Tougher permit getting environmental once-over

June Casagrande

NEWPORT BEACH -- New water-quality rules so tough that the city is

practically alone in its support for them are facing the harsh judgment

of local environmentalists, who say they aren’t nearly tough enough.

Along with the National Resources Defense Council, Newport Beach-based

Defend the Bay will sue a regional board if it doesn’t take more steps to

keep local waters clean, said the group’s founder, Bob Caustin.

“If they don’t bring standards up to the ones in Los Angeles and San

Diego counties, we plan to appeal to the state board and, if necessary,

to the state Superior Court,” Caustin said.

The Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Board is scheduled to make a

final vote on Jan. 18 on a permit that allows 34 Orange County cities to

operate their storm drains. This latest version of a permit that is

updated every five years includes rules more stringent than ever to keep

pollutants out of storm drains.

“We’ve made our comments and the board has accepted them, so we stand

by that,” Mayor Tod Ridgeway said. “It’s important to remember that we’re

probably the only city in the county that supports the rules. We’re

already doing better than San Diego and Los Angeles at controlling

runoff.”

Not good enough, Caustin said.

“There’s no excuse for depriving Orange County of the same quality

water as San Diego and Los Angeles,” he said.

The rules have created tensions between Newport Beach and neighboring

inland cities because all must foot the cost of keeping pollutants out of

runoff waters, even though coast cities enjoy more benefits. Some cities

have argued that it is too costly to comply with the rules, which will

require more street sweeping, more inspections at construction sites and

other measures. It is estimated that, countywide, the cost of meeting

storm water pollution control requirements could jump from about $50

million to about $70 million.

Even Newport Beach is reeling from a provision of the permit that will

require local merchants who hose off their sidewalks to catch the water

before it gets into the storm drain. The City Council is considering

helping merchants pay for sidewalk cleaning.

Defend the Bay and the National Resources Defense Council disagree. As

part of 1,000 pages of comments the groups filed with the water-quality

board, the environmentalists have included documents debunking fears that

the rules will be too expensive.

In a written statement, David Beckman of the defense council called

cities’ claims “highly misleading, if not simply outright falsehoods.”

He noted that much of the $50 million being spent in the county is for

things such as street sweeping and recycling -- services necessary even

without the permit. He also noted that there is insufficient evidence to

support claims that current or future water-quality expenditures are

unnecessarily high.