Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
June 28, 2007
4. Water Quality
PERCHLORATE:
Rialto, Colton residents rally against perchlorate - Riverside Press Enterprise
DEVELOPMENT ISSUES:
Creek District pollution report gets mixed reviews - North County Times
PERCHLORATE:
Riverside Press
By Massiel Ladron De Guevara, staff writer
Chants of "si se puede," "it can be done," echoed through the San Bernardino County Auditorium where about 200
Dolores Huerta, who co-founded the United Farm Workers of America with Cesar Chavez more than four decades ago, was unable to attend, but sent a representative who called for residents to consider boycotting the companies accused by
The companies include Goodrich Corp., Black & Decker and Pyro Spectaculars, which produces fireworks.
Perchlorate, a component of rocket fuel and fireworks, has contaminated six
It is believed the chemical interferes with thyroid function and brain development. Human fetuses and newborns are considered most at risk.
Huerta has spoken out against pesticides that threatened farmworkers and the environment and helped organize a grape boycott in 1967 that resulted in the
"You have very visible targets with Goodrich, Black & Decker and Pyro Spectaculars for a boycott," Jim Rodriquez, representing Huerta and the Dolores Huerta Foundation, said.
"They have the money, but we have the people and you have the support of Dolores Huerta and the foundation."
Going after the pocketbook and public image of organizations accused of polluting the water will frighten them, Rodriquez said.
"Whatever you need from us, let us know because we are here with you," he said.
Members of the Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice, who organized the meeting, are calling for residents to attend a second meeting July 12 where action plans will be reviewed.
"We want to analyze what our next step is, whether it be a boycott or going to legislators and demanding they step in," said Penny Newman, executive director of the Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice.
Several residents spoke out on the surcharge and demanded those responsible for polluting the water pay to clean it.
"I'm paying a lot of money each month while the polluters only make money," Carmen Navarro, who has lived in
Vargas said residents will be reimbursed once cleanup funding is made available.
"It took 50 years for perchlorate to surface and be detected, and it'll probably take another 50 years to clean it up, but, in the meantime, we will do everything in our power to make sure the people responsible for the pollution pay," she said. #
http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_R_perch28.4121321.html
DEVELOPMENT ISSUES:
Creek District pollution report gets mixed reviews
By David Garrick, staff writer
Residents interviewed Wednesday said the three-page, illustrated report was not thorough enough and contained too much jargon. They conceded that the proposals might improve water quality, but said they doubted whether the city will actually implement many of the anti-pollution measures.
Since the city began planning the Creek District development about three years ago, residents near the lake have expressed concerns that the new buildings, parking garages and pavement would add pollution, sediment and trash to the already-murky lake.
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But city officials have asserted that water quality in the lake would actually be improved by the levees, bridges, culverts and dams included in the Creek District Specific Plan, which will be presented to the city's Planning Commission on Monday night.
"It may seem counterintuitive, but this plan will mean a cleaner flow of water into the creek," said City Manager Paul Malone. "This development is going to be a model in stormwater management."
The report, mailed to 3,400 homeowners near the lake on Monday, is an attempt to explain exactly how those features would improve water quality, said Malone.
The report explains how the dams and bridges would slow the creek water down, reducing the amount of sediment that flows into the lake. It also outlines how filters would remove trash and pollutants that now make their way into the lake.
But the residents interviewed Wednesday said they were not impressed by the report.
"I feel better that they have put something in writing, but it's also showed me the shortcomings and fallacies of their plan," said Rex Edmonds, a 19-year resident of
"The systems have a chance to work, but only if everything is put together and managed perfectly," he said.
Resident Keith Plank said the report is overblown and not specific enough.
"All the remedies and improvements they are talking about are just Band-Aids," said Plank, explaining that lake pollution is killing fish and curtailing recreational opportunities. "They have exaggerated how much the remedies will help."
Plank said the report fails to address an expected increase in the amount of water and sediment flowing into the lake, which would be caused by proposals in the development plan to pave over grassy areas that now absorb local runoff water.
"If they follow the practices in the report very diligently, there might be some improvement in water quality, but quantity will increase dramatically as they cover natural land with buildings, streets, parking lots and other hardscape," Plank said.
Tom McIndoe, another resident, said the report is filled with "gobbledygook," and that many key issues are not covered.
"Before you buy a new car, you need to see more than just a picture of it," said McIndoe. "The report is not thorough enough to make a good judgment."
Resident Cindy Torgison said, "Based on past experience with the city, my trust is not real high that this will be done right."
But Malone said the city is fully committed to making sure the Creek District development improves the health of the creek, and consequently the lake that it flows into.
"As far as the lake is concerned, there's no better place to put these stormwater measures than the tail end of the watershed, which is where we are planning the Creek District," said Malone. "Our plans would check the silt load at each of the two branches of the creek, which is no accident."
Malone said it is not the city's obligation to solve all of the pollution problems at the lake, where residents say that sediment has reduced the depth of the water from 50 feet to 28 feet in recent years.
"It's not the city's responsibility to clean up the lake, but we can improve the quality of the lake moving forward," said Malone. "The problems the lake is experiencing today require a management plan, which is beyond our reach."
Malone said he does not expect the new report to sway the many
"I doubt this will change their minds, but at least they'll have more information," said Malone. "If nothing else, at least the folks who have not weighed in on the issue will know what we've planned."
A copy of the pollution proposal report is available at http://www.ci.san-marcos.ca.us/upload/images/Development%20Services/Planning/PDFs/whitepaper.pdf #
http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/06/28/news/inland/3_02_296_27_07.txt
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