Heal the Bay Blog

Feb. 24, 2015 — Well, it looks like it may be time to bring back our Bag Monster. We thought we had put our symbol of Big Plastic out to pasture with last year’s passage of a statewide ban on single-use plastic bags. But the plastics industry has thrown millions of dollars into a voter referendum to halt the common-sense legislation.

The California Secretary of State announced today that the referendum sponsored by opponents of California’s single-use bag ban has qualified, which will put implementation of the bag law, SB 270, on hold. Voters will now decide whether or not the ban lives in the November 2016 election.

The plastic bag industry, primarily driven by out-of-state support, has sunk over $3.2 million into its campaign to repeal this landmark pollution prevention law. But, Heal the Bay, along with our partners in the California vs. Big Plastic coalition, are not backing down.

Thankfully, voters agree that it’s time to eliminate the single-use bags, which are a powerful symbol of our throw-away consumer culture. A poll by USC Dornslife/Los Angeles Times showed that about six in 10 California voters support the ban, while 34% would vote to overturn the law.

Removal of the plastic bag ban wouldn’t just harm the environment, it would be bad for the economy. California cities and counties spend an estimated $428 million annually to clean up litter and prevent plastic pollution. Flimsy, discarded bags are a blight to our communities, and harmful to aquatic life, like sea turtles and birds.

So what does this mean for shoppers throughout California? The 138 local plastic bag bans that were enacted prior to passage of the state law will remain in place, in areas like the city and county of Los Angeles, Santa Monica, and Long Beach. Referendum qualification will freeze implementation of SB 270, as originally scheduled, so retailers in communities without plastic bag bans may continue to distribute free plastic bags.

But, nothing is keeping individual municipalities from acting against the plastic sack scourge. Right now, nearly one in three Californians live in a municipality that has banned bags. Since implementation of the statewide law is on hold, members of California vs. Big Plastic will continue to advocate for the adoption of local bans.

Investigation of the legitimacy of the plastic industry’s signature gathering practices will continue as well. After widespread voter complaints of signature gathering fraud, the California Attorney General mounted an investigation earlier this year into whether deceptive signature gathering practices were employed.

It’s troubling to think that out-of-state plastic corporations can buy their way onto the ballot. Let’s stand up and show them we are proud to move past costly and polluting plastic bags.

Our science and policy team will continue to work with our partners to help uphold the ban. We’ll keep you posted on ways you can help in the months to come.

We always get questions about plastic bags. We recently assembled an FAQ that details many of the myths and facts about the mysterious bag.

The Plastic Bag Monster has won a brief reprieve. But his days are numbered ….

The aftermath of a terrible oil spill in Santa Barbara 46 years ago is still affecting L.A. shorelines, reports Heal the Bay vice president Sarah Sikich.

Today the state’s environmental community is solemnly remembering a regional environmental disaster of unprecedented proportions – the Santa Barbara oil spill. The vibrancy of Santa Barbara’s coastline is so striking, which is why the tragic events of 1969 still stain the minds of so many Californians.

The years I spent living in Santa Barbara in the early 2000s were the closest I’ve come to my career goal of living fully as a beach bum. I threw myself into the ocean – both literally and figuratively. I studied Coastal and Marine Resources Management at UCSB’s Bren School, paddled outriggers for Ocean Club, served as a Board Member for the Coastal Fund and worked summers at Santa Barbara Sailing Center. Few memories top the sunsets at Mesa Lane beach, the world-class surf at Rincon (and other spots that shall not be mentioned) or being greeted by gray whales during early morning outrigger practice.

But 46 years ago today, an environmental disaster of unprecedented proportions rocked the Santa Barbara coastline. On January 28, 1969, about five miles off the Southern California coast, a blow-out occurred on Union Oil’s Platform A, spewing an estimated 3 million gallons of crude oil into the Santa Barbara Channel and fouling beaches from Goleta to Ventura and across to the rugged Channel Islands.

