Editor,
As a homeowner in Laguna Beach, I have been troubled for years by the intermittent foul smell of sewage gases along Coast Highway at Glenneyre and Bluebird, and even in my immediate neighborhood in Victoria Beach. This noxious odor migrates into my house most commonly in the early morning hours between 4 a.m. and 7 a.m. There have been times when the smell has been so strong it literally awakens me from a sound sleep.
I have complained to the City of Laguna Beach a lot over the years, and I must say they are extremely obliging to return my emails and calls. They have even come out to my house and held a meeting with my neighbors and myself to address the issue. I can also say that this problem has gotten a lot better since that final meeting about six months ago. However, it has not been completely eradicated.
With regard to the Coastline Pilot’s recent article about an impending lawsuit filed by California River Watch against the city of Laguna Beach for ongoing structural defects in its wastewater management system, which has allowed for raw sewage to contaminate Aliso Creek and the Pacific Ocean for years, I am in full agreement. And as per the front page of the most recent Laguna Beach Independent, the city of Laguna has seen a veritable surge in spending power during this past year to the tune of $4.3 million. I for one would like to see some of that windfall spent on the defective, deteriorating and inadequate sewer system that allows raw sewage to pollute not only my sense of smell in my own town and home, but also the pristine ocean waters along our coastline for which we are known. This is one case where what you don’t see can actually hurt you.
Marsha Bianchi, Laguna Beach
Thank you for writing this letter. Having grown up in Laguna (LBHS’79), and with family still living there, I have been shocked by how terrible it smells in the last few years. Bluebird Canyon has suffered ever since the large multi-unit building on the corner of Glenneyre and Calliope went up in the ’70s and despite the the extensive work in recent years it is still bad. Sleepy Hollow beach and Mountain Street beach are two other places I cover my nose and run by. I just watched a film about the new facade at the Festival of Arts, and while that is nice, this is essential. Come on Laguna let’s clean this up.
If anyone is interested in eliminating odors such as Hydrogen Sulfides, Mercaptans or Amines found in almost all collection systems or wastewater pump stations I would like to recommend Bio Organic Catalysts ESP. Its completely non-toxic and its extremely effective at eliminating the odors I have just listed above. If the City of Laguna Beach is interested in doing a trial test to prove the effectiveness of BOC I would be happy to sponsor a trial test at the Bluebird/Glennery pump station location. Our company has an installation on Balboa Island where we are going on three years with great results. I would be happy to work with anyone interested in eleviating the odor situation in Laguna because I grew up in Laguna myself and Love Laguna. We solve odor issues all over the globe and I can tell you that our products are the most effective cost wise as well as from the standpoint of eliminating odor in wastewater treatment applications. Hope I can help