More Help for the Bay

After fits and starts that focused primarily on the East Coast, Congress finally has created a comprehensive program to clean up pollution in the country’s major estuaries and to keep them clean. Only belatedly were California waters incorporated into the National Estuaries Program under the Environmental Protection Agency, but the program now includes San Francisco Bay and the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and Santa Monica Bay.

While some of the Eastern waters may have more longstanding pollution problems, it is important that the EPA not underestimate the severity of problems in the West. In particular, Washington should recognize the urgency of a program for Santa Monica Bay, even though it was the last of the 12 estuaries selected for potential priority treatment and does not fit the usual definition of estuary.

The National Estuaries Program, which was established by the Water Quality Act of 1987, provides for federal, state and local officials to work with industry and the public to develop a management program for the estuaries. The plan will identify the most pressing pollution or development problems along with proposed solutions that can be achieved promptly and without great cost. The plan also sets guidelines for the maintenance of water quality, marine life and recreational benefits.

The program grew out of cleanup efforts in the Great Lakes in the 1970s and Chesapeake Bay in the 1980s. The ad hoc effort was extended to four estuaries in 1985 and two more in 1986, including San Francisco Bay and the delta. Eleven estuaries were incorporated into the 1987 legislation, and Santa Monica Bay was added at the end of 1987 by an amendment to the omnibus budget legislation by Rep. Mel Levine (D-Santa Monica). The state has approved a proposed 25% financial participation in the Santa Monica Bay program, and by June 1 the EPA is to decide whether or not Santa Monica Bay will receive priority status.

California officials should make it clear to both Congress and the EPA that they believe it critical to have a Santa Monica Bay management conference convened as soon as possible, and that the program should receive adequate financing. Damage to marine life and water quality in the bay has been frequently demonstrated. The city of Los Angeles is working toward the solution of its sewage disposal problems in the bay, but a complete estuary plan is needed to attack all types of pollution that affect the bay from a variety of sources.