Heal the Bay Blog

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

Kirsten has been Heal the Bay’s lead watchdog for clean water 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.  And while she may cite the drought and less runoff for the cleaner waters, Kirsten and her team can 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 stands strong to protect the federal Clean Water Act locally in the face of many 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 tedious and repetitive 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 fellow non-profits.

It takes a unique blend of personality and knowledge to be an effective advocate. I think that 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 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. As are the swimmers who recreate in it. As the modest Kirsten attests, still waters run deep. Very deep.

Heal the Bay president Alix Hobbs and TreePeople CEO Andy Vought write that Prop 1 marks a new start for California’ s water future. But that future starts with you … today.

Nov. 11, 2014 — Last week marked a watershed moment for California, both literally and figuratively. After years of legislative gridlock and public indifference, voters agreed to start fixing our state’s broken water system. Though not perfect, Proposition 1, the just-approved $7.5 billion water bond, sets the stage for a more sustainable California.  

But we can’t afford to wait for funded projects to be built.

There’s much to be excited about in the approved measure. It includes investments in multi-benefit projects that harvest stormwater runoff instead of funneling it to sea. Instead of polluting our shorelines, stormwater will replenish our depleted groundwater.

In fact, urbanized areas of California have the potential to harness nearly half-a-million acre-feet of water via stormwater capture each year, according to a recent study by the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Pacific Institute. That’s enough to meet the water needs of 1 million families for an entire year.

But it doesn’t help for water to be sent to aquifers if they are polluted. Fortunately, the bond also sets aside money to clean up existing groundwater supplies. Locally, that may help us rehabilitate contaminated aquifers in the San Fernando Valley. Bond funds have been set aside for watershed restoration projects that improve the natural cleansing function of the environment, which may prove a boon to the ongoing revitalization of the Los Angeles River.

Proposition 1 isn’t a cure-all for our water woes. Despite last weekend’s welcome downpour, extreme drought continues. We live in a dry climate, with the added stress of ongoing climate change. No amount of bond spending will change these dynamics.

The late Dorothy Green, Heal the Bay’s founding president and water warrior, recognized California’s challenge 30 years ago. We have enough water for the people and the environment, but without wise water management the well will soon run dry.  There will never be enough water to meet every need.  We need to start valuing every drop.

As we start to wean ourselves from costly and increasingly scarce imported water, we improve both our fiscal and environmental health. Transporting water to Los Angeles remains the single largest use of electricity in our state. Taxpayers pay millions in cleanup costs each year to deal with urban runoff, the primary source of pollution in our ocean and shorelines.

Happy as we are with the water bond’s passage, it won’t make a difference to our current drought. Projects will take years to implement, and we can’t afford to wait. Just as the bond passage is a watershed moment, our third year of drought is an historic event. And we can start addressing it today right in our own backyards.

By taking individual actions, we can achieve collective benefits immediately to our water supply and quality. Rainwater harvesting at the parcel level has huge potential.  A one-inch rainstorm in Los Angeles County sends some 10 billion gallons of polluted runoff into the stormdrain system. Every property in Los Angeles can capture rainwater and add to our local water supply, rather than having it shed from roofs and paved surfaces to the sea.

To spur this needed change in thinking, the City of Los Angeles and other local municipalities have adopted Low Impact Development policies, which require new and redevelopment projects to incorporate water-saving and water-harvesting components.

These actions can be simple and inexpensive. For example, Angelenos can hook up rain barrels or cisterns to their rain gutter downspouts. Tanks fill up quickly even in the lightest rainfall, providing “off the grid” water for irrigation. Simple landscape modifications such as contouring land to sink rainwater into swales and rain gardens, combined with climate-appropriate plants and trees, can dramatically reduce water use – in some cases by more than half.

Proposition 1’s passage marks a new era of water management.  But fighting the drought didn’t end at  the ballot box.  Small individual actions add up to big impacts, and are critical to creating a sustainable water future for California.  Local water agencies and nonprofits can show the way. Rebates abound.  We all need to go outside and assess where we can capture and save water to make it through this current drought – and California’s long-term drying trend.  

Let’s not waste this watershed moment.

This Op-Ed originally appeared in the Daily News, Daily Breeze and other Los Angeles News Group publications earlier this week.

Nov. 1, 2014 — After last night’s sporadic but intense rainfall, L.A. beachgoers this morning were treated to some spectacular sights – full, vibrant rainbows arcing to the sea.

Unfortunately, they were also treated to a less uplifting scene – trash-strewn shorelines.

