Beaches California

A sand-colored shorebird that camouflages its eggs and chicks on California beaches has been listed as a threatened species, triggering federal protection of the bird and its nesting grounds, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced Thursday. The Western snowy plover nests in 20 areas from San Diego Bay to the San Francisco, including the Bolsa Chica State Ecological Reserve in Huntington Beach, and in eight sites in Oregon and Washington.

On the tip of Balboa Peninsula, where multimillion-dollar homes sit snug against the sand and the legendary waves draw crowds of bodysurfers, an unlikely battle is taking shape. At the center are the lawns, lounge chairs, hedges and playground equipment - even a rusty metal shark sculpture - that for years have sprawled out from oceanfront homes onto the public sand. It's all illegal, says the state of California, which has ordered homeowners along some of Orange County's most coveted coastline to rip out the landscaping, sprinklers and all the other upgrades that have crept steadily seaward.

Responding to a growing trend among local governments to limit beach access through curfews, parking lot closures and other means, the California Coastal Commission has issued a warning that such curfews are illegal without commission approval. In a letter sent to 73 cities and counties situated on the state's 1,100-mile coastline, the commission also indicated that it will not approve any long-term closures.

Dignity amid tragedy Re "Kneeling again next to RFK," Column, Nov. 21 Thanks to Steve Lopez for his moving column on Juan Romero. May it stand as a reminder that no matter how many draconian Arizona laws or Proposition 187s pass, you cannot take away the human dignity of those who are here to work and make a living. It must bring the Kennedy family some solace that in that horrible moment, on the cold floor of that pantry, there was someone of conscience to comfort Robert F. Kennedy in the only way he could.

Armed with gloves, plastic garbage bags and the spirit of volunteerism, 7,519 people took to Los Angeles County beaches Saturday and collected more than 11,500 pounds of trash during the 12th annual Coastal Cleanup Day. Crews of volunteers combed more than 20 sites throughout the county, collecting plastic six-pack rings, foam cups, glass bottles and other assorted debris left by beach-goers. The most common find: cigarette butts, thousands of them.

Los Angeles County supervisors have delayed making a decision on taking over ownership of several state beaches from San Pedro to Point Dume. County and state officials have haggled for several years over funding. Although the state owns the beaches, the county has paid for lifeguard service and maintenance. The county must decide by April 1 whether it will continue to provide lifeguards at state beaches.

Responding to a growing trend among local governments to limit beach access through curfews, parking lot closures and other means, the California Coastal Commission has issued a warning that such curfews are illegal without commission approval.

Beaches across the United States were closed to swimmers or posted with health warnings more than 2,400 times last year, with one-third of them occurring in Southern California, according to an annual report released Wednesday by a national environmental group. In California, beach closures and advisories resulting from high bacteria counts more than doubled to 1,397 in 1993, compared to 609 the year before, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council report.

It happens more than 6,000 times each day. Buffeted by the wind and swayed by the rotation of the earth, the largest ocean in the world heaves, curls and then throws itself onto the Southern California coast. About every 14 seconds the waves surge, ebb and surge again. Their color varies with the clarity of the water and the hue of the sky. But their sound is reassuringly constant, a rhythmic pounding that rises and falls, but is never silent. But take a dip in those waves? What are you, nuts?

A sand-colored shorebird that camouflages its eggs and chicks on California beaches has been listed as a threatened species, triggering federal protection of the bird and its nesting grounds, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced Thursday. The western snowy plover nests in 20 areas from San Diego Bay to the San Francisco Bay Area, including the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve in Huntington Beach, as well as eight sites in Oregon and Washington.

Maria Shriver has long sought to protect her privacy as California's First Lady, but today she brought thousands to tears with an extraordinary evocation of her grief two months after the death of her mother, Eunice Kennedy Shriver. During a luncheon session at the Women's Conference she is chairing in Long Beach, Shriver told attendees that she stood before them "with a broken heart." She said she has told people that she is holding up well, but "the real truth is that I'm not fine.

"LET'S GO SIT ON the divan in the breezeway," my mother's friend directed us when we went for a summer afternoon visit. Divan. Breezeway. I was a preschool small-town southerner, already captivated by the sound of words to take me places I couldn't otherwise go.

Hundreds of potential access ways to the California coast apparently will be preserved for future public use because of improved planning and coordination among a string of state agencies. Beach easements from Mendocino County to San Diego had long been promised for public use, but were in danger of reverting to private hands because of inaction by state and local governments.

Move over, sports arena. Step aside, football stadium. The Assn. of Volleyball Professionals, stung by court rulings forbidding it to charge for tickets at the beach, said Wednesday that it plans to build a permanent volleyball stadium somewhere in Los Angeles, joining other professional sports organizations that are lining up to construct new venues to house their competitions.

A Los Angeles Superior Court judge on Thursday blocked the Assn. of Volleyball Professionals' bid to charge for seats at the upcoming Hermosa Beach Open. In the latest round in a battle over the propriety of charging for use of the state's public beaches, Judge Robert O'Brien said promoters may not sell seats to the tournament, which is scheduled for July 25-27 near the Hermosa Beach Pier.

Armed with gloves, plastic garbage bags and the spirit of volunteerism, 7,519 people took to Los Angeles County beaches Saturday and collected more than 11,500 pounds of trash during the 12th annual Coastal Cleanup Day. Crews of volunteers combed more than 20 sites throughout the county, collecting plastic six-pack rings, foam cups, glass bottles and other assorted debris left by beach-goers. The most common find: cigarette butts, thousands of them.

An environmental group said cigarette butts rank No. 1 among the Dirty Dozen contaminants fouling California's beaches. The list--California's Dirty Dozen--was drawn up after tons of trash and debris was removed from the state's beaches during a three-hour international cleanup last year. Beaches in the United States, Japan, Canada, Mexico and Guatemala last fall yielded trash that was 64% plastic, the Center for Marine Conservation said.

A Los Angeles Superior Court judge on Thursday blocked the Assn. of Volleyball Professionals' bid to charge for seats at the upcoming Hermosa Beach Open. In the latest round in a battle over the propriety of charging for use of the state's public beaches, Judge Robert O'Brien said promoters may not sell seats to the tournament, which is scheduled for July 25-27 near the Hermosa Beach Pier.

Federal authorities have expressed serious reservations about a proposed transfer of eight state-owned beaches to Los Angeles County, maintaining that the county possesses neither the expertise nor the desire to preserve precious coastal resources.

Los Angeles County supervisors have delayed making a decision on taking over ownership of several state beaches from San Pedro to Point Dume. County and state officials have haggled for several years over funding. Although the state owns the beaches, the county has paid for lifeguard service and maintenance. The county must decide by April 1 whether it will continue to provide lifeguards at state beaches.