LAGUNA BEACH : Lake Restoration Proposal Advances

A plan to begin restoring the only three natural lakes in Orange County has been forwarded to the county and Laguna Beach for review, a prelude to gaining funding that could help pay for the project.

The cleanup plan for the three basins, located in Laguna Canyon within the Laguna Coast Wilderness Park, was presented Wednesday night at a meeting of the Coastal Greenbelt Authority, a group formed to manage the park.

The proposal calls for cleaning the lakes’ algae-ridden waters, uprooting invasive shrubbery and replanting natural vegetation to attract migrating wildlife. Proponents hope to launch the project by fall.

“If we can bring back this vegetation and clean up the water, we will get back an enormous amount of bird life, much more than we have now,” said biologist Elisabeth Brown, an authority member who presented the plan to the group of about 40 people.

Robert G. Fisher, director of the county’s harbors, beaches and parks division, said that a state grant may be available to help pay for the first phase of work and that the county should apply by May if it hopes to secure the funding.

The county manages the Laguna Coast Wilderness Park, a 2,500-acre swath of open space at the edge of Laguna Beach that is expected eventually to expand to 10,000 acres and become the county’s largest park. Laguna Beach owns the lakes.

The three ponds, which range in size from 1.5 acres to 12 acres, are suffering from a variety of maladies, including soil erosion and water pollution.

The goal is to revive the lakes under a two-phase, $900,000 plan, and in time to allow additional public access to the park, which is now open only one weekend per month for docent tours.

Some parts of the second phase could be done only if Laguna Canyon Road, which borders two of the lakes, is realigned. The lake restoration plan is part of a larger, $2.5-million proposal designed by Wetlands Research Associates Inc., a San Rafael consulting firm.