Matthew King, our communications director, took a reconnaissance trip to Santa Monica’s Pico Kenter storm drain this morning near Bay Street. As the pictures below attest, there was no shortage of plastic bags, water bottle, fast food packaging, balloons and bits of Styrofoam to be found after the storm.

During the so-called “First Flush,” more than 70 major outfalls in L.A. County spew debris, animal waste, pesticides, automotive fluids and human-gastrointestinal viruses into the marine ecosystem. This pollution poses human health risks, harms marine life and dampens the tourist economy by littering shorelines.

Trash and toxins that have been accumulating for months on sidewalks, roadways and riverbeds are being washed into the stormdrains as you read this. Exposure to this runoff can cause a variety of illnesses, most frequently stomach flu.

For that reason, Heal the Bay urges residents and visitors to avoid water contact at Los Angeles County beaches for 72 hours following rainfall. Recent studies suggest five days be more appropriate at storm drains like Pico Kenter.

But not everyone has gotten the message apparently. During Matthew’s visit, two tourists staying at nearby hotels jumped into the ocean directly in front of the flowing Pico Kenter stormdrain. Yuck!

There’s another equally disturbing aspect to the runoff – it’s a huge waste of a precious resource.

Los Angeles imports costly and increasingly scarce water from Northern California and the Colorado River. The region now imports more than 80% of our water, using enormous amounts of energy and capital to do so.

Stormwater — if held, filtered and cleansed naturally in groundwater basins — could provide a safe, more secure and less costly source of drinking water. That 10 billion gallons of water from an average single storm in L.A. could fill nearly 120 Rose Bowls. That would provide enough water for a city the size of Santa Monica for more than three months.

“It’s depressing to see all the waste on our shorelines after First Flush,” said Alix Hobbs, president of Heal the Bay. “But it’s just as depressing to think about all that rainwater we are wasting. In a time of drought, we have to do a better job of using the water we already have.”

Heal the Bay’s science and policy team is now working closely with the city of Los Angeles to develop a funding mechanism to design and build large-scale, multi-benefit stormwater capture facilities.

During the rainy season, Heal the Bay reminds residents that they can take steps in their own home to take pressure off an already taxed stormdrain system. Among them: keeping trash out of gutters and stormdrains, disposing of animal waste and automotive fluids properly, and limiting runoff by curtailing such wasteful practices as hosing driveways and overwatering landscapes.

                             The usual, depressing detritus littered Santa Monica beaches after the recent storm.

                             One unknowing or foolhardy swimmer takes a dip right in front of Pico stormdrain.

Today’s guest blogger is Melina Sempill Watts, a staffer with the Resource Conservation District of the Santa Monica Mountains.

Oct. 23, 2014 — In partnership with Heal the Bay staff and volunteers, the utterly fascinating “Snows of the Nile” will be screened this Saturday as part of the Santa Monica “Wild and Scenic” Film Festival at Elkins Theatre at the Pepperdine University.

State Sen. Fran Pavley, an international leader in reducing climate change by proactive legislation, will be speaking at the event, which is organized by the Resource Conservation District of the Santa Monica Mountains. The evening features several films about climate change and begins at 6:30 p.m.

A subsequent program of films is planned for Saturday, Nov. 8, with a special focus on water.

Why does “Snows of the Nile” resonate? This gorgeous film provides an incredible before-and-after look at the fate of a key system of glaciers in the heart of Africa.

Environmentalists know that a fundamental driver in restoring ecosystems is establishing a baseline. To determine what healthy looks like now, it’s useful to have a thoughtful look at the past. 

Roll back the clock to 1906. One of the dashing explorers at the turn of the century was Prince Luigi Amedeo, Duke of the Abruzzi, a great climber and raconteur, whose narrations of his adventures echo through the decades. On his trip to the Ruwenzori Range in modern day Uganda, also called the Mountains of the Moon, he brought with him Vittorio Sella, arguably Italy’s answer to Ansel Adams. The pair captured stunning photographs of the glaciers that, up to that point, Europeans could not imagine in equatorial Africa. 

Cut to just a few years ago:  Dr. Neil Losin and Dr. Nate Dappen, a charismatic pair of young evolutionary biologists in the process of earning their Ph.D.s,  meet while doing research in Costa Rica and share their fascination with those historical photographs.

The two determined to go the Ruwenzori Range to replicate the gorgeous images Sella took during that famous Abruzzi climb some hundred years earlier. By current estimates, these glaciers will disappear in 20 years. So making the trip now was critical.

Moving from researching lizards in Florida to filmmaking in Uganda and the Congo about climate change impacts may seem like quite a leap. But the filmmaking duo applied to the first Dos Equis “Stay Thirsty” contest and their idea won over Internet voters. They came away with $25,000, enough to fund the expedition and the movie. 

