Swimmers along LA 15 miles of beaches from Santa Monica to Malibu are still high in bacteria
Swimmers along a 14-mile stretch of LA stretch of beach from Santa Monica to Malibu shouldn’t get in the water because bacterial levels are still high for a MONTH after 17 million gallons of sewage spilled into the ocean
- 17 million gallons of sewage were spilled into the Pacific Ocean after the Hyperion Water Reclamation Plant, Los Angeles’ largest sewage facility, was flooded
- The facility was blocked with “an overwhelming amount of rubble”
- It resulted in an emergency system dumping untreated sewage into Santa Monica Bay for eight hours
- Beach goers were warned to avoid nearby bodies of water until the samples for “increased bacteria” were negative
- The levels at Malibu Lagoon on Surfrider Beach, Santa Monica Pier in Santa Monica, Mother’s Beach in Marina Del Rey and Avalon Beach on Catalina Island are high
- The Hyperion Water Reclamation Plant has been the LA County’s wastewater discharge site since the late 19th century
Swimmers along a 14-mile stretch of Los Angeles beach from Malibu to Marina Del Rey are urged to avoid going into the Pacific Ocean following sewage pollution that dumped 17 million gallons into the ocean.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health warned people not to swim, surf, and play in the ocean, especially near gullies, creeks, and rivers after the spill occurred last month.
Public health officials have tested the water daily since the July 13th spill, but the concentration of bacteria still exceeds state standards.
The wastewater was discharged into Santa Monica Bay over an eight hour period. Beachgoers are told, among other things, to avoid the water around Santa Monica Pier in Santa Monica
The water at Malibu Lagoon on Surfrider Beach, Santa Monica Pier in Santa Monica, Mother’s Beach in Marina Del Rey, and Avalon Beach on Catalina Island are still high in bacteria
Visitors to Malibu Lagoon on Surfrider Beach, Santa Monica Pier in Santa Monica, Mother’s Beach in Marina Del Rey, and Avalon Beach on Catalina Island are instructed not to go into the water.
The Hyperion Water Reclamation Plant, Los Angeles’ largest sewage facility, has been inundated with “overwhelming amounts of rubble.”
The safety device triggered an emergency system that diverted untreated sewage through a 1.6 km long receiving water into Santa Monica Bay over a period of eight hours.
At the time, state officials said residents were spared an even greater disaster.
The runoff, which only accounts for 6 percent of the plant’s daily wastewater volume, prevented the plant from “being completely disconnected from the network and discharging much more raw wastewater”.
Several Los Angeles beaches were put on alert in the days following the spill, including Malibu, San Pedro, Catalina, Marina del Rey, Pacific Palisades, and the El Segundo and Dockweiler Beach areas.
Beach goers were told to avoid the areas until the water samples found negative for “increased bacteria”. A month after the spill, the levels are still above state guidelines
Los Angeles district manager Janice Hahn initially attributed the spill to a power outage last month
Some blamed state officials and plant operators for the leak, although later evidence showed it was caused by unknown debris creating a fuse
Local politicians are now calling for answers to the causes of the blob.
“I urge the EPA and NOAA to investigate the massive and ongoing sewage discharge from the Hyperion Water Reclamation Plant into the ocean,” wrote MP Ted Lieu on Facebook last week. “This facility is critical to LA County’s wastewater treatment and its continued problematic operation requires federal action.”
Lieu said he would like the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to investigate.
The city has been draining sewage at the Hyperion facility site since 1894, two years after purchasing 200 acres of beachfront property in the area.
The first processing plant at the site was put into operation in 1925.
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