Why More Beaches Are Closing : Everyone has to do more to help the troubled and vital Santa Monica Bay

This weekend marks the traditional start of the summer beach season. But a growing number of Southland residents fear that a day at the beach, particularly the beaches along the Santa Monica Bay, may be a hazard to their health rather than a pleasant outing.

A tide of troubling reports of coastal pollution--involving marine life and ocean water--has caused local beach attendance to drop precipitously in recent years.

The Pico-Kenter storm drain in Santa Monica has been a particular problem year round. Scientists often find evidence of human fecal bacteria in the nearby ocean water during dry weather. And after storms, trash washed down street gutters flows into the sea and then piles up on the beaches. The result: more beach closures in recent years in order to prevent illness and toxic contamination.

A recent tour of other storm drains around the bay, conducted by the environmental group Heal the Bay, turned up bottles oozing household chemicals into the sea, twisted shopping carts, car batteries, charred wood and motor oil. Pipes were spewing liquid from an unknown source, blackening drain walls with chemical residues.

Los Angeles’ dense population and the shape of Santa Monica Bay pose special problems here, but similar contamination has forced the periodic closure of beaches in Orange and San Diego counties as well.

What is to be done? Efforts by local government, Heal the Bay and other groups to restore this area’s precious coastline are under way.

For example, the cities of Santa Monica and Los Angeles are diverting storm drain flow during dry weather from Pico-Kenter to the nearby Hyperion sewage treatment plant. That is already beginning to improve the water quality along Santa Monica’s beaches.

But with a little thought, each of us can make a big dent in this problem without a large infusion of public cash or technology. Heal the Bay and the City of Los Angeles have begun a public education campaign with a very simple--and very sensible--message: Don’t use streets, or gutters, as trash cans.