County finds money for beach tests in 2012
Mike Lee
Sign On San Diego
06/15/2011
County officials on Wednesday said they have identified $128,000 to pay for beach water quality testing through June 2012, saving a program that otherwise likely would have been canned by state budget cuts.
The money still must be formally approved as part of the overall budget by county supervisors later this month but Supervisor Greg Cox said he doesn't expect opposition. Documents show the money is part of a $7 million increase to a prior version of the 2012 budget for the county's land use and environment group.
"This is a critical program that certainly protects public health," said Cox, who has been trying to keep the testing program alive because he believes it's vital to the region's tourism economy and residents who enjoy the ocean.
"Beaches are synonymous with San Diego," he said. "Surfers and swimmers ... need to have the knowledge that they are going into water that is safe."
The current funding plan doesn't ensure the longterm viability of the water testing program but it buys the county and environmental groups more time to keep the high-profile project afloat. Cox said he's talked with a local congressman about securing ongoing federal support but no agreements are in place.
Beach advocates want to see real-time reporting of water quality tests, instead of the results that lag by a day or two. But they were heartened that a favorite program likely won't fold in the next year.
"Given the economic times that we are going through, it's better than nothing," said Fay Crevoshay, a spokeswoman for the conservation group Wildcoast in Imperial Beach. "It would be just unacceptable if it disappears. Then people wouldn't know what the levels of pollutants are."
Historically, about $300,000 a year has come from state coffers for regular testing at dozens of spots along the county's 76-mile coastline. County officials use the data to warn beachgoers about spots with high bacterial pollution, and advocacy groups use them to target areas in need of preventative measures.
California's beach monitoring initiative was created by state legislation in 1997 that mandated weekly water quality testing at beaches visited by more than 50,000 people a year if they had storm drains that discharged during dry weather. That led to what was billed as the most extensive and comprehensive beach monitoring program in the nation.
The statewide program faltered in 2008, when Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger cited a growing budget deficit in cutting $984,000 for the work. The initiative was largely restored with bond money but that will run out this year and state officials have said they don't plan to replace it.
