EPA Would Make Offshore Dumping System Permanent

The U. S. Environmental Protection Agency proposed Friday to continue dumping San Diego Bay sediment into the ocean 6 miles off Point Loma and make permanent an arrangement that has existed on an “interim” basis since 1977.

Environmentalists reacted cautiously to the final plan when told of it Friday and said they will study it closely.

“San Diego Bay is one of the most polluted wetland shore fronts on the West Coast,” said Alan Sakarias, chairman of the conservation committee for the San Diego chapter of the Sierra Club. “I would be skeptical that they can ensure that only clean dredge is deposited in the ocean.”

PCBs and Other Toxins

PCBs, heavy metals and residues of a boat anti-fouling chemical, tributyltin, are among the toxic substances found in sediments in San Diego Bay, said Diane Takvorian, executive director of the Environmental Health Coalition.

The substances can cause cancer or other problems in fish and other marine life, and also are harmful to humans who eat fish containing them.

In a press release accompanying the environmental impact statement, the EPA tried to address concerns about the toxicity of the sediments, saying that only “clean” dredge material would be dumped in the area known as LA-5.

“The only intended use of the LA-5 site is the disposal of dredged material that has passed chemical and biological tests approved by the EPA and the (U.S. Army) Corps of Engineers,” said Daniel W. McGovern, the EPA’s regional administrator. “EPA’s decision to designate the LA-5 site is based on a determination that major fisheries would not be affected, previous disposal of dredged material at the site and the site’s location on the outer continental shelf.”

Material that did not pass chemistry tests and tests of its effects on marine life would have to be dumped at a hazardous-waste site on land, said Carrie Frieber, a spokeswoman for the EPA.

However, Frieber could not be specific about what levels of toxic chemicals would be permitted in the dredged sediments.

“Without the standards, it’s impossible to say whether we think this is a good plan,” Takvorian said.

Sakarias said he will study the environmental statement closely to see how well the sediments being dumped would be monitored for toxicity.

“I would want some definitive proof, either through a series of tests or sufficient tests around a (dredge) location. If that would require testing over the term of dredging, then that’s what I would want,” he said.

The EPA statement said the suitability of sediment for dumping would be “evaluated as disposal-permit applications are received by the corps.”

Sakarias said the environmental impact statement also should clarify how the material would be dumped. If it were merely shoved off the side of a barge, the sediment would prevent sunlight from reaching photosynthetic organisms in the water and create a “dead zone,” he said. Dumping should be done through slurry lines so the sediment would not come in contact with water until it hits the ocean floor, he said.

The LA-5 ocean dump site would be used for disposal of about 370,000 cubic yards of bay sediment every year. LA-5 is under about 600 feet of water and already contains 4 million cubic yards of bay sediment placed there since 1977.

Part of Consent Decree

Meanwhile, a nearby sediment dump--also 6 miles off Point Loma--that is under only 270 feet of water would be permanently shut.

The EPA’s environmental impact statement for the LA-5 site is being issued as part of the agency’s fulfillment of a consent decree it entered into in 1980 with the National Wildlife Federation. Under that agreement, the EPA agreed to speed up its designation of ocean dumping sites along the nation’s coasts. The environmental studies and formal action on designating the sites must be completed by December.

Sakarias and Takvorian both expressed surprise at the environmental statement’s completion Friday, because neither of them could recall a draft statement having been circulated for comment from environmental groups as is the standard procedure.

The EPA will accept comment on the proposal until Sept. 26. A copy of the statement is available for review at the San Diego Public Library, 820 E St., the EPA said.