Paul Clinton The Orange County Grand Jury...

Paul Clinton

The Orange County Grand Jury has issued a seven-point indictment of

the Orange County Sanitation District’s decision to withhold crucial data

about bacterial contamination near Huntington Beach’s shoreline.

The report, released on Tuesday, critiqued the agency, saying its

leaders have “not disclosed the existence of all publicly funded

studies.”

The grand jury cited “The 20 Meter Study,” a 1996 report paid for by

the district -- funds derived mostly by rates passed on to users. A

written analysis of the report was not released until late March 2002.

The study shows that the plume was traveling along the ocean floor

toward the beach. The contamination was reaching a line demarcating a

20-meter depth about 1.5-miles out to sea. The district is required to

protect the water area leading out to that area under the terms of a

federal waiver.

However, the district successfully loosened those restrictions in

1997, shortly after the study was completed.