Pollution Forced 40 Beach Closures in 1998

Pollution generated by fierce El Nino storms prompted the closure of local beaches 40 times in 1998, marking the worst year for coastal water quality in more than a decade.

County officials blamed the high number of closures on heavy winter and spring rainfall, which caused havoc for waste water systems and sent millions of gallons of raw sewage into the ocean. The county Health Care Agency recorded 251 sewage spills in 1998, up from 226 in 1997.

Parts of nearly all beaches along the county’s 42-mile coastline were closed last year because of pollutants.

South County beaches were hit hardest when a pipeline broke in February and sent 3 million gallons of waste water down San Juan Creek and into the ocean. Portions of Doheny State Beach and beaches as far south as San Clemente were closed for more than three months.

In March, a pipeline operated by the East Valley Water District in San Bernardino failed, sending an estimated 21 million gallons of sewage through Prado Dam and down the Santa Ana River. Beaches from Brookhurst Street in Huntington Beach south to 51st Street in Newport Beach were closed for 10 days.