VIC LEIPZIG and LOU MURRAY -- The Natural Perspective

The staff of the California Coastal Commission released a bombshell when

they announced their recommendations for development on the Bolsa Chica

mesa.

Coastal staff’s proposal is that the developer’s plans be reduced by

about half, with the entire lower table of the mesa to be set aside for

environmental protection. About the only thing that is not a surprise is

that this announcement is leading to further postponement of the Coastal

Commission public hearing on this matter.

When it comes to Bolsa Chica, there is one thing you can always count on

-- further postponement. The hearing had been scheduled for February’s

meeting, but the county is asking for a delay until April.

Short of no development whatsoever, this is the most appealing proposal

for Bolsa Chica that we have ever seen. Environmental groups such as the

Amigos de Bolsa Chica and the Bolsa Chica Land Trust have been asking the

commission to establish broad buffer zones that protect habitat areas

from the inevitable negative impacts emanating from the new housing.

Nowhere would buffers be more important than adjacent to outer Bolsa bay.

The outer bay is, in many biological ways, the best part of the Bolsa

Chica ecosystem. Eliminating housing from the western half of the mesa

certainly provides the best buffer zone imaginable.

Besides buffers, there is another major issue the commission will have to

deal with. The plan put forward by the applicant, Hearthside Homes, calls

for a series of monstrous concrete pipes to drain urban runoff from the

project directly onto the mud flats of outer Bolsa bay. By eliminating

the housing near the outer bay, the coastal staff recommendation would

have the beneficial effect of eliminating the need for these destructive,

eyesore drainpipes.

The key issue, however, will come down to a matter of acreage. Hearthside

Homes, of course, wants the greatest possible development acreage.

Environmentalists, naturally, want the greatest possible acreage of open

space and wildlife habitat and would generally like to see the entire

mesa protected.

Does the commission have the authority to bar development from the entire

mesa? Probably not. How much land does the commission have the legal

authority to protect? Or, looking at it the other way, how much

development do they have to allow? Opinions will vary enormously on that

issue.

The commission’s staff -- lucky for them -- is free to take any position

they want. After all, their proposal is simply a recommendation. The real

decision is up to a vote of the 10 commissioners. Will they accept the

staff recommendation? We’ll see -- possibly in April.

The Coastal Commission is now composed largely of environmentally minded

members -- notably, our own City Councilwoman Shirley Dettloff.

Environmental groups like the Amigos de Bolsa Chica and the Bolsa Chica

Land Trust can count on favorable attention from the commission. Let’s

hope they vote to protect the environment as much as the law will allow.

* VIC LEIPZIG and LOU MURRAY are Huntington Beach residents and

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