Long Beach Port Sued in Toxics Case : Environment: Groups claim that officials allowed tenant firms to pollute San Pedro Bay.

Environmental groups, including organizations seeking to clean up Santa Monica Bay, are suing the Port of Long Beach, alleging that it is allowing its tenants to release toxic and carcinogenic pollutants into San Pedro Bay.

The National Resource Defense Council, Santa Monica BayKeeper and Heal the Bay filed papers in U.S. District Court on Thursday demanding that the port take steps to stop Arco, Pacific Coast Cement and Toyota, among others, from releasing pollutants into storm drains.

“We cannot allow our neighbor to pollute the marine environment unabated, knowing that pollution from San Pedro Bay is carried directly into the Santa Monica Bay on ocean currents,” said Terry Tamminen of Santa Monica BayKeeper.

Port officials denied Friday that Long Beach companies are polluting the ocean.

“All of our monitoring indicates that we really don’t have a problem,” spokeswoman Yvonne Avila said. “Pollution of that kind would most probably show up in sediments. We’ve done dredging, and our samples indicate that our sediments are clean.”

According to the plaintiffs, port tenants have been allowing petroleum products, heavy metals and pesticides to reach storm drains in runoff, which flows untreated into the ocean.

The port is responsible for ensuring compliance with environmental laws under an agreement with the California Regional Water Quality Control Board.

Tamminen acknowledged that most pollution reaches coastal water from rivers. But he said that monitors at the port had recently found uncovered piles of petroleum coke and sulfur at various facilities. He added that materials are often exposed to the elements as ships are loaded and unloaded.