Thousands of birds were killed, and numerous ocean wildlife, including sea lions,elephant seals and fish perished. The blow-out also took an economic toll on the community. Commercial fishing was temporarily suspended, tourism suffered and coastal properties bore considerable damage. This catastrophe remains the third-largest oil spill in U.S. history after Deepwater Horizon and Exxon Valdez. It also helped spark several environmental laws and policies, including the Clean Water Act, the National Environmental Policy Act and the California Coastal Commission, and laid the foundation for the modern environmental movement.

Nearly five decades removed, we are still faced with environmental threats associated with oil drilling along our coast. Although California has retired all but one of its outdated and risky offshore marine terminals, Santa Monica Bay is home to California’s last remaining offshore marine terminal, built in 1911, which services more than 300 tankers each year. Meanwhile, dozens of oil rigs dot the waters off California’s coast. One by one, these offshore oil drilling platforms are also being decommissioned in California.

But emerging oil drilling projects pose a new threat to our beaches.

Although new offshore drilling is prohibited in our state and federal waters, oil companies continue to seek ways to access oil fields underneath the seafloor. We are feeling that threat right here in Santa Monica Bay, through pursuit of a slant-drilling project to access oil under the Hermosa Beach seafloor by an oil company called E&B Natural Resources Corp. And, it’s up to Hermosa voters – a community that has stood up to big oil for decades – to decide whether or not to allow this oil drilling operation through a special election ballot measure. On March 3, Hermosans will vote on Measure O, electing whether to maintain the existing moratorium on oil drilling or to repeal that ban and allow E&B Natural Resources to pursue its proposed 34-well, up-to-30-year drilling operation.

Throughout February, Heal the Bay will be in the Hermosa community to educate voters about the risks associated with oil drilling. You can come join us on February 7 for a beach clean-up and Pop-Up Pep Rally at Becker Surfboards in Hermosa and for an environmental forum on February 12 featuring remarks by long-standing environmental advocates Ed Begley, Jr. and Bobby Kennedy, Jr.

Heal the Bay has also partnered with NRDC to produce a report evaluating the risk of oil drilling to Santa Monica Bay, which outlines the legal protections against and vulnerabilities to oil drilling along the Bay.

Big Oil is slick. And, it has deep pockets. Local communities must be vigilant in standing up for the environment and public health, and show solidarity when neighboring cities are suffering from proposals to drill. We applaud the City of Santa Monica for adopting a resolution opposing Measure O last month. We hope that by continuing to stand up against Big Oil in their own communities, individuals and local municipalities will encourage Hermosans to keep their ban on oil drilling.

Find out more about how to get involved on the Take Part page of our website.

 Oil drilling remains a threat to the animals that call Southern California waters home. Photo courtesy Boston.com

Heal the Bay policy analyst Peter Shellenbarger reports on promising developments to clean up Malibu’s water pollution.

Jan. 16, 2015 — Malibu is one of the most breathtaking and desirable places to live in Southern California, but it has a dirty little secret – septic systems in and around its cultural center are fouling nearby coastal waters.  Malibu Creek, Malibu Lagoon, and the surrounding ocean, including Surfrider Beach, are critically polluted and numerous studies point to septic systems as a major contributor. Swimmers who recreate in these waters run the risk of all kinds of illnesses.

Heal the Bay has called for the Malibu Civic Center’s septic systems to be replaced by a centralized wastewater treatment facility for over a decade.  It has been a long and bumpy road, with officials complaining about costs and some residents worried about the specter of development if sewers are put in. But our advocacy is finally starting to yield tangible results.

The Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board adopted a Septic Prohibition in 2009 that requires the phasing out by 2019 of all septic systems in the Malibu Civic Center Area (think Malibu Pier, Pepperdine, Malibu Bluffs Park). Earlier this week, the Malibu City Council unanimously certified the Civic Center Wastewater Treatment Facility Final Environmental Impact Report.  Improved water quality in the Civic Center Area depends on this project, which could be funded by an assessment on property owners or a loan from the state to the city.

