Inlet could increase contamination at state beach

Kenneth Ma

HUNTINGTON BEACH -- Building an inlet connecting the Bolsa Chica

wetlands to the Pacific Ocean could increase the potential for

contaminating the beach with bacteria, a county official said.

A 520-page preliminary report from state and federal agencies, which

becomes available today, outlines seven proposals to build a channel to

allow ocean water to flow into the wetlands to enhance and restore

wildlife.

The 1 1/2-year study suggests that building a channel will help

attract a greater variety of fish, seabirds and other coastal wildlife to

the area. The area was sealed from the ocean by duck-hunting enthusiasts

in 1899.

However, building an inlet could have some unwelcome consequences.

“There is a possibility of more postings,” but it would probably not

lead to an increase in beach closures, said Monica Mazur, an

environmental health specialist for the county’s Health Care Agency.

She declined to comment further, saying she has not yet reviewed the

report.

Some of the report’s alternatives may potentially modify the Garden

Grove Wintersburg channel, which could allow urban runoff to flow into

the ocean.

One alternative would create an ocean channel near the south end of

Bolsa Chica State Beach without modifying the flood control channel.

That version would not increase bacteria levels at the Bolsa State

Beach because warning signs and beach closures have not been proven to

originate from wildlife areas, said Dwight Sanders, chief of the

Environmental Planning and Management Division at the State Lands

Commission.

“You are only going to have closures if some flood flows from the east

Garden Grove [Wintersburg] channel are incorporated,” said Sanders, who

is one of the report’s three principal authors.

But, creating the channel would modify wave movement and currents

because an inlet would need to have jetties for protection. These jetties

may also change the way sand is deposited.

Many longtime surfers at Bolsa Chica State Beach say the channel may

come at their expense.

Bolsa Chica State Beach is “a nice place to surf. There are lots of

friendly people here,” said Gary Taylor, a Lakewood resident.

Taylor, who has been surfing at the state beach for 35 years, said he

is concerned a channel may flush out oil deposits from the wetlands into

the ocean.

“If you keep changing things, you are adding to the confusion and

messing with Mother Nature,” he said.

Randy Ferguson, a Seal Beach resident and longtime surfer, said the

ocean inlet will bring more contamination to the beach. Surfers, he said,

act as guinea pigs and will bare the brunt of the channel’s effect.

The preliminary report will undergo a 45-day public hearing process,

starting Friday, Sanders said.

If the inlet is created, the project -- including restoration work --

will probably cost more than $50 million, which will be paid from

mitigation funds from the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, said Jack

Fancher, a biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

FYI

PUBLIC HEARINGS

Hearings are scheduled in Huntington Beach at 3 and 7 p.m., Aug. 31

They will be held at the City Council chambers, 2000 Main St.

THE REPORT

Copies of the report are available at Huntington Beach Central

Library, 7111 Talbert Ave., and libraries in neighboring cities. The

report can also be picked up in Huntington Beach at the Bolsa Chica

Conservancy, 3842 Warner Ave., and the State Lands Commission, 1700

Pacific Coast Highway.

The State Lands Commission can be reached at (916) 574-1880. The U.S.

Fish and Wildlife Service can be reached at (760) 431-9440.