HUNTINGTON BEACH : Report on Wetlands Project Is Delayed

A draft environmental impact report on a proposal to build nearly 5,000 homes in the Bolsa Chica wetlands area has been delayed and is not likely to be available for public scrutiny and comment until early August.

City officials previously indicated that the $400,000 document would be ready for public review Monday. But discussions involving the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the city planning staff and the Irvine-based consulting firm that prepared the study have pushed the public presentation back a couple of months, officials said.

A preliminary draft environmental impact report on the Bolsa Chica proposal was released in early May by order of Superior Court Commissioner Eleanor M. Palk. City officials had refused to release copies of the report, arguing that it was only a non-binding, preliminary document.

That report analyzed 10 development proposals and touched off a dispute between environmentalists and the Koll Co., the developer and part owner who has submitted plans to build 4,884 homes and restore 1,000 acres of wetlands.

The report said that high-density development could be mitigated to reduce harm to the environment, but its main finding was that the environmentally superior alternative was to not build at all.

Ralph Bauer, coordinator for a consortium of organizations seeking to limit the number of new homes to fewer than 1,000, said Monday that the so-called “no-project alternative” is “very significant and will be the cornerstone of our arguments.”

Lucy Dunn, the Koll Co.’s senior vice president, has scorned the preliminary findings, claiming that they are meaningless because a no-project recommendation would be the best environmental alternative for any development plan.

Residents will have 90 days to comment once the draft report is made available. Their comments and responses will be incorporated into a final environmental impact report.