Wetlands Fail to Pass Critics’ Smell Test

A proposal to turn as much as 60 acres of open space in Van Nuys into marshland to provide natural purification of treated sewage has been repackaged as Sepulveda Wetlands Park, but the new moniker has not quieted critics, who say a swamp is a swamp.

The proposal for the wetlands in the Sepulveda Basin is detailed in a draft planning report being sent today to community organizations, which will have a month to comment to Los Angeles Sanitation Bureau officials before it is finalized.

The report said the city can meet goals for reducing nitrogen in treated waste water dumped into the Los Angeles River from the Tillman Water Reclamation Plant if the effluent is first put through a vegetated wetland.

The $15.6-million project is a scaled-down version of a proposal to convert about 300 acres of open space into wetlands.

“We’re very excited about this project, which would add to and enhance the amenities already provided in the area by the Wildlife Lake, Lake Balboa and Japanese Gardens,” said Valerie Lynne Shaw, president of the city Public Works Board.

She said public input is essential “to make Sepulveda Wetlands Park something that will complement and enhance the facilities that already are in the area for residents to enjoy.”

To make the project more friendly to park visitors, officials have added an educational center and a system of boardwalks that will allow close-up views of wildlife.

But the project, even with a new, more appealing name, drew opposition from several community leaders, who worry that it will create a swamp with odors, mosquitoes and other nuisances for people who live 100 yards to the south.

“It is a slick effort to gloss over all the issues,” said Gerald Silver, president of Homeowners of Encino. “This is a backhanded, dishonest way to bring it to the public, painting it as a parkland even though it is taking parkland away for purposes of sewage treatment.”

City officials said the wetland will not produce foul odors and there is a plan to mitigate mosquito problems.

Even so, Don Schultz, president of the Van Nuys Homeowners Assn., remains opposed to the project.

“It’s 60 acres too much,” he said. “The Sepulveda Basin was supposed to be a recreation area. That was what was intended. This is not recreation.”

The project even drew criticism from Rosemary White, president of the Canada Goose Project and chairwoman of the endangered species committee of the Sierra Club’s Los Angeles branch.

“I am opposed to it because ... the San Fernando Valley and Los Angeles lack open space, and we need to protect any open space we have,” White said.