Drain strains ready to go in

Jenny Marder

The City Council approved a plan Monday night that will block most of

the trash and debris collected in storm drains from flowing out onto

beaches and wetlands in Downtown Huntington Beach.

The construction contract was awarded to G.C.I. Construction Inc.

By this winter, seven high-capacity filters will be installed to

collect debris coming from 12 storm drain outlets that empty onto the

city’s beaches from Goldenwest Street to 1st Street and one that

discharges into the Bolsa Chica wetlands.

The filters will capture Styrofoam cups, cigarette butts, plastic

straws, oil, grease and other floating debris that flows through the

Downtown storm drains and strain the material out of the runoff

before it is flushed out to the city’s beaches. It will also collect

80% of “suspended solids” such as dirt, break dust, silt and other

heavy materials.

“People will see a much cleaner [beach] area, particularly in the

winter after a storm,” City Engineer Dave Webb said.

The filtration devices are known as “gross pollutant separators,”

a name that Mayor Connie Boardman said fits their description.

Bacteria, which enters the ocean through storm drain runoff by

adhering to solids and trash, will also be reduced, Webb said.

Most of the trash that comes through the pipes is collected in a

catch basin, but during heavy rains, debris gets carried into the

ocean.

Storm drain pollution can be so harmful that the Orange County

Health Department advises that people avoid swimming in the ocean 72

hours after it rains, Marine Safety Lt. Mike Beuerlein said.

“Due to storm runoff, the chance of bacteria levels increasing is

heightened,” he said.

Beuerlein welcomes “anything that will help increase the water

quality in our ocean.” The money for the project will come out of a

$4-million water quality grant that the city received from

Proposition 13 in March 2000 for water quality improvements.

The bid came in lower than expected, at about $647,000, bringing

the anticipated total cost of the project down from an estimated $2

million to slightly less than $1.2 million.

“I’m glad to see that these are finally at the cusp of being

installed,” Boardman said. “It’s nice that we’re going to be able to

stop what is currently floating out of these drains.”

Residents can play their own part in reducing storm water

pollution, Webb said.

“Most of the problem is us,” Webb said. “A lot of the trash that

flows into the storm drains comes from people throwing trash out of

car windows and into parking lots.” People need to be careful to toss

their trash into receptacles, pick up after their dogs and use less

detergents or biodegradable detergents when washing their cars.

“They need to use common sense and dispose of material. People

don’t realize, ‘Well, that’s what you’re going to swim in tomorrow.’”

Construction will begin later this summer and should be complete

by winter, Webb said.