HUNTINGTON BEACH : Bluff Erosion Spurs Plea for Federal Help

Pacific Coast Highway is threatened by the erosion of bluffs in northwest Huntington Beach, and the City Council is appealing to the federal government for help.

The council voted this week to petition the Army Corps of Engineers to help save the bluffs and, by doing so, save Pacific Coast Highway.

At issue are the bluffs that face the ocean on Pacific Coast Highway between Golden West Street and Bolsa Chica State Beach. The bluffs extend about a mile and a half along the shore. City officials said a combination of factors--weather, waves and sinking of ground from oil drilling in the area the past 70 years--has caused the erosion of the bluffs.

The scenic, khaki-colored bluffs support Pacific Coast Highway as it follows the oceanfront from Bolsa Chica State Beach into Huntington Beach. The erosion is growing worse, however, and city officials have said the highway itself is at risk.

“This erosion, if left unchecked, will destroy existing improvements and could ultimately preclude the full use of Pacific Coast Highway,” said Louis F. Sandoval, director of public works.

Councilman John Erskine said the federal government should be involved and concerned because “we’ve got a security issue here. . . . Pacific Coast Highway is very important to the movement of military personnel.”

The oceanfront bluffs at one time were pockmarked by oil derricks. But in recent years the city has worked to restore the top of the bluffs, building a landscaped park on it, including a bike trail.

But the slippage and erosion are a problem too big and too expensive for the city to tackle, according to city staff officials. They told the council the cost of stabilizing the bluffs could range from $3 million to $14 million.

The Corps of Engineers is empowered to act in situations involving coastal erosion, and the council vote was the first step in trying to get federal aid.

The City Council approved a resolution, which it will send to the Army Corps of Engineers. “This issue goes beyond erosion and the use of a state highway,” Erskine said. “It becomes a national security issue.”