Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
November 14, 2007
5. Agencies, Programs, People
J LEVEE REPAIR:
Glenn officials race against time, weather to repair J Levee - Chico Enterprise Record
FISHING IN
Governor suspends fishing in areas affected by SF Bay oil spill - Associated Press
OIL SPILL/DELTA ISSUES:
S.J. anglers keep eye on oil spill - Stockton Record
Editorial: Agencies must ensure another disastrous Bay spill never happens -
OROVILLE FACILITIES:
Bomb squad called by DWR to detonate material - Oroville Mercury Register
J LEVEE REPAIR:
Glenn officials race against time, weather to repair J Levee
By Barbara Arrigoni, staff writer
WILLOWS — Although the county is ready to go, emergency repair was once again delayed on a fragile section of
The Board of Supervisors was supposed to approve and accept state grant money for the project at a special meeting Tuesday, but Planning Director Dan Obermeyer said the state Department of Water Resources is holding things up.
The state wants three quotes for prices of material that meet specific requirements. The quotes have to include the cost of hauling the 9,500 cubic yards of soil to the levee, he said.
The county is already poised to begin repair on the site — a 400-foot section between the
The state is expected to offer the county a 50-percent match of the project's estimated cost of $200,000.
The county thought it was set to go with a donation of soil from Glenn-Colusa Irrigation District for the project as its match, but Obermeyer said Tuesday that the state said the dirt quality was higher than specifications.
Glenn's cost is now about $50,000. The goal is to get that amount down to about $10,000, Obermeyer said.
Currently, there are bids out to eight companies and Obermeyer hopes they will respond soon.
Supervisor Keith Hansen asked DWR if it realized rain would cause the cost of the project to go up, and he voiced puzzlement over "the idea" the state would be willing to pay for inferior quality, but not the better quality material offered by Glenn-Colusa.
County Administrative Officer David Shoemaker said the state is willing to accept the higher-quality product, but at lower valuation.
Obermeyer said the auditors at DWR want justification for any value placed on the materials. He said once he gets quotes from the bidders, he'll be able to justify the costs and the situation should be good.
"I've said that before, and there have been bumps in the road," he added quickly.
Obermeyer also said he hopes to have all the bids and documents in by Nov. 20, and "a targeted dollar amount that makes the project work." But he said if necessary, the board could approve the grant contingent on receipt of all the necessary documents.
After the meeting, Deputy Director of Planning Randy Murphy explained the state's reasoning further.
"Looking at it from an auditor's perspective, they (DWR) don't want to pay Cadillac prices for Chevy needs," Murphy said.
The job is expected to take five weeks to complete, once it gets going. It's expected to last until construction of a new setback levee begins, possibly in 2009.
Flood control manager Bob Johnson said the week of Nov. 26th will probably be the earliest work can start, even in the rain.
"We have done it in wet weather, but we don't like it." Johnson said. #
http://www.chicoer.com//ci_7457287?IADID=Search-www.chicoer.com-www.chicoer.com
FISHING IN
Governor suspends fishing in areas affected by SF Bay oil spill
Associated Press – 11/14/07
The decision likely will make the biggest dent in the highly anticipated commercial season for Dungeness crab, which was scheduled to start Thursday but has now been postponed for at least 2 1/2 weeks amid health concerns. The delicacy is enjoyed both by tourists and residents who serve crab alongside the turkey with their Thanksgiving dinner.
"It will set us back quite a bit," said Art Romine, 38, a crabber who planned to return home to
"We can't be bringing in crabs that are possibly toxic," he said. "That wouldn't be good for the market at all. People don't want to buy toxic food."
The 58,000-gallon spill occurred when a cargo ship suffered a gash in its hull after colliding with the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge in heavy fog last week in an incident Schwarzenegger called "unbelievable human failure." The governor promised to investigate the cause of the spill and the Coast Guard's response.
The pilot of the ship said he immediately reported the presence of oil in the water, but cleanup crews didn't arrive on the scene for nearly 90 minutes. A Coast Guard log places a skimming vessel at the scene in 80 minutes.
Coast Guard officials defended their response as "by the book," but concede mistakes in their communication with the public. Initial reports had the spill at just 140 gallons; the Coast Guard waited hours after learning it was much larger before notifying local officials.