Both men had been serious photographers, selling nature photographs to big magazines. But as UCLA graduate Dr. Losin says: “This grant became a stepping stone to a new world. We had made short research videos, and the whole thing snowballed. Filmmaking became something we were really passionate about.”

Coming at the subject matter with the perspective of scientists, Losin is endearingly modest.  “Climate change is a departure. The project that lead to ‘Snows of Nile’ is not a research project per se. There are people studying glacial retreat, movement of organisms… we wanted to visualize this in a way that people hadn’t before. This was a unique opportunity because of the historical photos. To us, this feels like more of an art project than research.” 

Anyone who has done trekking, climbing, photography, history or science will see how much of each discipline was required on the project. Many days the filmmakers struggled to find the exact spot to replicate the images captured by Sella over 100 years earlier. Like the Duke of Abruzzi before them, they were aided by members of the Mykonjo people, who worked as guides and porters. 

As a viewer, it seems like finding even one of the locations that would recapture the original image would indeed be a needle-in-the-haystack endeavor. And yet, our two protagonists get the shot, over and over again. They create side-by-side photos, offering then-and-now images that tell a painful truth of the disappearance of ice from our world.  They emphasize, however, that the mountains that remain, are to them, still beautiful.

At one point, one of the trekkers asks Losin, “What can we do to stop this?”

Neither Losin nor Dappen has an answer.

One truth that emerges, however, is that working as scientist-documentary filmmakers makes for a winning hyphenate. Rather than pursue prestigious post-docs or teaching careers at universities, the two Ph.D.s find that now an array of documentary film subjects are calling them all over the world. 

You can view a trailer of the festival here. To purchase tickets, please click here. A full list of other films to be screened can be found here.

Heal the Bay helps you cut through the clutter of a crowded ballot. If you care about a clean, reliable water supply and healthy open spaces, please support Props. 1 and P.

For decades, Heal the Bay has played a role in shaping policy and the funding environment needed to support our work to clean up the Bay. And Nov. 4 marks another important day for people who care about healthy watersheds and thriving oceans. The election will shape the future of our local watersheds, as well as determine how to best manage water resources around the state. We’re keeping our eye on two important campaigns: Proposition 1 (the state Water Bond) and Proposition P (the L.A. County Parks Bond).

Heal the Bay has long supported the “integrated water management approach.” But what does that phrase really mean? In simple terms, water managers need to consider all of our water systems holistically in order to ensure a sustainable water supply and healthy waterbodies.

For example, instead of allowing billions of gallons of stormwater to flow to L.A. County beaches during each rain event, runoff should be captured and infiltrated into local aquifers. This will not only help augment our local water supply but it will also prevent dirty stormwater runoff from polluting our rivers and Bay.

The integrated approach also supports increased water recycling, where we utilize the highly treated wastewater for beneficial uses (e.g. irrigation, industrial needs, recharging aquifers). This in turn will minimize discharges to our Bay. To give you some perspective, the city of L.A.’s Hyperion plant discharges nearly 360 million gallons a day of treated wastewater into the ocean. Imagine if we replenished our aquifers with that water instead of dumping it into the Bay.

These projects are an investment in our collective future, but they do require public funding. Propositions 1 and P can help our region secure these critical funds. Protecting rivers, coasts and watersheds and moving towards regional self-reliance for water supply are vital to our state’s future ecological and economic well-being, as well as our quality of life. This is especially true in the face of threats like climate change and long-term drought.

Proposition 1

What: Proposition 1 is a $7.54 billion dollar statewide bond measure that is focused entirely on water resources. Specifically, the bond includes $1.535 billion for water recycling, stormwater capture, water efficiency and other local water projects. It includes another $900 million for cleaning up groundwater contamination. Also of note, it includes $1.495 billion for watershed protection and $520 million for clean, safe and reliable drinking water.

Why we support: If passed, investments will be made in local water supply projects and watershed restoration — initiatives that can directly benefit our drought-stricken state and Santa Monica Bay.

What opponents might say: Some opponents argue that there is a disproportional amount allocated in the Bond for water storage projects – projects that can have major environmental impacts and do not promote the practice of finding “new” local water sources. While this is true, we believe that the many good elements of Proposition 1 outweigh the potentially problematic elements. As the saying goes, you can’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Further, on-the-ground advocacy and current environmental review requirements should help prevent bad projects that are proposed.

Vote: YES on Proposition 1.

Proposition P

What: Proposition P continues funding generated by a 1992 funding measure that is set to expire. Should Proposition P be approved, it would continue funding $54 million a year through an annual $23 per parcel special tax for 30 years.

