Los Angeles' Filthy, Fecal-Laden, Sickness-Inducing Beaches: Who Should Pay to Treat the Runoff.....

[marmar]

from LA Weekly:


Los Angeles' Filthy, Fecal-Laden, Sickness-Inducing Beaches: Who Should Pay to Treat the Rain Runoff from Oily, Dog-Poop Streets?

By LA Weekly Tue., Mar. 12 2013 at 4:16 PM
By Matthew Mullins and Jill Stewart

Update: The Board of Supervisors rejected the Clean Water, Clean Beaches plan today in a big upset, thanks to what many say was exceedingly poor outreach on the massive tax plan to pay for it.

Hundreds of angry people today demanded that the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors toss a years-in-the-making Clean Water Clean Beaches plan to treat the horrific soup that flows off streets, sidewalks, roofs, lawns and lots -- directly into rivers, the Pacific and beaches -- whenever it rains. But who should pay $270 million to treat the filthy rain runoff?

L.A. County's Department of Public Works for months kept its plan -- to tax the county's landowners only -- all but secret. When County Supervisor Gloria Molina got a tiny notice about it, she mistakenly tossed it as junk mail. Apathetic L.A. voters? Not even! Now, 113,696 people have said No to Public Works on its website. And get this: Public Works management spent $3 million creating this PR mess. Colleges, non-profits, many others are slamming the scheme to charge landowners only -- in a region where half the sidewalk-spitters, dog-poop foulers and crankcase drippers are renters, Orange and Ventura Co. commuters and tourists:

Kirsten James, director of water quality at Heal the Bay, said this morning before the crowded, revved-up Board of Supes hearing that these yawning divisions "should be able to be sorted out in the next few months."

At a January 15 hearing, L.A. County and the enviros got hammered by many groups and people who actually agree that the billions of gallons of filth flowing into Santa Monica Bay and other waterways must be cleansed before hitting the water. .....................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://blogs.laweekly.com/informer/2013/03/los_angeles_filthy_fecal_rain_runoff.php

[Egalitarian Thug]

1. Gee, if only someone had pointed out who is paying no taxes in California while taking huge profits.

I think this story goes very nicely with the worker shortages the agri-corps are wailing about. Seems no one but the truly desperate are willing to do back-breaking labor for 12 or more hours a day in horrible conditions for less than minimum wages sans benefits.

Imagine that...

[MattBaggins]

2. How much could be alleviated by people picking up their dog crap

There should be a huge fine for not curbing your dog and picking it up. I walk my dog and watch cops watching other owners walk away from a steaming pile on the schoolyard lawn and they do nothing. Spring in Northern states is one nasty walk through mine fields. Why do people feel is so beneath them to pick up their dog's crap?

There is also the issue of people who have yard dogs and how much of that runs off. We have a problem in our city where the treatment plants can not handle the flow of sewage and storm drains so they have been systematically creating separate systems, but as predicted they are not properly filtering the storm water which is being dumped into the Great Lakes. They have done nothing to alter the policy of allowing people to curb clippings and leaves. It is expected around here and people would pull the "oh woe is me, the nanny state is after me", if they made an ordinance against it.

[monmouth3]

3. But don't you dare light up a cigarette...LOL..

[xchrom]

4. du rec. nt