Infrastructure: Programs In Lieu of $3.4M Levy
It’s now up to the City Council.
The Regional Water Quality Control Board met Oct. 11 to discuss how to assess a $3.4 million fine levied against the city of San Diego.
The board’s decided to allow the district to spend about $2 million on local projects to improve water quality. The remainder will be an administrative civil liability paid into the State Water Pollution Cleanup and Abatement Account.
But the move , which would fund eight projects that would benefit the San Diego River , depends on the final say of the City Council. The council is scheduled to go into closed session later this week to discuss the matter.
The wastewater department had been assessed $3,469,000 , the largest administrative civil liability ever assessed in California for a sewage spill , in response to a massive spill between Feb. 21 and Feb. 28.
The Metropolitan Wastewater Department allowed an estimated 34 million gallons of sewage to be released into the San Diego River, said Art Coe, assistant executive officer of the board.
But about 60 percent of the fine, or $2,043,400, can instead be spent on Supplemental Environmental Projects locally. Each of the eight projects are above and beyond what the Metropolitan Wastewater Department would be expected to do on its own, and each project helps clean up the San Diego River , the area affected in the February sewage spill, he said.
There’s a catch, however.
“The city must agree to not only do those projects, but also not to appeal the fine , or they will pull the projects back, and all $3.4 million will be applied,” said Dave Schlesinger, the department’s director.
Schlesinger plans to get direction from the City Council on the matter. The council will meet in closed session Oct. 17 to discuss the situation and he will report back to the water board within 30 days with the council’s decision, he said.
If the city appeals, the payment of the $3.4 million would be deferred. But if the appeal fails, the district would have to pay the entire fine to the state, said Mark Alpert, head of compliance for the water quality board.
“It’s somewhat of a threat, but it’s really a disincentive. We don’t want them to petition (to appeal),” he said.
If the city or the wastewater department takes no action in the 30-day time limit, then they have agreed by default to the terms set by the water board, Alpert said.
Alpert noted that Schlesinger had expressed some disappointment in the eight projects the board had picked. The wastewater department had put forward a list of about two dozen projects, but the ones the water board had selected didn’t rank as high as Schlesinger would have hoped, Alpert said.
The eight projects are:
– Natural Resources Restoration Master Plan for the San Diego River in the city of San Diego. This $430,000 project would develop a master plan for the river within city limits, then implement demonstration units to initiate the plan.
– Mission Bay water quality survey. This $362,500 project would collect water samples at 24 sites throughout Mission Bay every week, analyzing contamination and reporting the results to the county Department of Environmental Health and the water quality board.
– Beach valuation project. This $262,500 project would develop a mathematical model for the valuation of beaches using attendance data and other figures to determine how much money is lost per person per day when beaches are closed.
– San Diego River nutrient study. This $250,000 project would investigate the role of nutrient flow in the river and how it would affect water quality.
– Alvarado Canyon mitigation. This $168,000 project would replace non-native plants with native plants in Alvarado Canyon, as well as repair a creek berm.
– Restoration of Adobe Falls Open Space Park. This project will restore the five-acre park by replacing non-native plants with native plants and restoring the creek to its natural condition. The project will cost between $165,000 and $310,000.
– Storm drain sediment trap at Formosa Slough. This $132,000 project will construct a sediment and trash collection pond to minimize future sedimentation, and remove sediments and invasive trees on the east side of Formosa Slough
– Restoration of Chaparral Canyon area. This project will restore three acres of Chaparral Canyon below Lake Murray Dam and replace non-native plants with native plants. The project will cost between $96,000 and $128,400.
