State Funds Approved for Bolsa Chica Study

In a first step toward paying for a study of possible contaminants in the Bolsa Chica lowlands, the state Coastal Conservancy Board this week approved spending $200,000 for the project.

“With the state anteing up the first dollars, I look at it as a positive step,” said Lucy Dunn, vice president of Koll Real Estate Group, which owns the land and has plans for a 3,300-home development at Bolsa Chica, including 900 homes on the lowlands.

The study would investigate whether there is contamination from years of oil production. The results would determine whether the state Lands Commission would buy the lowlands from Koll for restoration, Dunn said.

“If the state wants to buy the property, they want to know what they’re buying: whether it’s a site that has potential contaminates and who’s responsible for cleaning it up,” she said.

Melanie Denninger, Coastal Conservancy project manager, said the study is projected to cost about $450,000. The Conservancy Board is the first party to commit funding.

The federal government is expected to contribute $100,000, with an additional $50,000 each coming from the nonprofit Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Koll and oil operator CalResources.

More negotiations remain before the study can begin, and after that the project could take three to four months to complete, a federal official said.

Dunn said that Koll has not yet committed its share of the cost because it is still “negotiating what the study will entail.”

Tom Livengood, president of Amigos de Bolsa Chica, said the group applauds the Coastal Conservancy’s contribution and supports the idea of the state buying the lowlands. “Our dream is that 100% of the lowlands be acquired for public use,” he said.