AnonymousSource: Santa Barbara County Public Works Department
Following the recent storms that brought additional sediment to the San Antonio Debris Basin, Santa Barbara County Public Works (Public Works) will begin to take this material to Goleta Beach County Park as soon as Tuesday, March 24, 2020. Public Works started beach deposit operations just west of the Goleta Beach Bridge on March 20, 2020, with material from watersheds affected by the Thomas Fire.
Public Works Director Scott McGolpin said, “With the recent rain event this weekend, the San Antonio Basin received an inordinate amount of sediment that is ideal for beach deposits, and naturally drains to the Goleta Slough and ultimately Goleta Beach. All of this sediment was trapped within our Flood Control system and this operation completes the trip that Mother Nature could not.”
Before beach deposit operations, the Flood Control District (District) obtains emergency permits from state and federal agencies. These agencies include the California Coastal Commission, the Regional Water Quality Control Board, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. The District also obtains a permit from the Army Corps of Engineers who coordinates with the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Marine Fisheries Service, and the State Lands Commission, among others. Sediment samples taken from the debris basins are tested for grain size, gasoline/diesel, pesticides, and metals.
In addition to using upland disposal sites and local beaches for sediment deposits, the County continues to develop a plan for regional debris removal. Since July 2019, the County has worked with the cities of Santa Barbara, Goleta, Carpinteria, and Buellton to create a plan for debris removal and management. The Disaster Debris Management Plan for the South Coast and Santa Ynez Valley is currently under development and expected to be publicly presented in the fall. For more information about District programs, visit www.countyofsb.org/pwd/
My guess is that the coastal streams in Gaviota with their steep short watersheds are more important in sand replenishment than the local streams in Goleta. Plus the sand that is blocked by Cachuma. One of the consequences of building debris basins in our County will be blocking the sand to the beaches.
The last time they did this Goleta Beach the ocean was unsafe for most of the summer due to high counts of bacteria from dumping on the beach. This denied Goleta of one of its most important recreation areas for months.
Good ol’ Janet Wolf’s legacy still junking up the place.
The debris basin sediment is a lot different than the foul debris flow mud from Montecito that was mixed with sewage, chemicals, and pulverized houses plus who knows what else. The debris basin sediment is clean hillside matter destined for the ocean anyway.
Amen Col
Ahh, a voice of reason.