SurfLine.com
After nearly 7 months of no rain, today is LA's "first flush", which is cause for dangerously high levels of pollution in the Santa Monica and San Pedro Bays. A major threat to human health and marine life, the first rain of the season is also an opportune time for Los Angeles Waterkeeper to collect storm water samples at the most polluted industrial facilities in LA County.
Storm water is the main source of pollution to Santa Monica and San Pedro Bays, endangering aquatic life, public health and negatively impacting our tourist economy. This type of urban runoff carries contaminants such as fecal bacteria, oil, grease, metals, pesticides, litter and other toxic chemicals that have accumulated on the surface over several months of dry weather. Carried through the 5,000 mile-long storm drain system, storm water receives no treatment and flows directly from the streets of LA into the ocean when it rains.
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Category Archives: California Coastal Notes of Interest
Bitten Calif. surfer says shark came from nowhere
Sacbee.com - The Associated Press
EUREKA, Calif. -- It was a perfect day for surfing. Except for the shark.
Jay Scrivner, a 45-year-old college English teacher, was waiting for waves off the NorthernCalifornia coast near his hometown of Eureka on Sunday morning after surfing for about two hours when a great white he estimated at about 8-to-9 feet long bit his thigh and board.
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Character Assassin, Act Out Mystery Theatre, Long Beach, CA
James Scarborough - Huffington Post
Man of Letters/Minor Critic Don't play with your food. That's what our parents used to say. Perhaps they'd be a little more obliging if they could see Act Out Mystery Theatre's Character Assassin, staged at the Reef Restaurant. Written and directed by Paul Vander Roest, it's not just a play (a good one), or a meal (a good one), it's interactive, it's both, a play and a meal, so you're encouraged to play while you eat. Some of us participate (face it, we're all red herrings, one way or another), we all sleuth, trying to figure out who killed famed mystery writer Dame Hagatha Christie Higgins Hark at a reading of her latest murder mystery. Continue Reading... ...Maze of oil wells, utility lines complicates Gerald Desmond Bridge project
By Karen Robes Meeks, Long Beach Press Telegram
LONG BEACH >> When crews started clearing the path for a new 1.5 mile-long span to replace the Gerald Desmond Bridge two years ago, they encountered more than a few pipes.
What lurked beneath the surface was a mishmash of old and active oil wells tangled with 10 miles of utility lines, many of them unmapped or deeper than expected.
And what normally takes weeks to cap and relocate dozens of wells and lines turned into months of labor intensive work to clear the way for large steel-and-concrete piles as deep as an 18-story building.
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Guided wine tours of California’s Central Coast
Virginie Boone, Special to USA TODAY
Driving around California's vast Central Coast is a visual treat even if you don't know where you're going, so imagine the breadth and depth you'll cover with a guide to provide the lay of the land, point out highlights, ponder the geographical and cultural history and serve as designated driver.
The meat of the region is Monterey County, a relatively cool swath of fertile farmland and coastal beauty in the middle of California, accented by substantial pockets of national forest.
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Ocean Recreation Water Quality Warnings and Advisories: October 4
Time: 1:50 p.m.
Date: October 4, 2013
Closure and Posted Warning Status Report
Closures:
• No ocean, harbor or bay water closures are currently in effect.
Posted Warnings:
Bacterial levels in ocean and bay recreational waters exceed health standards at the following locations:
Dana Point Harbor
• All of Baby Beach.
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Calling Californian snowbird sailors: a welcome mat at Catalina
SailWorld.com
Calling all Californian cruising sailors or those to the north planning to cruise south for Mexico, Central America or even further afield to the South Pacific (even if you don't have a boat): Adventure Voyaging, a multi-yacht sailing vacation organiser, is rolling out the welcome mat at a suggested pit stop: Catalina Island.
It could be a great time to meet others who are sailing south, catch up on some last minute advice and enjoy some sunset cockpit drinks with compatible cruising sailors - as well as joining the festivities planned.
The Log reports that from From Oct. 18-20, Two Harbors will be filled with exhibitor booths, cruising seminars, barbecues and live 'island' music performed by Brent George and the Fat Masts, during the annual Catalina Cruiser’s Weekend.
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