By a 6-0 vote with Commissioner Lee Burdick absent, the Board of Port Commissioners voted to appeal being named as a primary discharger in the Cleanup and Abatement Order issued by the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board in the recent Shipyard Sediment Site administrative matter R9-2012-0025.
The appeal will not request a stay to stop implementation of the order or seek to postpone any remedial actions regarding the sediment site.
The basis for the appeal is that the District was improperly named as a primary discharger in the Order. As a public representative for the People of the State of California, the District contends that it was an abuse of discretion and a violation of public policy to designate the District a primary party responsible for environmental discharge activities of private parties relative to San Diego Bay.
Despite its vote to appeal being named as a primary discharger, by a 6-0 vote, the Board of Port Commissioners expressed its full support for the efforts and objectives of the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board and issuance of a Cleanup and Abatement Order to responsible parties. The District will remain actively involved in the Shipyard Sediment Site remediation process consistent with its role as trustee and environmental steward of San Diego Bay.
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Dredging Today Staff, April 11, 2012; Image: resonant