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Research
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Stream Team
As part of our successful Stream Team program, we are launching a Stream Watch program in the Malibu Creek watershed. This program will train staff and volunteers to identify and track pollution sources and degraded habitat in the Malibu Creek watershed. While the Stream Team program focused on mapping the watershed and locating potential sources of pollution, Stream Watch will routinely monitor construction sites, horse ranches, vineyards and other potential sources of pollution. |
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Beach Report Card®
Since 1990, Heal the Bay’s Beach Report Card has been giving local beaches A-F grades based on their bacterial pollution levels, and the risk that of getting sick from swimming there. In 2010, we’ll expand beyond California’s borders for the first time, grading beaches along the Oregon and Washington coast. |
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 Water samples are collected at the same time that swimmers are exposed. Photo: Southern California Coastal Water Research Project |
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Epidemiology and Source Studies
Heal the Bay has been studying the relationship between more than 35 pathogens and pathogen indicators, and swimmer health. These epidemiology studies, which were spearheaded by UC Berkeley, the Southern California Coastal Waters Research Project (SCCWRP), the Orange County Sanitation Districts, and Heal the Bay, are scheduled to be completed in 2010. Heal the Bay has also studied the high bacteria densities at Ramirez Creek (which leads to Paradise Cove) and Escondido Creek. We’ve determined that the bacteria is human in nature, and are now moving up the watershed to determine the source of these unacceptably high levels of bacteria. |
Education
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Santa Monica Pier Aquarium
In 2010, the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium will install signs on the Pier that talk about the natural history of the Santa Monica Bay and pollution prevention. We will also create and install marine-themed chairs and tables on the Pier’s deck directly above the aquarium, to encourage people to visit. Inside the aquarium, we will develop an activism exhibit, in honor of Heal the Bay’s founding President, Dorothy Green and rename our classroom “The Green Room”, in honor of her environmental dedication. |
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Loyola Marymount University Service Learning Project
In 2010, LMU students will work with Heal the Bay and Environmental Charter High School to develop “How To” guides for Heal the Bay’s Service Learning Options. These guides will help provide educators with the support they need to incorporate Service Learning into their classrooms, and help students fulfill graduation requirements for community service hours. This project will take the Service Learning options currently available on our website and expand them to incorporate more detailed background information, lesson plans, hands-on activities to engage students, and an evaluation and reflection component. |
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National Geographic Teacher Environmental Literacy Guides
Heal the Bay has contracted with the National Geographic Society to develop Teacher Environmental Literacy Guides in four core subject areas; Oceans, Water, Energy, and Climate change. These guides, funded primarily by a grant from Southern California Edison, will be geared towards 3rd through 8th grade educators and will include extensive background content on these subjects, specific strategies to help teachers introduce these issues into the classroom (in conjunction with existing curriculum), plus student activities, and resources such as videos, posters, maps, etc. These four subject area guides will be field tested and evaluated by teachers and will include a professional teacher development and implementation plan. By the fall of 2010, the goal is to make these guides, along with professional development workshops, available for teachers and for them to align with the EEI (Environmental Education Initiative) units of study and Environmental Priorities for oceans, water, energy, and climate change. |
Community Action
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Corporate Healer Beach Cleanup Program
In 2010, Heal the Bay will be launching our Corporate Healer Beach Cleanup Program, which promotes corporate social responsibility by managing beach cleanups for local corporations and companies to participate in as teambuilding, educational and community outreach opportunities. |
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 Algin Sutton Park Inland Cleanup on Earth Day 2009. Photo: Heal the Bay |
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Healthy Communities Initiative
In 2010, four of Heal the Bay’s South L.A. community partners will begin construction of community-driven, greening beautification projects in their neighborhoods. Youth Opportunities High School of Watts will develop a community garden and install a rain-catching cistern to help prevent urban runoff. Wisdom Academy for Young Scientists in Southeast L.A. will involve the parents of this elementary school in the construction of an outdoor classroom. At Washington Elementary in Compton, the PTA will develop a welcoming native plant garden in front of their school. Lastly, the St. Michael’s Catholic Church community group will complete its transformation into an incorporated nonprofit organization: The Association of Communities for South Los Angeles (A.C.U.S.L.A.). This community partner, in association with Heal the Bay and St. Michael’s Church, will solidify its presence in their members’ neighborhoods by expanding working relationships with Treepeople and the Community Redevelopment Agency/LA to further green the local area. |
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 Heal the Bay's first Volunteer Orientaiton presented in both English and Spanish in Southeast L.A. Photo: Heal the Bay |
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Spanish Language Outreach
Heal the Bay’s Spanish blog www.htblatino.blogspot.com will increase its visibility and sphere of influence in 2010, and serve as precursor to a re-designed Spanish language site for Heal the Bay. Our online presence in Spanish will increase exponentially in 2010 to mirror and match the ongoing on-the-ground, Spanish-language outreach and grassroots organizing that Heal the Bay has been developing for the past several years. |
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Inland Volunteer Orientation
In 2010, Heal the Bay plans to host regular inland volunteer orientations. For this first year, we are targeting three orientation meetings in South LA, the North East Valley, and Downtown Los Angeles. Traditionally, our volunteer trainings have been held at our Santa Monica offices. By moving our orientations into more geographically diverse communities, our goal is to expand the base of our volunteers as well. |
Advocacy
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Toxic Effluent Policy
In 2009, Heal the Bay released a report documenting the lack of effective enforcement against toxic effluent entering our waterways. In 2010, we will work with the State Water Resources Control Board to encourage them to develop, approve and implement a strong policy to reduce effluent toxicity, including a plan for effective enforcement. |
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 A map of State and Regional Water Boards in California Image: State Water Resources Control Board |
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Septic System Regulations
While most of us, especially in LA County, are hooked up to sewage systems, there are a number of communities throughout the State that depend on septic systems. If well maintained and in appropriate conditions (i.e. soil and depth to groundwater), septic systems can be perfectly safe. However, neglected or improperly sited septic systems can leak raw sewage into nearby waterways. In 2010, Heal the Bay will continue pressuring the State Water Resources Control Board to finally complete and approve the long overdue statewide septic system regulations (as legally required by AB 885, passed in the year 2000). |
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Malibu Septics Moratorium
Heal the Bay will continue to advocate for State Water Board approval of the Regional Board’s Malibu civic center septic system moratorium. We will continue to work with the City to get them to move forward on reducing sewage pollution to Malibu Lagoon and Surfrider Beach through the banning of all commercial septics by 2015 and residential septics by 2019. |
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 Paradise Cove beach in Malibu, CA, is at the outlet of Ramirez Canyon Creek. Note the storm drain outfall just to the left of the pier. Copyright © 2007 Kenneth Adelman, California Coastal Records Project.
