Volunteers Needed for 2009 Kids Ocean Day

2009 KIDS OCEAN DAY: VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!!

ADOPT-A-BEACH CLEAN-UP

Thursday, June 4th

Dockweiler State Beach

If interested in volunteering, please contact Michael Klubock

at (310) 652-4324 or
michael@klubock.com

LAist joins the Team Effort

A special thanks to our friends over at LAist, who promoted the LA Team Effort and Stormwater Program last week when they wrote about the installments of catch basin screen covers throughout the City. The story, called "One Way We Fight Pollution", was an encouraging response to the low water quality grades LA received from Heal the Bay's Annual Beach Report Card.

The story was so well-received that it prompted questions from residents and a followup story about the new City infrastructure and cleaning methods. You can find the responses and followup entry here. (We especially like the emphasis on reminding residents not to litter!)

For even more information on the Proposition O catch basin screen cover project visit www.lastormwater.org/Siteorg/events/PropO/121307.htm

Heal the Bay Gives the Grades

Just in time for the kickoff to summer this Memorial Day weekend, Heal the Bay has released its 19th annual Beach Report Card (BRC), with information on the status of California's coastline. Heal the Bay's BRC provides water quality information to the millions of people who swim, surf, or dive in California coastal waters.

Reported from April 2008 through March 2009, Heal the Bay analysts assigned A-to-F letter grades to 502 beaches along the California coast, based on levels of weekly bacterial pollution. To much relief, 91% of beaches statewide received A or B grades during dry weather, meaning very good to excellent water quality. For the first time, Heal the Bay also handed out A+ grades to 79 beaches that never exceeded bacterial standards. Among those sites were Will Rogers State Beach on Pacific Coast Highway, Dockweiler State Beach at the Imperial Highway drain and Portuguese Bend Cove in Rancho Palos Verdes.

However, there were some beach bummers that did not make the honor roll. Some of the lowest grades were given out to Surfrider Beach in Malibu and Santa Monica Pier. While we are on the track to cleaner water and better regulations, we have a lot more work to do in terms of our daily pollution prevention practices. Poor water quality not only affects the health of beachgoers and marine life, but also threatens California's ocean-dependent economy valued at $43 billion.

Since the BRC was first published nineteen years ago, beachgoers throughout California have come to rely on the grades produced within the weekly, summer and annual documents as a vital public health protection tool. The Stormwater Program also works closely with the monitoring teams of Heal the Bay to provide accurate information to all LA residents.

For more information on Heal the Bay and the results of the BRC, visit: http://www.healthebay.org/

Home Improvement Stores Join the Team Effort for Pollution Prevention

As part of our program's public outreach efforts, stormwater staff members visit home improvment stores through the City of Los Angeles to teach employees the fundamentals of pollution prevention.

Our goal is to educate as many employees as possible on the proper use and disposal of paint, pesticides and fertilizers with the idea that they will relay the correct information to the customers. Since the employees are the experts, customers often ask them for information on paint, pesticide and fertilizer use and disposal.

As part of the stormwater presentation and outreach, the employees are asked to sign a committment letter that states he/she will pass on any useful pollution prevention information to customers and encourage them to use safe practices around the house. So far this year, we have visited 22 home improvement stores in the area, recieving 137 signed committment letters from employees.

In addition to the signed committment letters, we asked some employees to commit to passing on the pollution prevention message to one additional employee at the store. When the employee passes on a pre-paid postage 3S’s commitment letter to have signed and mailed by another employee, then both recieve our Stormwater resuable tote bags as a token of our appreciation. An added bonus for joining the Team Effort and spreading the word on pollution prevention!

For more information on our public outreach and presentation, visit http://lastormwater.org/Siteorg/program/pubedpage.htm

New Stormwater Permit Adopted for Ventura County

Last Thursday, the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board adopted new regulations for Ventura County aimed at keeping local waterways and beaches clean.

The newly adopted National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit will be shared by Ventura County government and all 10 cities within county limits. The persistence of pollution in the waters off county beaches has prompted a need for more stringent measures, according to state regulators and environmentalists.

Heal the Bay and the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) played major roles in support of the permit, making revisions to the permit language to create clear guidelines. One of the major revisions involves Low Impact Development requirements for new development and redevelopment, which requires 95% of the runoff to be infiltrated.

This permit is especially relevant since it is believed to set a precedent for other local municipalities, including the City of Los Angeles. For more information on this permit, visit www.venturacountystar.com/news/2009/may/08/water-board-sets-tougher-regulations-on/

Upcoming Machado Lake Restoration Meeting

Machado Lake and its surrounding environment are in need of a major recovery effort. The Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board has identified the lake as an impaired water body for DDT, PCBs, pesticides, ammonia, algae, eutrophic conditions, trash, and odor, all of which have negatively affected human as well as aquatic health. This restoration project needs the support of the community to meet the goals of clean water, wildlife improvements, and healthy parks for Los Angeles.

Upcoming Outreach Meeting:

When: Wednesday, May 20 6:30-8:30 p.m.

Where:Wilmington Senior Citizen Center

1371 Eubank Avenue

Wilmington, CA 90744

Topics to be discussed include:

* Machado Lake Alternatives

* Wildlife Relocation

For more information on this meeting, contact: Rebecca Wood at (213)590-0117 or Rebeccajanewood@yahoo.com For additional community events and meetings, please visit our Stormwater calendar at www.calendarwiz.com/lateameffort