HUNTINGTON BEACH : $50,000 More Goes to Toxic Cleanup

The City Council has voted an extra $50,000 for picking up and disposing of hazardous wastes illegally discarded in vacant yards, streets and other parts of the city.

But the council, in approving the extra money this week, ordered the Police Department to double its efforts to catch polluters.

“People are going to continue to dump and dump unless we do something to make them stop,” Councilman Wes Bannister said. “I think a few prosecutions might do that.”

Police and fire officials told the council it is difficult to trace the source of random pollution, such as paint cans, old pieces of asbestos and used motor oil dumped at secluded sites during the late night hours. Bannister, however, said the departments need to renew their efforts to combat the problem.

“Some of these dumped items have serial numbers on them,” he said.

The City Council, facing a budget squeeze next fiscal year, reluctantly voted to add more money for the hazardous-waste removal after being told that $65,000 appropriated for the current year has been exhausted.

City staff officials said disposing of hazardous wastes is particularly expensive because the items must be sent to a shrinking number of government-approved disposal sites, some of which are out of state.