Of particular note, 15% is allocated to the County for parks, beaches and clean water/park projects and 30% to the County for regional projects for open space, foothill, mountain, trail, river, wetland and stream projects. Cities get 20% of the funds to spend on similar types of projects.

Why we support:  Proposition P allocates funds across Los Angeles County, with increased emphasis on projects that enhance water quality in the L.A. River, San Gabriel River and local creeks, lakes and beaches; projects that protect water supply sources; projects in park-poor areas; and projects that employ local youth (Proposition A employed more than 25,000 young people).

Since 1992, we have seen nearly 1,500 projects successfully implemented as a result of the current funding measure. If passed, Proposition P would continue to fund these important projects as well as provide open space for L.A. County residents to enjoy. It would also consider water quality improvements concurrently with these projects.

What opponents might say: Some opponents argue that this is just another tax during tough economic times. Although the measure would cost property owners $23 per year, it’s a small price to pay for a sound investment in the health and wellbeing of Los Angeles and increased water sustainability.

Vote: YES on Proposition P

Are you a Los Angeles or Orange County voter? Click here for polling place and election info.

Painting by Elizabeth Kennen

Oct. 14, 2014 — With the state grappling with record drought, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti today issued an executive directive to dramatically reduce the use of fresh water and the purchase of costly imported water in California’s most populous city.

Flanked by Heal the Bay policy director Kirsten James and other local environmental leaders at a press conference at DWP headquarters, Garcetti laid out ambitious targets for increasing local water supplies.

The mayor’s directive requires a reduction in fresh water use by 20% by 2017 and in the DWP’s purchase of imported water by 50% by 2024. Garcetti estimated that reducing per capita water use by 20% would save ratepayers up to $120 million annually.

“Our relationship with water must evolve. We cannot afford the water policies of the past,” Garcetti said. “We must conserve, recycle and rethink how we use our water to save money and make sure that we have enough water to keep L.A. growing.”

Through the directive, Garcetti is ordering city departments to sharply cut water use by reducing watering and replacing lawns or other water-intensive landscaping at city facilities, street medians and sidewalk parkways.  For example, city-run golf courses and car-washing operations will be moved aggressively toward 100% use of recycled water.

With the 8-million gallon water main break at UCLA still fresh in many residents’ minds, the mayor directed the DWP to report back with an enhanced leak detection and protection program to reduce loss and main breakages in the city’s aging pipe system.

The new rules sweeten city incentives to help L.A. residents cut back on their water use, including an increase in the DWP’s turf replacement incentive to $3.75 per square foot. Outdoor water use remains the major challenge for household water use, representing 50% of residential consumption.

The mayor also asked residents to:

• voluntarily reduce watering to two days a week
• to use DWP rebates to install low water landscaping and more efficient plumbing fixtures and appliances
• to ensure pools are covered to reduce water lost to evaporation

If targets are not met through the combination of mandatory city actions and voluntary resident actions, residential mandates will be implemented, including new watering, swimming pool and car washing restrictions.

In addition, the directive creates the Mayor’s Water Cabinet, which will be chaired by Deputy Mayor Doane Liu and includes the city’s first-ever Chief Sustainability Officer, Matt Petersen, and representatives from the DWP, Bureau of Sanitation, Recreation and Parks, the Metropolitan Water District and the city’s Proposition O Citizens Oversight Advisory Committee.

The Mayor’s Water Cabinet will be responsible for ensuring city departments hit targets outlined in the directive and will focus on long-term initiatives to ensure long-term sustainability of L.A.’s water supply, including:

• Increasing the local water supply through an integrated water strategy that coordinates groundwater remediation, stormwater capture and storage, green infrastructure, recycled water, and conservation
• Assessing the current tiered water rate system and identifying ways to improve it so that it optimally encourages conservation and local water use.
• Ensuring L.A. is in a leadership position on state rules and regulations related to water use.

 Heal the Bay’s policy team looks forward to working with the mayor and his Water Cabinet to achieve these aggressive goals. There are several connection points between improved local water supply and the health of the Bay.

For example, our staff continues to push for multi-use water projects that can help us capture the 10 million gallons of runoff that flow through L.A. stormdrains each day into the ocean during dry weather. Instead of dumping polluted runoff into the sea, we should be capturing, treating and reusing that water. The potential benefits are even greater during a rainstorm, which can send a 10 billion gallon torrent into the sea each day.

Please visit www.lamayor.org/drought for more conservation tips and rebate information.

                                           City golf courses are now mandated to use 85% recycled water