Sewage fiasco may harm Newport’s reputation

Paul Clinton

NEWPORT BEACH -- City officials are worrying about Newport Beach’s

reputation as an environmental leader after its improper practices for

disposing of sewage debris came to light.

Earlier this week, city officials acknowledged that they have been

improperly disposing of debris from the city’s sewage wet wells.

For the last 12 years, the city has sent the debris -- consisting

mainly of sand, eggshells and raw sewage -- to the Frank R. Bowerman

Landfill in Irvine.

Federal environmental law requires cities to test waste heading to

landfills for heavy metals, such as lead, mercury and other substances

that could leech into the ground water.

Over the past several years, the city has taken a much more active

role in efforts to clean up Upper Newport Bay, implement more rigorous

testing of creeks and streams in the watershed, and reduce urban runoff.

The sewage disposal issue could threaten that sterling image, said a

worried Assistant City Manager Dave Kiff.

“We feel really badly about this because we consider ourselves a very

aggressively environmental city,” Kiff said. “We screwed up.”

Even with Kiff’s consternation, local environmental regulators have

downplayed the issue, saying the city isn’t expected to be penalized for

the practice.

Some environmentalists have also defended the city’s quick handling of

the issue. City Manager Homer Bludau has ordered an internal review of

the disposal practice and said an outside consultant will be hired to

monitor the city’s sewage disposal practices to ensure no other problems

exist.

Jack Skinner, a longtime Newport Beach environmentalist, said the

revelations did not trouble him, because the practice didn’t cause any

environmental damage.

“I hope it doesn’t damage the city’s reputation,” Skinner said. “They

are really doing a much better job of protecting the public than in the

past. It was embarrassing, but the city corrected it as soon as

possible.”

Instead of sending the waste to a landfill, the city began sending it

to the Orange County Sanitation District to be treated.

It has also begun testing the debris at the General Services Yard, at

Newport Boulevard and 15th Street.

But not all environmentalists were comforted by the city’s handling of

the issue. Bob Caustin, who founded the environmental group Defend the

Bay, said he saw it as a red flag for concern about other city practices.

“It’s cavalier,” Caustin said. “It’s a shame that our people didn’t

find [the sewage] was something that needed to be treated carefully. . .

. We need to educate our people.”

* Paul Clinton covers the environment and John Wayne Airport. He may

be reached at (949) 764-4330 or by e-mail ato7

paul.clinton@latimes.comf7 .