While this is good news, the Malibu City Council’s certification of the Final Environmental Impact Report is just one piece of the puzzle that needs to be completed before the facility can break ground, hopefully by early next year. More permitting from various bodies awaits, and the city must determine the final funding mechanism. Stay tuned.

Heal the Bay data manager Lee Myers takes an eye-opening walk at his local park and likes what he sees.

Dec. 5, 2014 — Entradero Park makes for a lively green space in northwest Torrance. It’s a popular spot that sees all kinds of use — baseball fields, children’s playground, tennis courts, impromptu kids bike course, robot-control flight space, dog walk and jogging track. And in the midst of all this human activity, you can even spot a bit of wildlife — snakes and hawks, to be sure.

The open space sits inside a low-lying sump, one of many that Torrance uses to drain the streets and neighborhoods. When it rains, stormwater flows in, and then out through the Herondo storm drain to Santa Monica Bay.

Hoping to both clean up runoff and increase infiltration, the City of Torrance recently began a Stormwater Recharge and Enhancement project at the park. Due to be completed in March 2015, the reconfigured space will slow the rush of runoff, giving it more time to seep into the ground. The project also includes catch basin screens to prevent trash from going to the Bay, as well as increased “No Parking” signs to facilitate consistent street sweeping. Less debris in the ocean, more water in the aquifer – that’s a good deal.

The park holds a special place in my heart. Not so many years ago, it served as home-schooling site for my kids. But they have moved on to public schools. Now I join the many residents who use the park to walk their dogs. You can find me there with my fearful but ever-so-sweet rescued “miniature” Lab, a Lab/American Eskimo/Australian Shepard mix. She loves it — and yes, I pick up her poop, and (dare I mention) some “extra.”

As a longtime resident of Torrance, I’m proud my city is investing in green infrastructure like this. It makes environmental and economic sense to capture runoff and keep pollution out of our ocean.

After the recent storm, I visited the park and took some photos. In the images below you can see some of the elements of the project, which is supported by Heal the Bay and largely funded with Prop. 84 bond money.

I expected to see a lot of trash… but what I saw was not what I expected.

Yes, there were a few plastic bags…

…but what else I saw gave me hope:

Torn up concrete and asphalt…

Concrete and asphalt out!

Rainwater streaming in…

…pooling, and infiltrating to replenish the aquifer: Future well water!

And in the midst of baseball fields, playgrounds and houses…

An in-the-making vernal wetlands habitat!

Shout out to John Dettle, an Engineering Manager with the city of Torrance’s Public Works Department, who supplied information for this report. Here’s more information about Torrance’s stormwater initiatives.

Since 1985, Heal the Bay has worked with a committed network of activists, volunteers, donors, educators and community groups to keep our watersheds, neighborhoods, beaches and oceans safe healthy and clean.

Be it hosting cleanups, monitoring dischargers or operating our Aquarium, we have a number of proven programs that make a big impact. Beyond our recurring programs, we have several special initiatives next year that we’d like to share with you:

Keeping Big Oil out of Santa Monica Bay. A public vote in Hermosa Beach will be held in March to determine the fate of a proposed slant-drilling operation underneath Hermosa’s seafloor. Heal the Bay is leading the campaign to halt this dangerous proposal and keep oil drilling out of our local waters.

Making Southern California more water self-sufficient. The record drought has called into question the wisdom of importing 80% of L.A.’s water supply. Heal the Bay will push regional municipalities to fund projects that capture stormwater, recycle wastewater and clean up contaminated local aquifers. The projects will improve beach water quality while creating a more reliable, less costly source of water.

Developing a predictive beach water-quality model. Heal the Bay plans to better protect the health of millions of ocean goers by predicting potential bacterial pollution days before swimmers hit the shoreline. Using statistical models developed with Stanford University, we will begin piloting the new tool at selected beaches this summer.

