Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
March 4, 2008
4. Water Quality
CLEAN WATER ISSUES:
Environmental groups file suit over pollution - Inland Valley Daily News
OIL SPILL:
Greka crude spills into Santa Maria area stream - Associated Press
GOLD RUSH MINING ISSUES:
Report: "Mining's Toxic Legacy: An Initiative to Address Mining Toxins in the Sierra" Released Today - YubaNet.com
CLEAN WATER ISSUES:
By Kenneth Weiss, staff writer
Conservation groups on Monday sued
The two lawsuits, filed in U.S. District Court in
The cases rely on annual reports filed by the county showing that it violates limits set for bacteria, heavy metals and other pollutants carried by rainfall or sprinkler runoff down the Los Angeles and San Gabriel rivers, Ballona and Malibu creeks and other discharge points into Southern California waters.
"Polluted runoff is the No. 1 source of contaminants flowing into the ocean," said David Beckman, a senior attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council. "It continues flowing into our coastal waters year after year. It's bad for people and marine life and it's against the law."
Up to this point, these so-called storm water rules required county and city officials to take steps toward cleanup, such as mounting education campaigns and stenciling storm drains with no-dumping warnings explaining that the channels flow into the ocean.
The lawsuit does not specify how the county and city should meet the standards of the Clean Water Act. Those details would be left to government officials.
The resources council and Santa Monica Baykeeper argue that solutions have been developed in other areas, such as carving catch basins to allow storm water to percolate into the ground, using porous pavement, and restoring wetlands and vegetation to filter pollutants.
"It's unfortunate that they've brought litigation," said Mark Pestrella, an assistant deputy director of the county's Public Works Department. "We are going to have to spend money on defending ourselves instead of spending it on improving water quality."
The county, he said, is in full compliance with the law. He also said the county would press ahead with what he called "progressive plans" to clean up urban runoff, showing its commitment to safe waterways and public health.
Malibu City Atty. Christi Hogin said she was disappointed that the city was sued, because it is talking with environmental lawyers to resolve the issue.
"It's frustrating because we feel like we are the good guys," Hogin said.
Under state rules, no polluted discharges are allowed in such areas, which are known for their abundance or assemblage of marine life.
Like other urban areas across the nation,
In 1991, the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board approved a plan to begin mopping up the residue of urban life that washes out of industrial lots and chemically treated lawns and onto city streets.
A renewed plan adopted in 2001, which set limits on various pollutants, prompted a lawsuit by the county and 32 of its largely inland cities, which argued that the state should pay for efforts to reduce pollutants to below these limits. The case ended last year when the state Supreme Court refused to overturn lower court decisions to toss it out.
Since then, environmental lawyers have been meeting with the county and cities to nudge compliance, without reaching an agreement, Beckman said. So they sued, hoping the federal courts would force compliance with the water quality standards. The lawsuit alleges these standards have been violated 235 times since 2002.
In one instance, the suit says,
All of this hardened landscape tilts toward the sea. So most of the rain in the area rushes into coastal waters, sweeping contaminants along with it.
This pollution, according to various studies, contributes to gastrointestinal illnesses among
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-drain4mar04,1,5573220.story
Environmental groups file suit over pollution
By Troy
Environmental groups on Monday sued
Filed by the Natural Resources Defense Council and Santa Monica Baykeeper, the lawsuits allege that the county is violating federal Clean Water Act standards that limit runoff into Malibu Creek and the
Alleging that the county has failed to report and correct high bacteria and toxin discharges, the lawsuit also seeks to impose a "no discharge" rule to protect coastal preserves in
"What this is really about is the fact that the No.1 water-pollution problem in
"These cases seek to enforce the environmental limits on water pollution that will actually solve the problem. In our complaint, we list a whole slurry of pollutants ranging from fecal (bacteria) to cyanide, silver, zinc and copper. It's really a witch's brew of pollution."
The Mugu to Latigo coastal preserve, one of 34 biologically significant areas, stretches from Mugu Lagoon in
"
County Department of Public Works Assistant Deputy Director Mark Pestrella said the county is committed to keeping the waters safe and has developed a program to prevent urban runoff under the oversight of the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board.
Pestrella said his office worked with the NRDC and Santa Monica Baykeeper to provide reasonable alternatives to address the problem, but the organizations instead chose to sue.
"They claim that the programs of the
http://www.dailynews.com/search/ci_8443034?IADID=Search-www.dailynews.com-www.dailynews.com
OIL SPILL:
Greka crude spills into
Associated Press – 3/4/08
Cleanup crews worked Monday to sop up the goo.
Santa Barbara County Fire Department Capt. Eli Iskow says firefighters responded to the spill Monday morning after getting a call from a Greka employee.
Greka spokesman Robert Emmers says the oil leaked from a 4-inch pipe left over from a well shut down in 2005.
The crude flowed about 300 yards down the creek, which has a small stream of water.
