Diesel Fuel Leak Traced to Concrete Yard : Fish and Game Agency Cracking Down on Watershed Pollution

A diesel fuel spill discovered Monday polluting tributaries to the Upper Newport Bay wildlife reserve was traced to an Irvine concrete mixing yard, authorities said.

Although the spill did not appear to pose an immediate threat to wildlife or public health, a state Department of Fish and Game warden and Orange County officials said the firm, United Premix Concrete Inc., and its officers could face penalties of up to $2,000 per count and one year in jail for the illegal discharge.

“We’re talking about a small quantity--probably five gallons or less,” state Fish and Game Warden Randy C. Darnall said. “But that is still a substantial amount. Many of these organisms (in the Upper Newport Bay watershed) cannot survive that.”

Hosing Down Mixers

Darnall said Monday’s spill may not have been the first to leave the yard because of the company’s practice of hosing down transport truck mixers with diesel fuel and wax to prevent the concrete from adhering. The runoff collects in an on-site sump and is flushed into the county storm drain system, state and county officials said.

“I think the problem has been an ongoing one, and we are just now aware of it,” Darnall said. “I think we’re going to sit down and talk with them (company officials) and eliminate the dumping. They’ll probably have to get hooked up to a sanitary sewer line.”

The spill was discovered in San Diego Creek near UC Irvine by an Irvine city employee who was cleaning debris from a bicycle path. The Orange County Fire Department’s Hazardous Materials Response Team placed absorbent booms in the creek downstream while officials of the county Environmental Management Agency searched for the source of the sheen of pollutants.

Nira J. Yamachika, a pollution specialist with EMA, traced the filmy substance upstream to the Peters Canyon flood control channel and a storm drain at the Barranca Parkway bridge. From there, the trail proceeded two blocks to gutter drains leading from the United Premix site in the 16200 block of East Construction Circle, a heavily industrial area of north Irvine.

Absorbent pads were placed in the gutter and company officials were directed to mound sand in front of the collection sump to absorb the contaminants flowing from the site. Yamachika said company officials agreed to clean out the sump overnight.

She said a company production supervisor indicated Monday’s spill may have occurred from a leaking truck as it passed through the yard.

Problem’s Extent Disputed

However, Joe Tedesco, manager at the ready-mix concrete distribution facility, disputed both the amount and source of the petroleum sheen on water leaving the yard Monday.

“We’re not in the business of discharging fuel or anything like that,” Tedesco said. “What left our plant was not a measurable amount of oil, probably no more than a cup . . . . What it was basically was a film on top of the water.”

Tedesco said drivers do not hose down their trucks, but rather wipe them down with rags soaked with a mixture of oil and wax. “It’s no more than you’d put on when polishing a piece of furniture,” he said.

Darnall declined to say whether penalties would be sought against United Premix Concrete pending further investigation by the Department of Fish and Game, the Regional Water Quality Control Board and the county.

However, spokesman Pat Moore said Monday that the Department of Fish and Game is cracking down on companies that dump illegally into state waterways. First offenders usually have been warned, but now they will be cited, because “it appeared the warnings have gone unheeded,” Moore said.

Industrial Waste Ordinance

The company also could be liable under Orange County’s industrial waste ordinance, which provides a maximum $1,000 fine and up to one year in jail for illegal disposal.

Depending on the amount and type of contaminants, Deputy Dist. Atty. Diane Kadletz said, illegal dischargers may also be prosecuted under the state Health and Safety Code, which provides fines of up to $25,000 and up to 36 months in prison.

“It seems we’re getting more and more cases,” said Kadletz, who heads the recently formed environmental prosecution unit in the district attorney’s office.

“It’s happening every day, but it’s just a matter of people seeing it and reporting it,” Kadletz said.