[Water_news] 5. DWR'S CALIFORNIA WATER NEWS: AGENCIES, PROGRAMS, PEOPLE - 7/30/08

Department of Water Resources

California Water News

A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment

 

July 30, 2008

 

5. Agencies, Programs, People –

 

 

Beaches reopen as report slams water

Long Beach Press Telegram- 7/30/08

 

1.7 million gallon tank boosts Murrieta water supply

Riverside Press Enterprise- 7/29/08

 

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Beaches reopen as report slams water

Long Beach Press Telegram- 7/30/08

From staff and wire reports

Three of four polluted beaches were reopened in Long Beach on Tuesday, even as a national report ranked California's water quality poorly.

 

California had the nation's 17 th most polluted beaches last year, and for the fifth straight year, the worst of those beaches were in Los Angeles County, the Natural Resources Defense Council reported Tuesday.

 

Among California beaches, those in Los Angeles County had the highest levels of fecal material in ocean water, according to the NRDC.

 

In Long Beach, the city Health Department reopened three of the four Alamitos Bay beaches that were closed Saturday.

 

Nelson Kerr from the Long Beach Health Department told the Press-Telegram that the water quality reports have allowed them to reopen Mother's Beach, Marine Stadium, and Alamitos Bay. Colorado Lagoon will be reduced to an advisory with one test revealing slightly high levels that Kerr said are unrelated to the sewage spill.

 

The beaches were closed after 12,000 gallons of sewage leaked into Spinnaker Bay near Marine Stadium on Saturday, caused by a grease blockage in a sewer pipe.

 

The NRDC said in its 18 th annual beach water quality report that last year saw the second-highest number of beach closings and beach advisory days around the nation.

 

"Testing the Waters: A Guide to Water Quality at Vacation Beaches," shows the number of closing and advisory days at ocean, bay and Great Lakes beaches was more than 20,000 for the third straight year, according to the NRDC.

 

The findings confirm "that our nation's beaches continue to suffer from serious water pollution that puts swimmers at risk," the organization said in a statement. "Aging and poorly designed sewage and storm water systems hold much of the blame for beachwater pollution."

 

The report added that development in coastal areas is devouring wetlands and other natural buffers such as dunes and beach grass that otherwise would help filter out dangerous pollution before it reaches the beach.

 

In the Western United States, including California, beach closing days were down 21 percent last year after an 83 percent increase in 2006, according to the NRDC.

 

Repeat offenders Avalon on Santa Catalina Island and Santa Monica were among those in L.A. County with the highest levels of fecal bacteria, the organization reported.

 

Staff writer Tiffany Rider and City News Service contributed to this report.#

http://www.presstelegram.com/news/ci_10035114

 

 

 

1.7 million gallon tank boosts Murrieta water supply

Riverside Press Enterprise- 7/29/08

By ROCKY SALMON

MURRIETA - Western Municipal Water District unveiled a new 1.7 million gallon water tank Tuesday that should keep imported water out of the western portion of Murrieta.

 

The tank is paired with an older tank to make up the Grizzly Ridge Reservoir and is the latest in a series of projects to increase water supplies and improve water pressure.

 

"Murrieta residents don't have to worry about their water supply because we can now handle the growth," said district board member Brenda Dennstedt, who lives in the part of Murrieta that gets water from the district.

 

The idea for the reservoir came up during the Murrieta County Water District's 2004 master plan update. District officials were putting together a list of projects that would provide enough water for the area at the eventual buildout of the community, said Jeff Sims, the district's assistant general manager. The water district covers the area west of Interstate 15.

 

When the Western Municipal Water District took over Murrieta County Water District, staff members began going through the list to make sure the growing area could keep up with the water demands, including:

 

A $400,000 connection to Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District to provide emergency water.

 

The $1.2 million Alson Pump Station, which allows the district to improve pressure and pump water to the reservoirs.

 

The $1.2 million Olga Gordon Tank No. 2 allowed for more storage in the lower areas of western Murrieta.

 

The new Grizzly Ridge Reservoir is at the end of Jefferson Avenue along Interstate 15. Construction on the $1.9 million reservoir started more than a year ago.

 

The new tank is 90 feet wide, 40 feet tall and is partially buried in the hillside.

 

The new tank will give the district 2.2 million gallons of water storage and reduce energy costs.

 

The district can pump water into the reservoir at night during off-peak hours then let gravity take it to the homes during the day.

 

The district has two other projects lined up for the area: a $500,000 reclaimed-water facility and a $2.24 million sewer system for Old Town Historic Murrieta.#

http://www.pe.com/localnews/rivcounty/stories/PE_News_Local_S_swatertank30.4ac9602.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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