Greka has been plagued by a string of spills and, in recent months, the county has issued stop-work orders at some of the firm's facilities. #
http://www.sacbee.com/114/story/758543.html
GOLD RUSH MINING ISSUES:
Report: "Mining's Toxic Legacy: An Initiative to Address Mining Toxins in the Sierra" Released Today
YubaNet.com – 3/4/08
By The Sierra Fund
The California State Assembly has scheduled hearings to examine the long term impact of the Gold Rush on public lands and waters of the state, to be held on Tuesday, March 4, 2008 in Room 4202 at 9:00am. This joint hearing is convened by three Committees of the Assembly, including the Water, Parks & Wildlife Committee, Chair Assemblywoman Lois Wolk; Natural Resources Committee, Chair Assemblywoman Loni Hancock; and the Environmental Safety & Toxic Materials Committee, Chair Assemblyman Jared Huffman. All three committees hold lead jurisdiction over some aspect of this issue ranging from park funding to water board regulations and mapping efforts.
This will be the first hearing on the long term impacts of the Gold Rush on public lands ever held by the California State Assembly. The Gold Rush, which began in 1848 after the discovery of gold near
Speakers at the hearing will include Elizabeth "Izzy" Martin presenting the results of The Sierra Fund's new report Mining's Toxic Legacy: An Initiative to Address Mining Toxins in the Sierra. Also speaking will be Don Ryberg, Chair of the Tsi-akim Maidu Tribe of Nevada City, the tribe that was at "ground zero" of the Gold Rush, as well as government scientists from federal, state and local agencies.
Is human health, water quality or the environment at risk from historic mining toxins?
The Gold Rush changed
Working with partners from state, federal, and tribal governments as well as from the academic, health, and environmental communities, The Sierra Fund's report Mining's Toxic Legacy is the first comprehensive evaluation of what happened during the Gold Rush, including: the cultural, health, and environmental impacts of this era; the obstacles that lie in the way of addressing these impacts; and a strategic plan of action for cleaning up the Sierra Nevada, the headwaters for more than 60% of California's drinking water.
Mining the Mountains
Using techniques including placer, hard rock, and hydraulic mining, millions of tons of gold were extracted from the
Impacts of the Gold Rush
Cultural: The Gold Rush devastated the Native People in the region.
Forced relocation, disease, and outright murder shattered their villages and tribes. Toxic materials that remain from this era isolate Native Californians from their traditional ceremonial activities such as fishing and collection of medicinal and ceremonial plants, continuing the devastation begun over a century ago.
Environmental: The Sierra Nevada provides more than 60% of the drinking water for the state of
Health: Mercury, arsenic, and asbestos are known to cause severe human health problems with continued exposure. Mercury contamination of fish has caused the State to issue warnings about fish consumption in Sierra water bodies that have been tested. Arsenic and asbestos, naturally occurring toxic materials crushed during the Gold Rush and left in huge tailings piles, have been found in dangerously high levels throughout the region and can be breathed in as dust particles when working or recreating in these areas.
Despite the extensive evidence of potential exposure to these many toxins, human health studies have never been done in the
The government is the largest landowner in the
There are no incentives for private land cleanup, and regulations regarding cleanup are not consistent or understandable. General Mining Law enables current mining operations to continue to operate without reclamation plans that are specific to mitigation addressing legacy mining waste. Some policies need closer examination:
- Regulations on suction dredging are outdated. New studies indicate that suction dredging has the potential to spread mercury in the environment in highly mobile and highly reactive forms.
- Reservoir management may aggravate mercury mobilization and reactivity. Accumulation of sediment contaminated with mercury behind reservoirs requires dredging out this excess material to maintain water storage capacity. Dangers associated with this procedure include re-suspending and re-mobilizing toxins and increasing mercury methylation.
- Mine tailings and materials left over from reservoir dredging are not tested for arsenic or other heavy metals before being sold for aggregate, even though many of the materials dredged from reservoirs or left over from mining are known to be contaminated. The use of local aggregate fill is not effectively regulated for arsenic, mercury, and other contaminants.
Wetlands restoration and reservoir management need to reflect mercury methylation concerns. Materials dredged from reservoirs that may contain toxins need to be carefully monitored. Hazardous materials recovered from cleanups need to be carefully disposed.
Regulatory actions should be adopted to implement provisions of the Clean Water Act applicable to instream suction dredging and its impacts on mercury. The Clean Water Act needs to be reformed to make it easier to conduct cleanup activities.
The Federal 1872 Mining Act needs to be reformed to require meaningful mitigation of cultural and environmental impacts from both modern-day and historic mining. Good Samaritan laws must be reformed to provide incentives for cleanup. The California Surface Mining and Reclamation Act needs to be strengthened to require minimum verifiable standards for reclamation.
A Call to Action
After nearly two years of effort to build relationships among new constituencies, this Initiative has laid the foundation to bring to light this long-neglected issue. The time has come for the state of
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