Urban run-off mars beaches

As the Independence Day holiday approaches, many students enrolled in the Cal State Long Beach summer session are probably hoping to spend a lazy hour or two at the beach.

But heading to one popular spot -- Huntington Beach -- may give a moment's pause. 

Last summer a 4.5-mile stretch of Huntington's coastline was closed to ocean water contact from July 1 until after Labor Day due to a mysterious bacteria plume.

Bacterial levels were as high as those usually expected in a raw sewage leak, with the ability to cause illnesses ranging from rashes and throat infections to stomach cramps, nausea and diarrhea, according to the Orange County Health Department.

However, a major sewage leak was discounted last summer after an extensive $1-million inspection of the city's sewer system.  It is now hoped that several scientific studies funded by the City of Huntington Beach and the County of Orange will finally solve the mystery, with the results scheduled for release by mid-July. 

Most officials believe the studies will show the main culprit is urban run-off, generally defined as storm drain water from home driveways and lawns that includes grease and oil, fertilizer, pesticides, pet waste and other ingredients harmful to the ocean environment. 

"Urban run-off is a considerable problem, especially with a huge population living next to the ocean," said Carrie Wolfe of the Cal State University Ocean Studies Institute.  "It's known as ënon-point' source pollution that can be awfully hard to pin down." 

Huntington Beach and the County of Orange have taken short-term steps to control urban run-off at Huntington this summer season, though the long-term answer to the problem promises to be more difficult.

"I think the ocean will be better," said Richard Barnard, public information officer for the city of Huntington Beach.  "There was a lot of hype about the sewage leak.  We spent the summer looking for something that didn't exist."

Huntington Beach's only closure this year was due to a sewage pipe leak in Costa Mesa that closed 2,500 square feet of coastline near the mouth of the Santa Ana River, Barnard said. 

"It looks like the steps we're taking are working for the short-term,"  Barnard said.  "But we need to look down the road for permanent solutions."

If advisory postings and closed beach coastlines are discomforting to beach-lovers, in part they can thank a state law implemented last July called Assembly Bill (AB) 411 which set new, more stringent water quality standards.

According to Charles McGee, laboratory supervisor of microbiology at the Orange County Sanitation District, prior to AB 411, county sanitation workers were only required to test for total coliform, a bacteria "indicator" which doesn't harm humans but demonstrates the presence of harmful organisms in the water.  The county, McGee said, now must test for three ? total coliform, fecal coliform and enterocci.

"(The beach closures and advisories) are a combination of new legislation and high bacteria levels," McGee said.  "Across the state there are more postings because everyone is using the three indicator bacteria test."

Larry Honeybourne, general manager of the Orange County Health Department, agree AB 411 "changed the rules of the game."

"It required more stringent health standards, more sampling and increased postings and closures,"  Honeybourne said.  Now what's needed, according to Honeybourne, is additional state and federal funds to ensure the infrastructure of sewage lines and storm drains can help meet the new water quality standards.

In the meantime, Orange County's public facilities and resources department is embarking on a countywide public information campaign starting July 1 to educate residents on how to control their contribution to urban run-off.

"The key is behavioral change," said department director Vicki Wilson.  "We need to change our habits." 

For the latest status on closures or postings of Huntington and other Orange County beaches, one may contact the Beach Closure and Posting Hotline at (714) 667-3752.