On Feb. 27, the Orange County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved District One Supervisor Andrew Do’s donation of $525,000 for the San Gabriel River trash project.
“At our first San Gabriel River Working Group (SGRWG), as a result of the conversation, District 1 County Supervisor Andrew Do offered a commitment of funds to help get a San Gabriel River trash project off the ground,” wrote District One Seal Beach Council Member Joe Kalmick in a March 3 email. “At last Tuesday’s meeting of the Board of Supervisors, his donation of $525,000 was ratified by the Board. Assemblymember Diane Dixon’s office is coordinating our next meeting, tentatively scheduled for March 26th,” Kalmick wrote.
“These funds will be used to conduct a Feasibility/Alternative Recommendations Study (“Study”), beach clean-up of trash, and beach raking operations for the 2024 calendar year,” wrote Supervisor Do in his memorandum to the clerk of the Board of Supervisors.
According to Do’s memo, Seal Beach will be the agency to receive the money.
“The City of Seal Beach has been experiencing significant trash accumulations on its public beach with recent data reflecting an impact of nearly 400 tons per year, not counting trash already collected from area bins and dumpsters,” Do wrote.
According to Do’s memo, the SGR Working Group includes Dixon, Assemblyman Josh Lowenthal, Supervisor Do, LA County Supervisor Janice Hahn, the cities of Seal Beach and Long Beach, as well as the North Orange County and Long Beach chapters of the Surfrider Foundation.
During a January interview, Kalmick described the Working Group as a multi-city entity. “We all have the same problems, regardless of size,” he said.
When the group met in Seal Beach in January, vendors also participated.
Kalmick said Long Beach was going to buy an Interceptor.
The Ocean Institute has a variety of Interceptors, devices that scoop up trash in rivers.
Kalmick said the group has the goal of cleaning up the world’s waters.
“To rid the oceans of plastic, we need not only to clean up what is already out there but also stop new plastic from entering the ocean. Working together with government leaders, individuals, and private corporations, our goal is to tackle these 1000 most polluting rivers all over the world,” according to the Ocean Cleanup website.
Kalmick said the San Gabriel River Working Group was assembled by Assemblymember Dixon.
“It was one of the most positive meetings I’ve ever been to,” said Kalmick.
At the time, Supervisor Do committed funds to the project. Those were the funds the OC Board of Supervisors approved last week. He said he didn’t think funding would be the stumbling block.
He put the annual cost of the project at about $600,000.
Purchasing an Interceptor, he put at $2 million.
Kalmick said that for the past four years, they couldn’t find a solution to the problem.
Kalmcik said he happened to read about the non-profit. He said their focus is on Malaysia.
He believed the interceptor device was the answer.
Technology, however, is not the only issue.
Kalmick said there are 50 cities up river. He said it was not possible to do anything about dumping trash in the river.
He said cities have until 2030 to install trash interceptors in their storm drain systems.
Jurisdiction is another issue.
“It turns out that Seal Beach has no jurisdiction over the river,” Kalmick said.
According to Kalmick, the State Lands Commission has jurisdiction over the river.
Permits will be required from State Lands, the Coast Guard, and other entities.
“This is as far as anyone’s gotten,” Kalmick said.
According to Kalmick, Huntington Beach and Long Beach have asked how they can help.
