State funds sought to fight runoff

Paul Clinton

NEWPORT BEACH -- Deputy City Manager Dave Kiff says he would love to

see the city slice off a piece of a potential $100 million that Gov. Gray

Davis wants to make available to fight shoreline pollution.

The money could be used to fund city programs that seek to divert

storm water runoff and to repair an aging sewer system, Kiff said.

“I haven’t seen exactly who’s qualified or where the funds go,” he

said. “We certainly would be interested in getting our hands on some of

that.”

The money is expected to be included in the governor’s $100-billion

state budget proposal being released Wednesday.

If approved, the state Water Resources Control Board likely would be

put in charge of determining how the money is spent.

Orange County saw a record 38 beach closures last year, due in part to

sewage spills in Upper Newport Bay and on the beach.

The money could be used to help fund the city’s ongoing repair of

sewer lines and pump stations. Last year, Newport Beach spent $1.02

million on those projects, Kiff said.

Urban runoff also has been a recurring problem, especially storm water

drainage into Upper Newport Bay from the Santa Ana-Delhi Channel, which

funnels runoff from nearly 18 square miles of Costa Mesa, Newport Beach

and Santa Ana.

In 1999, Newport Beach had 256 closures or posted warnings, compared

with 158 in Huntington Beach. Kiff said the city is higher on the list

because of a higher frequency of testing.

As the state Legislature hashes out Davis’ budget, state Sen. Ross

Johnson (R-Newport Beach) will push to bring funding to the district,

said spokeswoman Susie Swatt.

“We’re going to do everything possible to get as much of that $100

million for Orange County,” she said. “We have suffered the most.”