Heal The Bay Organization

If you feel like taking an autumn swim, but are concerned about pollution--stop worrying. Heal the Bay released its pollution report card for June through September, and most Westside and South Bay beaches scored well. In fact, only 10 out of 62 Los Angeles County beaches where bacteria counts are monitored scored less than an A or B. But there were some trouble spots--beaches that received C's, D's or F's.

His mother had barely handed Danny Guidero a garbage bag before the 6-year-old scampered off to a spot not far away on the beach. He bent over and then ran back, grinning. Clutched in one hand, he had a pink plastic bottle cap. "I have a good eye, don't I Mom?" said Danny as he proudly dropped the discovery in his bag. The youngster was among the nearly 2,900 volunteers who scoured Santa Monica Beach from 9 a.m. until noon Saturday, participating in the 11th annual Coastal Cleanup Day.

His mother had barely handed Danny Guidero a garbage bag before the 6-year-old scampered off to a spot not far away on the beach. He bent over and then ran back, grinning. Clutched in one hand, he had a pink plastic bottle cap. "I have a good eye, don't I Mom?" said Danny as he proudly dropped the discovery in his bag. The youngster was among the nearly 2,900 volunteers who scoured Santa Monica Beach from 9 a.m. until noon Saturday, participating in the 11th annual Coastal Cleanup Day.

Mark Gold, the esteemed marine scientist and president of Heal the Bay, knew it was only a matter of time before his older brother, Jonathan Gold, the equally esteemed Pulitzer Prize-winning food critic, would pick up a set of chopsticks and commit the ultimate act of fraternal betrayal. "From his perspective, if you've already eaten Jamaican goat penis, what's wrong with whale?" Mark asked.

With a few notable exceptions, the vast majority of Orange County beaches fared well in Heal the Bay's 10th annual Beach Report Card, released Wednesday. Water quality at most local stretches of shoreline received high marks, but the county's ratings were marred by a high number of sewage spills, three of the region's worst beaches and a handful of chronic problem spots, including the part of Huntington State Beach that was closed for two months last summer.

Los Angeles County beaches again won dubious recognition Wednesday for their Jekyll and Hyde personalities: mainly clean and inviting when the weather is dry, nasty and sickening when the weather is wet. Fortunately for the surfers, swimmers and divers who took the plunge over the past year, the weather was mostly dry.

This was one contest no beach wanted to win. But a winner there was: Oxnard's "Kiddie Beach" on Wednesday was named the most polluted in Southern California by a regional environmental group. The "Beach Bummer" award was bestowed upon the stretch of coastline--more formally known as Channel Islands Harbor Beach Park--in Heal the Bay's 10th annual report card, which grades water quality at beaches based on bacteria level.

A local environmental group is contending that the state agency charged with safeguarding water quality in Los Angeles and Ventura counties has failed to effectively enforce anti-pollution laws. In a study to be released today, Heal the Bay charges that in spite of pollution problems in 40% of the area's water bodies, the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board has taken action against polluters only 14 times in the past six years, levying fines of $578,000.

A local environmental group is contending that the state agency charged with safeguarding water quality in Los Angeles and Ventura counties has failed to effectively enforce anti-pollution laws. In a study released Thursday, Heal the Bay charges that in spite of pollution problems in 40% of the area's water bodies, the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board has taken action against polluters only 14 times in the past six years, levying fines of $578,000.

The lingering effects of last year's El Nino-fueled storms and sewage runoff from this year's sporadic downpours produced another season of poor water quality grades at Los Angeles County beaches, the environmental group Heal the Bay said Wednesday. In a Memorial Day weekend tradition, the regional environmental group released its ninth annual ocean safety report card and once again warned beach-goers to avoid bacteria laden swimming areas.