Check of Irvine Lake Sought

Orange County Supervisor Bill Campbell said Thursday he wanted a review of Irvine Lake’s recreational activities and other uses that might affect the quality of drinking water for 6,500 residents in his hometown of Villa Park.

Campbell’s concern about body contact with the lake water comes in the wake of a report in The Times that a water-ski school had been operating illegally there for nine years, possibly jeopardizing Villa Park’s drinking supply.

“I didn’t know people were being trained on water skis out there,” said the supervisor, who was scheduled to meet today with officials from the Serrano Water District, which manages the lake’s recreational activities and water supply.

Campbell added that he also wanted to learn more about the upgrading of the lake’s water treatment plant and a proposal that would dump landscaping trash near the shores of the reservoir for composting.

County supervisors have no regulatory control of the 750-acre lake, which is at the foot of the Cleveland National Forest in eastern Orange County and has been popular with anglers since it opened to the public in 1941.

But Campbell said he wanted to forge a working relationship with district officials so no one was left in the dark about activities at the lake that might affect public safety.

The state Department of Health Services learned of the water-ski school in April, when triathlon organizers applied for a one-time waiver to allow competitors to swim in Irvine Lake in wetsuits. Health officials declined the request. A week later, they informed the water district that water-skiing in the reservoir violated state health codes.

District officials maintain they were unaware the school -- in operation for nine years -- had been violating state health codes that prohibit swimming and water-skiing in a reservoir where water is stored for residential use. They thought that if skiers wore wetsuits, there was no violation.

The school has been shut down while its case is reviewed by state health officials.

Campbell said he had “mixed emotions” about the potential safety threat to the public the water-ski school posed.

“On one hand, if it’s really been going on for years, I’m not aware of any illnesses caused by it,” he said. “On the other hand, I think it’s extremely important that we honor the state requirements to make sure no one is harmed.”

Campbell said he wanted to make sure the district upgraded the lake’s water treatment system to meet stringent government standards scheduled to go into effect in 2012, rather than make gradual improvements to save money.

David Noyes, the water district’s general manager, said Thursday the system should be upgraded to meet the new standards by 2008.

The board approved a 10% increase in water rates at a special meeting last week to help fund the project, he said.

Campbell also has questions about a proposal by the Irvine Ranch Water District to put a composting facility 150 feet above the high-water mark of the lake.

Campbell, who said he learned of the plan while attending a Villa Park council meeting, said he understood the county’s need for such a facility, “but we need to have it in the right place.”

“On one side, I want to make sure we have a place [for green waste],” he said. “At the same time, I don’t want it to impact the quality of water in that system.”