Bolsa Chica Cleanup Called Key to Public Purchase Plan

Federal officials meeting in Washington decided Friday to move ahead with a public purchase plan for the Bolsa Chica wetlands, but only if a contaminants cleanup problem can be resolved.

The federal government is not prepared to finance a cleanup, and instead expects the landowner and oil operators to take responsibility for cleaning up pollutants left behind by years of oil operations, said Assistant Interior Secretary George Frampton. He warned that cleanup costs could be significant.

The focus on cleanup comes as state and federal officials race against the clock to close a deal with landowner Koll Real Estate Group for state purchase of the ecologically sensitive wetlands near Huntington Beach. The deal, if clinched, could end years of jockeying to save the wetlands.

“We’ve gotten over or down or up a dozen canyons in the last two years,” Frampton said. “The last one ahead of us is possibly the biggest--and, right now, it’s looking very wide.”

State Resources Secretary Douglas Wheeler also underscored the contaminants issue as key to the project’s success, saying it will be addressed Monday at a meeting in Sacramento. A related issue, he said, is whether the wetlands should be cleaned to human health standards or more stringent wildlife conservation standards.

Wheeler described himself as “guardedly optimistic” that the deal will work.

Meanwhile, Koll Senior Vice President Lucy Dunn said she is confident the question of cleanup liability will be resolved, saying that discussions continue between Koll, oil operator CalResources and a past operator, Phillips Petroleum.

“I’m very positive that this can be worked out, because these are good, responsible companies, and they have a track record for excellent cleanup,” Dunn said.

The State Lands Commission is due to decide next Friday whether to purchase 880 acres of Bolsa Chica. Most of the $85 million for purchase and restoration would come from the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach in exchange for permission to expand.

Ten federal, state and local agencies have joined in the effort to buy and restore Bolsa Chica, the largest unprotected coastal wetlands south of San Francisco. The four federal agencies met Friday and decided to support the plan if the contaminants problem is solved.

Despite cleanup concerns, officials are encouraged that new money may have been found to close a shortfall in the $85-million budget for buying and restoring the land.

Funding may be available from the ports to close that gap, estimated at $7 million to $11 million. And even if that money does not materialize, federal and state agencies are willing to put up the needed funds, Frampton said.

If the state purchases the wetlands, 900 homes would be struck from Koll’s planned 3,300-home Bolsa Chica project.