Yesterday was a big day for San Diego Bay. The San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board issued a waste discharge permit for cleanup at the shipyard sites just south of the Coronado Bridge. This permit allows the cleanup to move forward and imposes requirements that will protect water quality while toxic sediment, the ground beneath the water, is removed from the bay.
The Regional Board called upon all dischargers listed in the Cleanup and Abatement Order to get involved in cleaning up San Diego Bay. Waterkeeper Jill Witkowski has collaborated with representatives from NASSCO and BAE Systems since the Order was issued in March 2012 and yesterday defended the work that those corporations have done to move the cleanup forward. The power of that collaboration was clear when NASSCO and BAE Systems supported all of the permit revisions that Coastkeeper proposed, which were accepted by the Regional Board.
Regional Board Vice Chair Gary Strawn thanked Coastkeeper publicly for the thoughtful, detailed comments that we submitted on the draft waste discharge permit. He appreciated our sharp eye in making sure that the permit was robust and followed the Order as well as the implementation plan developed by cleanup stakeholders.
The next step for the cleanup is to receive a coastal development permit from the Port of San Diego. Coastkeeper’s involvement in the cleanup will continue when our legal team attends the Port’s July 16 hearing on the issue. If you want to make sure San Diego Bay gets clean, join us at the hearing and say so!