Natural Perspectives

Vic Leipzig and Lou Murray

On this national holiday of Thanksgiving, we rejoice for all of our

blessings, not the least of which is that the Bolsa Chica is one step

closer to restoration.

Last Tuesday we spent the day in Los Angeles at the California Coastal

Commission hearings, listening to testimony in favor of reestablishment

of full tidal flushing to the Bolsa Chica wetlands. Not one voice from

our community was raised in opposition.

Jack Fancher, a biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service led

off his presentation by exclaiming, “Oh happy day.”

It was obvious to us all that the Commission was set to approve the

restoration plan. Fancher noted that it was a momentous day, one that

signaled the end of planning and the beginning, at long last, of

construction.

Bob Hoffman of the National Marine Fisheries Service noted that other

restoration projects have resulted in more than a 10-fold increase in

number of fish species and that we could expect similar results at the

Bolsa Chica. He gazed at the sea of gray-headed, bifocal-wearing faces in

the audience and quipped that when we started on this project, we all had

dark hair. “Now look at us,” he said. “See what the Bolsa Chica has done

to us.”

His comments rang true. This month signals the 20th year of our

involvement in the fight to save and restore the Bolsa Chica. Many have

been fighting this battle for more than 25 years. We have grown old, but

not tired. Like colonials in the Revolutionary War, we pledged our lives

and our fortunes to this war over the wetlands. Now victory is in sight.

With no testimony in opposition, the hearings were a love fest. Linda

Moon, President of the Amigos de Bolsa Chica rejoiced that “finally

actual restoration may actually occur.” We share her sense of near

disbelief. We’ve been fighting and hoping for this for so long, that it

really is hard to believe that it’s finally going to happen.

Dave Carlberg, a professor of microbiology, attempted to allay the

concerns of those who worried about degradation of water quality. He

noted that the feared bacterial contamination from bird waste would be of

a magnitude below that which would threaten human health. One of the most

important points about water quality, is that there will be no urban

runoff coming out of the restored marsh. Thus this ocean opening will not

contribute vast quantities of contaminants after rainfall, as is common

at other ocean outlets along the coast.

Terry Dolton, Adrianne Morrison, Tim Anderson and Doug Korthof added

their voices to the plea to approve the project. We testified as well,

addressing issues of water quality and restoration of habitat for the

highly endangered light-footed clapper rail.

Coastal Commissioner and City Councilwoman Shirley Dettloff, who has

shepherded the project through the Commission, also noted the length of

time that people have been working to bring the project to fruition. She

said that the Bolsa Chica battle has been a long time in anyone’s life.

“Some of us are getting closer and closer to the end of those lives

and we’d like to see something done,” she said.

At 2:55 p.m., Nov. 13, the Coastal Commission cast an historic and

unanimous vote to restore the Bolsa Chica wetlands.

There are only two more hurdles to go. The project must pass the State

Lands Commission, which is expected to approve it. Then it goes to the

Army Corps of Engineers for a final look at issues such as water quality,

hydraulics and sand movement. The project is expected to win approval

there also.

“Then the lawsuits start,” someone quipped. We hope not. The vast

majority of our community is pleased that we’ve come this far along the

road to restoration. We hope that a worried few, concerned over perceived

unknowns of water quality, won’t try to block the project by suing. We

hope they can see the project as we do, an incredible opportunity to turn

back the clock and renew a precious coastal resource.

We hope they can see the project as Fancher did. He said, “The project

has large biological benefits. The new inlet will reinvigorate the marsh

system. It will come alive with birds and fish that haven’t been there in

a hundred years.”

That will indeed be a happy day, one many of us will be thankful for.

We hope you’re enjoying your day of Thanksgiving.

* VIC LEIPZIG and LOU MURRAY are Huntington Beach residents and

environmentalists. They can be reached at o7 [email protected] .