Building an amazing park. Heal the Bay is developing WAYS Park, a multiple-benefit project in the Avalon Gardens area of South L.A. that will open next fall and include green space with exercise amenities, reading areas, native habitat, and water quality capture and infiltration features. Fully funded through a Prop. 84 grant, WAYS Park will serve as a model for future community projects that benefit the environment throughout greater L.A.

Preparing L.A. for climate change. Our science staff helped support a sea level rise vulnerability study last year for the City of L.A., identifying the most vulnerable areas as Venice, Wilmington, and San Pedro. Next year we will be conducting research on how so-called Living Streets can help cities become more resilient in a changing climate, advocating for policies that protect sensitive coastal habitats against a rising sea, and helping educate people to better understand what can be done to help prepare local communities for climate change.

Inspiring the next generation of stewards. We are forming a coalition of STEM and environmental science educators whose mission is to provide youth with the environmental know-how to create healthy communities, from watersheds to the ocean.  Heal the Bay’s educational programs run in classrooms and at the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium will support our local teachers’ needs for content knowledge and practical hands-on application.

If this work is important to you, please join thousands of other ocean lovers in becoming a member of Heal the Bay.

Heal the Bay has a 29-year track record of defending Southern California’s watersheds, beaches and ocean, and 2014 marked another year of significant wins. Here’s a quick look at some of our top accomplishments, made possible by the generous support of our network of activists, donors, volunteers and educators.

Reducing blight and waste by playing a lead role in drafting and advocating for the just-enacted plastic bag ban in the state of California. The ban will remove an estimated 13 billion bags out of the waste-stream, lessening the environmental and economic harm posed by plastic pollution in our neighborhoods and oceans.

Enhancing local water by leading the legislative charge in Sacramento to enact AB 2403, which makes it easier for cities to secure public funding for multi-benefit water projects. Instead of importing costly and increasingly scarce water, we need infrastructure that repurposes the water we already have, such as stormwater capture facilities and wastewater recycling plants.

Safeguarding millions of ocean goers by providing weekly water quality grades for a record number of beaches along the Pacific Coast – 455. The good news is that some 95% of beaches in California received A or B grades in our annual report, a 2% gain from last year’s survey.

Beautifying shorelines by hosting 654 beach cleanups and educating 37,497 volunteers, a 3% increase from last year. These volunteers removed more than 23 tons of ocean-bound trash, guarding local marine animals that can be harmed by ingesting debris or becoming entangled in it.

Protecting open spaces by advancing L.A. County’s newly adopted Santa Monica Mountains Local Coastal Plan, which will protect scenic views, water quality and wild lands across 52,000 acres. We shaped this important guidance document for 10 years, successfully pairing limited development with land conservation in America’s largest urban national park.

Inspiring stewardship by welcoming a record number of visitors to our Santa Monica Pier Aquarium, which features animals found in our local waters. In addition, nearly 12,000 students on field trips received hands-on marine education and explored the newly opened Green Room, which honors our founding president Dorothy Green by educating visitors about local watersheds.

So thank you to all that volunteered at an event, signed a petition, attended a hearing, visited our Aquarium or shared information on our social networks. It takes a village to heal the Bay!

Please make your year-end gift now to ensure that we can hit the ground running in 2015.

If you’ve enjoyed a day at Southern California beaches anytime over the past 10 years, take a moment to thank Kirsten James.

Kirsten has been Heal the Bay’s clean water watchdog for nearly a decade, most recently serving as our co-Science and Policy Director. During her tenure, beach water quality has steadily improved, with 93% of L.A. County beaches now getting A or B grades in our last annual report. Ever humble, she’d probably attribute the cleaner waters to drought and less urban runoff, but Kirsten and her team should take a lot of the credit.

Kirsten has now decided to take the next step in her professional career by exiting Heal the Bay to join the Boston-based nonprofit Ceres. She will develop a West Coast water program for the group, which catalyzes major industries to invest in sustainable practices.

Her years in the trenches of Southern California water policy will serve her new group well. Kirsten is a staunch defender of the federal Clean Water Act, standing strong in the face of many local challenges. She has played a pivotal role in ensuring that water quality standards are met in the region’s various water bodies and that dischargers are held accountable when they pollute our creeks, rivers and ocean.

