On the water -- Keeping everybody clean

Paul Clinton

When he’s out on the town, Randy Seton isn’t afraid to speak his mind

about environmental issues. Even if it gets him into a little trouble.

“I get into arguments with rich guys all the time,” Seton said. “[They

say] ‘It isn’t my problem.’ But all of the sudden, when it comes to their

backyard, they get religious.”

Seton has been working to educate the owners of the mansions in Corona

del Mar above Buck Gully. Many of those homes are suspected of adding to

the polluted runoff heading down the gully.

In his role as one of the leaders of Orange County CoastKeeper, Seton

has been spending much of his time lately monitoring the diversion system

the group installed in the gully Aug. 23.

So far, using a simple network of piping connected to a pump, the

group has kept more than five million gallons of polluted water from

seeping into the ocean off Little Corona Beach.

The pump system was installed at a cost of about $35,000. It will suck

about 112 gallons per minute out of the gully. About 150,000 gallons a

day flow down the gully. The waters off Little Corona are on the state

list of 34 protected water bodies known as Areas of Special Biological

Significance. Crystal Cove is also on that list.

Contrary to CoastKeeper’s visible head, Garry Brown, Seton spends his

time mostly behind the scenes on the group’s projects.

Seaton, a 40-year resident of Balboa Island, developed a stewardly

attitude toward nature when he served in the Coast Guard during the

1970s.

“That’s what made me realize that the ocean needs management,” Seton

said. “It’s like tending a garden.”

The 50-year-old is also actively involved in CoastKeeper’s efforts to

reforest the ocean floors at Little Corona and Crystal Cove with kelp

farms. Every month, the group plants seedlings using scuba divers.

One of the reasons Seaton spends so much time on environmental

activism, he says, is because he uses the water so much himself as a

surfer, diver and fisherman.

“It’s giving back,” Seton said. “It’s better than giving blood.”