More money sought for Buena Vista spill cleanup work

By: BARBARA HENRY - Staff Writer | Sunday, April 22, 2007 7:47 PM PDT ∞

CARLSBAD ---- A request for an extra $250,000 for cleanup efforts associated with this month's massive sewage spill at Buena Vista Lagoon will go before the City Council on Tuesday.

If that request is filled, Carlsbad will have appropriated a total of $750,000 for the spill. The city of Vista, which co-owns the pipeline that ruptured, has appropriated $500,000.

However, the cleanup costs aren't expected to be anywhere close to the combined total of $1.25 million.

"Actual costs are anticipated to be less than $600,000 with the additional funds making up contingency in the event of unforeseen events," a new city of Carlsbad staff report notes.

Unforeseen events could include the lagoon's condition suddenly taking a turn for the worse after weeks of steady improvement, Carlsbad Water District Director Mark Stone said Friday. If the weather were to suddenly hit an extreme warm spell, water quality conditions might change, he said.

Discovered April 1, the broken sewer main problem is believed to have dumped 7.3 million gallons of raw sewage into the lagoon on the Oceanside/Carlsbad border. It is thought to be the second-largest sewage spill in the county's history.

Days after the spill began, contractors were able to replace the broken section of pipe. Meanwhile, about a half-dozen pumps worked nonstop for weeks to put oxygen into the sewage-tainted water in an effort to keep fish alive.

The last of those pumps were turned off Thursday as regular testing showed oxygen levels had significantly improved Stone said.

"The lagoon has been recovering very well," he said.

The next issue will be submitting a report to the state Regional Water Quality Control Board, detailing how the spill happened and how the response was handled. That report is due Monday. State employees are expected to use it in the weeks to come as they decide what fine the two cities will face for the spill.

Meanwhile, Carlsbad is waiting for testing results to determine why the pipe broke midway into its estimated 50-year lifespan. City officials have said that exterior corrosion on the pipe may have caused it to break.

Once other issues are resolved, Carlsbad and Vista are expected to discuss how to divide the bills. Vista is expected to foot most of the expenses ---- it owns nearly 90 percent of the pipe at the point where it broke. Carlsbad has managed the spill containment effort because it occurred within city limits. So far, the bills associated with the effort include:

- $240,000 for construction and shoring work

- $150,000 for unexpected needs, such as keeping the metal barricade near the pipe in place after the pipe was replaced.

- $90,000 for environmental monitoring

- $55,000 for water removal from the lagoon

- $20,000 for corrosion experts

Tuesday's meeting begins at 6 p.m. at Carlsbad City Hall, 1200 Carlsbad Village Drive. For agenda information, visit www.carlsbadca.gov/pdfdoc.html?pid=101

Contact staff writer Barbara Henry at (760) 901-4072 or bhenry@nctimes.com. Comment at nctimes.com.

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