Federal prosecutors are conducting a criminal probe and have interviewed members of the crew about the events leading up to the crash. The harbor pilot who was guiding the ship through the bay toward open water has not been subpoenaed in that investigation, his lawyer said.
A day after the spill, the governor praised the Coast Guard for taking "immediate action."
Speaking Tuesday at the California State Association of Counties' annual meeting, Schwarzenegger seemed to change course.
The oil spill was the result of "unbelievable human failure," he said. "Then on top of it, it takes that long to react to the oil spill so by the time the next day comes around, the oil is all over the bay."
Later, after a briefing by Coast Guard officials at their command center on
"I'm not an investigator," he said.
He did pledge a thorough investigation "to see also if we as a state can do more in order to prevent those kind of accidents."
"Believe me, we will ask the tough questions that need to be asked," Schwarzenegger said.
At Clipper Cove on
Similar cleanup efforts continued across the region.
The start of the commercial crab season was postponed until Dec. 1, or until state health and wildlife officials deem it safe to reopen the fisheries.
Crab fishermen voted Saturday to ask the governor for the postponement because of concerns that crabs could be contaminated by ocean and bay water used to keep the crustaceans alive on boats after they're harvested from the sea floor.
Some local fishermen were hired by the
Officials say it's the first fishing ban stemming from an oil spill in
Schwarzenegger also ordered the state Department of Public Health to determine whether people can become sick if they eat seafood caught in areas impacted by the spill.
The suspension will be an economic hardship for many fishermen, especially crabbers from
"We're going to go home broke," said Jason Morford, 38, of
http://www.sacbee.com/114/story/490901.html
OIL SPILL/DELTA ISSUES:
S.J. anglers keep eye on oil spill
By Alex Breitler, staff writer
Nonetheless, Stockton-area fishermen watched with interest Tuesday as Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger imposed temporary restrictions on fishing in
Many local fishermen frequent the Bay or ocean during the summer in search of shark, said Russ Faught, owner of Fisherman's Friend in
"I don't know how much it (the oil spill) is going to affect us up here," Faught said. "I really don't know."
Tina Swanson, a biologist with the conservation group The Bay Institute, said that even if the tides carry oil into the Delta, it likely won't be much.
That said, many fish commonly found in the Delta spend at least part of their lives in the Bay as well, including salmon, sturgeon and longfin smelt. It remains to be seen whether the spill could harm these populations, she said.
This year's already depleted fall-run salmon should be through the Bay and swimming upstream to spawn and die, Swanson said.
However, the winter-run salmon - an endangered species - could be entering the Bay right now and might be exposed to the oil.
Oil spills typically do not affect fish as much as birds, since the goop doesn't stick to slimy scales. However, oil can foul up marshland habitat and poison smaller organisms that the fish eat.
Oil can also harm fish when they breathe it in through their gills.
For now, fishing for stripers in the Delta is strong, said Cliff Rich of
"Everybody gets up in arms when something like this happens, but what can you do?" Rich said. "It's just a sad situation." #
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071114/A_NEWS/711140337/-1/A_NEWS
Editorial: Agencies must ensure another disastrous Bay spill never happens
Contradictions and controversy still overflow regarding exactly what happened when a South Korea-bound container ship clipped a San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge tower early last Wednesday.
What led to the Cosco Busan hitting one of the bridge's supports? The 65,131-ton vessel's speed? Human error? An equipment malfunction?
Did Coast Guard officials do everything possible in the crucial hours after the incident?
Did they and representatives of the ship's owners fully inform officials of local agencies about the potential impact, which has turned out to be so devastating?
Did Coast Guard officials enlist all the support that was available to limit damage to aquatic life and beaches in and around
A federal investigation has been started in typical domino fashion - miscalculations lead to an environmental disaster, followed by finger-pointing and political fallout.
Establishing an effective and timely multiagency response for future incidents is as important as pinpointing who's at fault.
As is often the case, the immediate reaction was the most critical.
Coast Guard officials, who responded quickly, still needed to do a much more thorough job of assessing and communicating the extent of the crisis and mobilizing every available resource.
Hours of costly confusion passed before it was revealed how much heavy bunker fuel oil had spilled. The first estimate was 140 gallons.
More than 12 hours after the 8:30 a.m. accident, it was announced that 58,000 gallons of toxic bunker oil were spreading in all directions.
