By Claire Regenstreif
Theme Editor
Recent Oil Spills:
Redondo Beach, Hermosa Beach and Manhattan Beach were closed to swimmers from May 23 to June 4 due to oil and tar balls that washed up on shore from the oil spill out of the Plains All American Pipeline in Santa Barbara.
According to environmental programs manager of the Manhattan Beach City Council, Sona Coffee, oil drilling in the South Bay would cause many economic and environmental problems for all citizens. Oil drilling places residents at high risk of toxic flares.
“The waste and oil spills in the ocean would be a domino effect,” Martin said. “The loss of oxygen resulting from ocean plants being killed from the oil would mess up the carbon cycle [and] result in a depletion of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.”
The Heal the Bay organization, a nonprofit environmental organization based in Santa Monica to make coastal waters clean, advocated for a law against oil drilling in the South Bay, which was enacted May 2015 when E&B Oil Company requested to drill oil in Hermosa Beach. Due to environmental and health risks, residents of Hermosa Beach voted against E&B’s request.
“If oil drilling came to the South Bay, we would we have trash pollution and would also have oil pollution, which would harm our environment even more,” Co-Director of Roundhouse Aquarium Eric Martin said.
Drilling for oil is a main cause of air pollution, which would contribute to causation respiratory disorders like asthma, bronchitis, and/or pneumonia. Also, exposure to oil can cause skin rashes and even DNA damage and mutations. Seafood can also become contaminated from oil spills, causing people who consume a multitude of seafood to become sick.
“I decided to vote no on oil in Hermosa Beach,” Chevron employee Jeff Wilson said. “Oil spills have been a constant headline in the news, and I don’t want that to happen in Hermosa for the safety of swimming and the effects it would have on the wildlife.”
Sewage in the Ocean:
Run-off drain pipes located on the beaches in Santa Monica and throughout the South Bay spill rain water into the ocean.
El Porto beach was closed for two days starting on Sept. 24 due to a spill of hypodermic needles, condoms and other waste products in the ocean from a runoff drain pipe. This incident resulted in an increase of unsafe bacteria, causing the water to be unswimmable.
“The bacteria in the water is detrimental to aquatic ecosystems, which will eventually harm the terrestrial community because all ecosystems are interdependent,” Martin said.
Trash
Dumping:
Due to the efforts of Heal the Bay and other volunteer organizations, Manhattan Beach has passed multiple ordinances concerning the protection of the oceans.
These new ordinances include a plastic bag ban and polystyrene ban. These bans were adopted in order to decrease the negative effects of littering on the wildlife by making everything compostable and recyclable.
“To prevent trash on the beach, people should strive for a zero-waste policy for their beach days,” Coffee said. “They should bring reusable containers and utensils so they don’t have to throw anything away and must remember to take with them whatever they bring to the beach.”
According to Los Angeles County Rescue Boat Captain Phil Navarro, there has been an increase in dolphin and stingray sightings off the coast of Catalina and through the South Bay in recent years. These animal sightings could be a result of less trash, according to Navarro.
“When I patrol on the boat, dolphins have become much more common to see in recent years,” Navarro said. “The dolphins are almost a daily sighting now, which is different from when I went to Costa around 30 years ago, and sightings were really rare.”
Trash that is left behind on the beach runs the risk of ending up in the water, harming marine life or being ingested by wildlife. According to Martin, thousands of birds and fish die every year from incidents related to trash and other waste in the ocean. Therefore, there are trash containers located along the sand that are there to decrease littering.
“Individuals need to decide that they are going to do their part to help the environment,” Martin said. “As a community, we need to come together and decide that we are going to stop polluting the water and the land for the safety of ourselves and the wildlife.”
Recycling Water:
According to Coffee, Manhattan Beach conducts weekly monitoring to track and ensure the quality of the ocean water, resulting in low bacteria levels.
Stormwater makes the oceans unsafe by contributing to the bacteria in the ocean. This bacteria can harm marine life, according to Coffee.
“During my morning swims, I can see 15 feet below me, which is amazing because I don’t think it has ever been this clear,” Navarro said.
According to the Hyperion Sewage Plant, a plant that manages all of the waste in the Los Angeles area, odor management facilities are being integrated into the plant, and it is focusing on recycling wastewater rather than dumping it into Santa Monica.
“People need to get their facts straight,” Martin said. “We can’t all point fingers because we are all at fault for our wrongdoings to the environment.”
Leave a Reply