Flood Risk Blamed on Red Tape

Nearly 100 flood control channels--from Santa Clarita to Compton to the San Gabriel Valley--could overflow during predicted El Nino storms because of procrastination by federal and state agencies, a top Los Angeles County official charged Tuesday.

James Noyes, chief deputy director of the county Department of Public Works, said in a briefing to the Board of Supervisors that for two years the county has sought permission to clear vegetation from the flood channels.

But although the county has filed reports costing an estimated $200,000, regulators, led by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, have not granted permission for the work to be done.

The problem, according to a letter from the corps, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and other regulators, is that many of the flood channels have become home to sensitive wildlife species. The channels generally have earthen floors but were engineered for flood control.

Ironically, Noyes said, another branch of the corps has been sending the county dunning letters, demanding that the vegetation be cleared. The corps controls the use of flood control channels.

“A lot of these channels were built by the Army Corps in the first place,” Noyes said. “We have an agreement with the corps to clear them out.”

Along with seven other counties that find themselves in the same predicament, Los Angeles County officials have scheduled an emergency meeting next week with the corps.

“Some counties are considering going ahead without permission,” Noyes said.

Concerned about the delay, the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday voted unanimously to appeal to state and federal regulators to speed up the approval process.

In Los Angeles County, 37 of the 95 problematic flood control channels present “major” or “critical” concerns, say public works officials.

These include stretches along Las Virgenes Creek in Calabasas, Walnut Creek in the San Gabriel Valley and the Sand Canyon channel inlet and outlet in Santa Clarita. Portions of the Santa Susana Creek in Chatsworth and Compton Creek in and around Compton have also been labeled critical.

Regulators say they will not issue permission to clean up the channels until the county provides a plan to build new habitats for migratory birds and other animals and plants that might be displaced by dredging the flood channels.

“What we’re talking about is having the county assess the maximum impact of what they were doing and work out some sort of mitigation so that similar wetlands can be created,” said Ray Bransfield, supervisory wildlife biologist with the U.S. Department of Fish and Game, one of the regulatory agencies involved.

Aaron Allen, a project manager for the Corps of Engineers who has worked on the county’s permits, said it takes a long time to process the type of application that the county is seeking.

The idea, Allen said, is to grant the county permission to maintain the flood control channels indefinitely, and that involves coordinating several regulatory agencies and obtaining a number of different permits.

In the meantime, he said, the county has applied for interim permits for some of the more critical areas. These have been put on hold while yet another bureaucracy--the State Water Resources Control Board--decides whether the proposals are in keeping with their rules.

If the storms come before the permits are issued, Allen said, the county can apply for emergency permits to clear the channels. Those permits can be approved in a day or two. But obtaining them during the rains would mean that the work would be done during the storms.

In other action related to El Nino, the board voted to ask Gov. Pete Wilson to sign two bills to restore funding to operate extra homeless shelters during the winter rains.

At the briefing on the storms, county officials said they were taking several steps to prepare for El Nino, warm water conditions that can wreak havoc on normal weather patterns.

David Jansen, the county’s chief administrative officer, said emergency management workers from several departments have convened a task force to review emergency plans. A storm-related hotline (800-980-4990) has been set up, and the county plans to distribute pamphlets on storm preparation and safety.

Fire officials said they have 500,000 sandbags, to be handed out to residents and business owners if the need arises.

Of particular concern, Noyes said, are flooding and mudslides in areas that have been burned in recent fires, including Altadena, Malibu and Topanga Canyon.

“The Malibu fire was four years ago,” said Noyes, “but that area is nowhere near fully recovered.”