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Paradise Cove Enforcement Action
In 2010, Heal the Bay will petition the State Water Board to augment the Regional Board’s enforcement action against the Kissel Company’s mobile home park. The fine was trivial, despite the more than one thousand water quality violations at Paradise cove over the last decade. |
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 Divers amidst a spectacular kelp forest flourishing within the Anacapa Island State Marine Reserve. Image: Nick Fash/Heal the Bay |
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Marine Protected Area Maps
Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are one of the most effective ways to protect threatened marine life. The ongoing process to establish MPAs in Southern California will wrap up in 2010 with the final approval of the proposed maps by the Department of Fish and Game. Heal the Bay will continue to work with local communities to develop angler stewardship programs to ensure that the MPAs work well. |
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 Low impact development ordinances will help to minimize toxins flowing into the Santa Monica Bay from storm drains.Image: City of Los Angeles Stormwater Program |
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Low Impact Development Ordinance
As the next step in stormwater management Heal the Bay will work on low impact development ordinances with the County of LA and the City of LA to require all new development, and significant redevelopment, to capture and use or infiltrate on-site the runoff generated from a three quarter inch storm. In the case of the City of LA Ordinance, if infiltration or reuse is technically impossible on-site, then the developer needs to pay the city a fee to complete a nearby retrofit project. This ordinance would encourage more green space and less paving. In 2010 we are anticipating the final City of LA ordinance will go into effect and for the City of Long Beach to adopt its ordinance as well. |
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 The Scattergood power plant in El Segundo, CA, is owned by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and utilizes OTC. Image: California Coastal Records Project |
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Once-through Cooling Policy
In California, coastal power plants use once-through cooling systems to keep their plants running at safe temperatures. However, once-through cooling draws huge amounts of sea water into the power plant, where it is circulated and then dumped back into the ocean at much higher temperatures, making these power plant systems disastrous for local marine life (temperatures aside, fish and invertebrates get sucked into the power plant and killed, or trapped by the powerful suction). In 2009, the State Water Resources Control Board released its long-awaited draft policy on the use of coastal and estuarine waters for power plant cooling. This draft policy outlines two choices—either switch to closed-cycle cooling, or put in place controls that keep marine life mortality at the same levels as closed-cycle cooling. In 2010, we will push for final approval of this critical Water Resources Control Board policy to protect California’s marine life. |
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 Juvenile green turtle eating plastic bag. Cerro Verde, Uruguay. Photo: Alejandro Fallabrino, Proyecto Karumbe. |
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Plastic Bans
In 2010, we will continue advocating for the Cities of Santa Monica and Los Angeles to develop and implement strong bans and/or fees on non-reusable grocery bags. Single-use plastic bags are ubiquitous in the marine environment, carrying toxins, entangling animals, and being eaten by animals who mistake them for jellyfish. In parallel, we will continue to support the flotilla of marine debris bills at the State Legislature, which include a single-use bag fee, a beach smoking ban, an expanded polystyrene food packaging ban, and a requirement to leash the lid on plastic beverage bottles. |
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 Urban runoff flows to the Bay at Santa Monica Canyon. Photo: Heal the Bay |
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Los Angeles County Stormwater Permit
This year, a new draft of the Los Angeles County stormwater permit will be released likely. This permit, which dictates how the County must treat its stormwater and urban runoff, is scheduled for renewal every five years, but is long overdue. Heal the Bay will work to ensure that the upcoming permit includes strong low-impact development incentives, structural pollution removal device performance criteria, as well as clear, water body specific pollution limits called Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs). |
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 Bathers crowd the beach in Santa Monica north of the pier. The bacteria pollution limits (Bacteria TMDL) help protect public health during the busy beach-going summer months. Photo: Copyright (c) Santa Monica Convention & Visitors Bureau. |
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Beach Water Quality Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs)
Heal the Bay will intervene in the Los Angeles county lawsuit against the State over enforceable beach water quality requirements to ensure that public health is protected. Despite the hundreds of TMDL violations at local beaches every year, last year the County sued the state to reverse the enforceability of requirements for clean beaches. TMDLs are a requirement of the Clean Water Act, and the best way to protect the health of swimmers and surfers at local beaches. |
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