It’s detail-oriented and somewhat tedious work at times—testifying at dozens of Regional Water Quality Control Board meetings held in stuffy conference rooms, poring over inches-thick technical permits written in legalese, and negotiating patiently with harried bureaucrats, skeptical dischargers and partner non-profits.

It takes a unique blend of personality and knowledge to be an effective advocate. Kirsten’s success has been built on a bedrock of traditional Midwestern values. As a native Missourian, she’s industrious, self-effacing and unfailingly polite. Think of her as the Girl Next Door—but with an encyclopedic grasp of arcane water quality regulations and a dogged determination to see them enforced.

When our longtime president Mark Gold transitioned to UCLA three years ago, Kirsten had huge shoes to fill in taking over Heal the Bay’s water portfolio. After years of apprenticing under the famed environmental warrior, she now was calling the shots on water strategy and policy. Slowly but surely, she found her own voice and style, leading us to some remarkable wins. Among her most recent accomplishments:

• Securing the adoption of a more holistic MS4 stormwater permit for the greater L.A. region, which requires municipalities to treat water as a resource to be reused and recycled.
• Playing a lead role in drafting and implementing plastic bag bans in the City and County of Los Angeles, which served as a model for the recently enacted statewide ban.
• Leading the legislative charge in Sacramento to reform Prop 218, making it easier for cities to secure public funding for multi-benefit water projects.

The Bay is healthier than it was a decade ago, thanks to Kirsten. So are the swimmers—and marine animals—who frolic in it. As the modest Kirsten attests, still waters run deep. Very deep.

As Kirsten transitions to her new job, we asked some of her key partners to share their thoughts about her impact.

“Kirsten’s sharp critical analysis and tireless advocacy has truly shaped water quality programs, initiatives, regulations and legislation throughout the region. Our Bay and region is in a much better place from a water quality perspective because of the work that Kirsten has done. Her legacy will be felt by generations to come.”

-Alix Hobbs, HtB president

“In all my years at Heal the Bay, no one wrote better technical comment letters than Kirsten. She was able to read the most complicated, technical, jargon-laced, draft regulations and develop clear, strong advocacy comments. Heal the Bay won on so many critical issues because of her analytical writing, and technical and policy skills.”

-Mark Gold, former HtB president  

“Kirsten has been my comrade-at-arms for a decade as we’ve fought the marine debris battle. She always writes what needs to be written (no matter how complicated), and shows up at every meeting. She has pounded the halls of Sacramento even into the wee hours of the morning. She has worked harder than anyone to ensure that the environment is protected, and she has done it with a smile on her face, and her friendly hello. From our 4 a.m. flights (always working the whole time), to my hoisting her over a wall to take clandestine pictures of a nurdle factory, from utter dismay when the first state bag ban bills failed (I remember she got physically ill once, and had to take a sick day), to our zany attempts at plastic fashion wear, we have shared so much, professionally and personally. She is an invaluable colleague, and a treasured friend.

-Leslie Tamminen, former HtB legislative director and consultant for Seventh Generation Advisors

“The Bureau greatly appreciates Kirsten for her tireless support of the organization, in particular the Watershed Protection Program I oversee. Working on stormwater issues with us, Kirsten is truly a champion of the environment in California and has helped protect the water resources in our entire region.

Shahram Kharaghani, division manager for the L.A. Bureau of Sanitation.

“From the volleyball court to the hearing room, Kirsten handles tough situations with precision and poise. I’m honored to have spent the last nine years working with her at Heal the Bay (and two years beforehand together at graduate school). She’s never met a water policy acronym that she can’t break down. Kirsten’s leadership has led to many water quality improvements throughout Southern California that will be felt for decades. We will all miss her.

Sarah Sikich, Kirsten’s co-director of science and policy

                                          Kirsten at a City Hall press event celebrating the plastic bag ban.