATER QUALITY - 4/12/07

Department of Water Resources

California Water News

A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment

 

April 12, 2007

 

4. Water Quality

 

Sewage spill puts hatchery on alert; Backup plans in place to protect white sea bass

San Diego Union Tribune – 4/12/07

By Matthew Rodriguez, staff writer

 

CARLSBAD – When the Agua Hedionda Lagoon was closed last week because of a second sewage spill in the area, it raised red flags at a fish hatchery on the waterway's northwest shore.

 

The hatchery, operated by the Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute, breeds about 200 adult white sea bass and releases the offspring into the wild.

 

The organization has several backup plans and procedures in case of a catastrophe at the lagoon, a senior research biologist said. One involves keeping about 40 white sea bass at SeaWorld in San Diego. With that backup supply, the hatchery could resume operations within months if a major spill hit the lagoon.

 

The first spill occurred north of Agua Hedionda, when a sewer pipe break on March 31 spewed 7.3 million gallons of sewage into Buena Vista Lagoon, killing about 1,700 fish and four birds at last count.

 

On April 2, a separate sewage spill in Vista sent about 30,000 gallons into Agua Hedionda Creek that empties into the lagoon. The county closed the lagoon when samples showed contamination levels higher than state standards and officials feared the sewage had reached the eastern section of the waterway.

 

The county lifted its closure yesterday, said Mark McPherson, chief of land and water quality for the county Department of Environmental Health.

 

Agua Hedionda is one of North County's busiest lagoons. In addition to the fish hatchery, it is home to a YMCA aquatic park, and jet-skiers and kayakers frequently ply the waters.

 

The Carlsbad Aquafarm operates a commercial business in the western section of the lagoon, raising and selling mussels and oysters.

 

The state Department of Health Services was still evaluating conditions at the aquafarm yesterday, McPherson said. Details were unavailable from the state and several messages left with the farm weren't returned.

 

While the Leon Raymond Hubbard Jr. Marine Fish Hatchery remained open and wasn't affected by the spills, the incidents raised concerns for the research organization because clean water is critical to its operations.

 

“That's the lifeblood for the fish,” said Mark Drawbridge, a senior research biologist with the Hubbs-SeaWorld institute. “So, of course, any type of significant contamination – through whatever the source – we would be concerned about it.”

 

Drawbridge said a limited amount of lagoon water is filtered into the tank that is home to the sea bass used for breeding. The hatchery could operate its tanks without the lagoon's fresh water for 24 hours, he said, if the lagoon became toxic.

 

“Having clean water is essential,” said Steve LePage, co-vice president of the Agua Hedionda Lagoon Foundation. “We're very concerned.”

 

Carlsbad officials said they are particularly concerned about a sewer pipe on the north shore of Agua Hedionda. They hope to replace the pipe, which was installed in the 1960s, and are awaiting a permit from the state Coastal Commission to do the work.

 

“There are some concerns about the condition of the existing line,” said Glenn Pruim, Carlsbad Public Works director. “Hopefully, anytime you put something new in there, it'll last longer.”

 

The sewage spill that led to the closure last week of Agua Hedionda was largely contained. The spill involved about 203,000 gallons, but only about 30,000 gallons are estimated to have gone into Agua Hedionda Creek.

 

Drawbridge said the fish hatchery began monitoring the severity of the spill after hearing about it last week. “It definitely raises a red flag,” he said. “In this case, we just monitored what was happening to the extent that we could.”

 

He said the fish hatchery watched for changes in behavior of the fish, such as whether they would stop eating. The hatchery also performs routine tests, he said, of the oxygen and ammonia contents of the water.

 

Drawbridge said it takes a long time for the white sea bass to get used to captivity. That's another reason why the organization keeps its backup supply at SeaWorld.

 

“You never know what can happen,” Drawbridge said. “Fortunately, knock on wood, we've never had to use them.”  #

http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20070412/news_1mi12aquafrm.html

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