They have 150 oil-cleanup specialists still waiting to be fully deployed in dealing with this staggering mess, which has spread 40 miles north along the Marin County coast, out to the Farallones west of the Golden Gate Bridge, east to the Berkeley shore and south beyond the San Mateo Bridge.
Twenty-three beaches have been fouled. Hundreds of birds, covered in gooey oil, have died.
Many others have been rescued and are being treated and, hopefully, saved. The commercial crab-fishing season has been delayed.
As bad as it is, it could have been far worse. The ship carried two 500,000-gallon tanks.
Marine-life experts are concerned that spawning chinook salmon, migrating upstream to the Delta, will be harmed as they pass through the Bay. Oil can contaminate their gills.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has issued an appropriate disaster declaration.
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., is demanding answers. She met Monday with Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff to explore ways to improve communications and readiness.
Last week, she urged a "full and expedited investigation into the cause of the accident as well as the Coast Guard's response."
National Transportation Safety Board investigators have taken the lead role in probing the accident, the first of its kind in the
"This incident should have never happened," Feinstein said.
It's impossible to prevent every accident, but authorities can - and must - be better prepared and develop a plan to expedite dissemination of information.
Coast Guard officials, despite the fog, needed to recognize more quickly the potential for harm from the rapidly widening sheen of oil. They needed to activate a cohesive, multiagency rapid response team.
The Bay Area, jammed with oceangoing vessels and oil tankers, also has a large, strong environmental movement.
Coast Guard officials should develop a better training program for cleaning up such spills and an improved relationship with city, county and state officials who can supply the work force to contain such calamities more rapidly.
Any possible overreaction would be more tolerable than the outrage caused by failing to deal more aggressively with this disaster.
It's impossible to be pre-emptive about every problem, but it's essential always to be proactive and fully prepared.
That must be the lesson and legacy of the Cosco Busan oil spill. #
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071114/A_OPINION01/711140308/-1/A_OPINION
OROVILLE FACILITIES:
Bomb squad called by DWR to detonate material
Oroville Mercury Register – 11/13/07
By Paula M. Felipe, Public Safety Reporter
The Butte County Interagency Bomb Squad was called by the Department of Water Resources after a 20-year old material used to construct generators was found on DWR property near the base of the Oroville Dam, Tuesday.
The material, known as methylethylketone peroxide, was dated 1986 and most likely had been left over during the construction of the Diversion Dam Plant back in 1985, according to DWR's Operation Superintendent Maury Miller.
"Over a period of time, this type of material can become unstable, so we called the Bomb Squad in as a precaution," said Miller.
It was about 1 p.m. when a contractor noticed the material in a plastic container inside a cardboard box, and because it is a sensitive form of peroxide, the Bomb Squad was notified, Miller added.
The Butte County Interagency Hazardous Materials Team arrived on scene in addition to DWR's Hazardous Waste specialist and Butte County Environmental Health.
Members of the Bomb Squad donned their hazardous materials suits along with self-contained breathing apparatuses and utilized a robot in transporting the substance into a remote clearing area.
At 5:27 p.m. the material had been mixed with concrete, neutralized, and detonated in a five-gallon bucket in a secured, remote, open field west of the Oroville Dam as a precaution by the Bomb Squad, Miller said. A loud blast could be heard for miles.
The specialists at scene decided to "counter-charge" (detonate) the material in order to dissipate it and dispose of the material safely.
"We want to assure the public there was no threat to the environment and no threat to the dam or to the water," said Miller.
"We would like to thank the Butte County Interagency Bomb Squad and Cal Fire/Butte County Fire's Hazardous Materials Team for a job well done," said Ana Pina, DWR's Health and Safety Officer and Hazardous Waste Coordinator.
Deputy Joel Malinowski of the Butte County Interagency Bomb Squad oversaw the neutralization and detonation of the material along with Rob Sheridan of the Chico Police Department, who is also a member of the Bomb Squad. Butte County Sheriff's Lieutenant John Kuhn also was on scene to oversee the operation.
"DWR did exactly the right thing in notifying us," said Malinowski.
First Responder ambulance paramedics were staged nearby as a precaution, and DWR security guards had the roads closed off while the Bomb Squad conducted the operation.
DWR's Miller thanked the Bomb Squad for their swift response and for safely disposing the material. #
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