San Juan Capistrano Parking Lot: Cutting Corners Has Consequences

OPINION

Note: Updated at Noon, July 11, 2022

The City's Ramos Street Parking Lot Expansion (RSPLE) and privately-developed River Street Marketplace (RSM), both under construction, represent classic examples of what to do, and what not to do, regarding environmental regulatory compliance.

The photos above were taken late last Friday afternoon, at the close of grading operations/business on July 8, 2022. The RSPLE has looked like this since June 27th, and is still a disaster in progress as I write, today, July 11th.

The RSM project reveals at least a reasonable (but not stellar) attempt to keep proper structural safeguards for dust abatement, potentially-contaminated particulate dispersion and water quality control Best Management Practices (BMPs), explicit source control measures in place. Some soil materials were left uncovered.

It's these types of situations that leave public agencies open to potential litigation, vulnerable to VERY expensive and time-consuming, media PR nightmare, predatory 3rd party lawsuits. Federal laws allow for that dynamic. Saves the regulatory agencies oversight and inspection budgets.

Looks as if the "spoil piles," i.e., that a lot of the graded and/or excavated soils onsite at the RSM are being covered as work progresses, the black plastic tarps held firmly. The fencing is high quality, a fine barrier mesh. This can slow and stop, many times redirect/buffer wind currents around a site to minimize interior disturbances.

It also keeps airborne contaminants from construction activities INSIDE the site's perimeter, thus all BMPs together significantly reduce forbidden off-site migration and protects the Los Rios neighborhood's air quality somewhat.

As for water quality and NPDES Storm Water Pollution Protection Plan (SWPPP) prohibitions for construction permits, the City's local lead agency responsibility is with the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board. Basically, there are 2 levels of protection required: Rainy season and non-rainy season prescriptions.

The ≈ 6 month rainy period checklist is long, but we're only concerned with its lesser cousin. That said, there are Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) for water quality compliance, and their twin Air Quality Indices (AQIs). Everyone's probably seen one of those AQMD alerts when concentration standards are near or above (exceeded) and become of great health concern. Leaving the piles uncovered creates potential liability exposure for both the vendor and City too.

Though less stringent, requiring less and more modest BMPs, just because it's now off-season doesn't mean that piles can be left uncovered, not even overnight. A freak storm, high winds pushing in advance, could disperse known and predictable contaminates off-site. "Better safe than sorry," "Ounce of prevention worth a pound of cure," if you will.

Migrating particulates are then broadcast pell mell, to be inhaled and/or settle. Subsequent rainy events (if it ever rains again!) will then transport pollutants into the Arroyo Trabuco---a federally listed 303 (d) Impaired Water Body, co-mingled with the San Juan Creek (also impaired!) and then it's on to Doheny State Beach.

RSPLE is THE poster child for how no contractor with a conscience (or who values his license) should leave a site this large with a sizable spoil pile easily 25 yards long, 10-12 yards wide and ≈ 10 feet high, day after day after day. The City's contractor excavated (graded) down around 18"--2 feet to create optimum conditions for uniform re-compaction and replacement/topping with a 6" bed of 3/4" diameter gravel.

Meanwhile, the pile sits awaiting export for 2 weeks and counting, an orphan, where or where is that adopted final home? To the City's credit, after a lot of badgering from the coughing and choking neighbors btw, the contractor is wetting down the soil as it's being dug up. And yes, this does reduce pollutants lifting airborne initially, but that's required anyway.

As a retired general contractor, I'd estimate for a few hundred $$$, the open chain link fencing around the entire RSPLE could have been wrapped with a fine mesh, fabric dust barrier---so cutting corners over this small of an expenditure is unacceptable.

There's another crazy aspect to this: The same neighbors have expressed their distress that the contractor is using precious drinking water, NOT recycled/irrigation supplies.

The City has access to recycled plumbing in various parts of town, and it costs about 1/2 of what drinking water does. If it had to be trucked in with tankers from a mile or 2 away, then so be it. Even with cartage it'd still be cheaper and obviously not wasteful of finite drinking supplies.

We're talking ≈ 800+ cubic yards of previously abused ground that sat exposed to the elements in violation of known State and federal environmental regulations, plus local construction ordinances for 2 weeks while city inspectors constantly visited the unprotected site.

Used by SoLag Waste Disposal for vehicle storage and maintenance from 1970--1997, the site was supposedly examined and remediated to the satisfaction of California's Department of Toxic Substance Control (DTSC).

Diving deeper, one discovers that So Lag admitted to regularly transferring household waste onsite as well. Once again in the fine print (ALWAYS read the fine print) assessment report by DTSC, they cleared it for conversion to SJC park space in 2001 "based upon the information they received."

How extensive was the soil sampling? What did the So Lag chosen vendor test for, was it anything and everything possible, or a narrowly focused investigation to expedite the transfer to the City, to be re-purposed as a future park?

Given a clean bill of health 20+ years ago is also a questionable defense by the City. Science has evolved, our ability to detect lower concentrations is much better, more refined. And fyi, both USEPA and Cal EPA have lowered enforcement trigger levels as we learn more about acute and chronic exposures, their health impacts due to more recent scientific studies by research physicians.

Due to the recent due diligence by immediate neighbors on Ramos and Los Rios, pushing and prodding the City staff for information, persistent demands have been made these past few weeks. And keep utmost in your minds, these types of large exposed sites are supposed to be closely monitored and carefully inspected by City staff.

I've been privy to their email exchanges, all that's been requested is for thorough sampling of deposits. The City has apparently hesitated in case the independent testing barfs up an enviro-hairball. If found to be unacceptable for outside party purchase, the City might have to pay a lot of ducats to have the whole shebang hauled to a toxic waste landfill. Good-bye original budget!

Turns out that respectfully petitioned, extensive analysis post-2001 HAS NOT TAKEN PLACE, i.e., widely spread spoil pile samples HAVE NOT BEEN sent to a lab to ascertain just exactly what the monolith contains. If it weren't for a few residents who live in proximity, their vigilance, alarms bells wouldn't be ringing.

That pile is seeking a home, and though reportedly offered to the RSM for their hardscape sub-base, they "changed their minds." Maybe in translation that means "damaged goods?"

Like they say, often it's what you don't know that can bite you on the butt. The City thought they had a buyer right down the block, were going to get $50/cubic yard, guesstimated 1,000 cubic yards maximum.

That $50,000 would have helped defray expenses plus short cartage distance logistics, perfect plan-----until it wasn't. No inexpensive Plan B contingency seems to be offered presently.

The bigger picture? This is what government gets when it contracts with the lowest bidder, and when it pays peanuts with taxpayer funds unfortunately it's the residents who get the monkeys---except in this case, it's the fickle finger of fate, aka "The Bird."

One has to wonder if this type of lax, under-performing inspection dynamic is systemic. How many other sites of this magnitude have flown under the compliance radar screen in San Juan Capistrano? This site is literally right down the street from City Hall, a City project for God's sake.

As to what's in that pile, where and when will it get moved, like Bob Dylan sang, "The answer is blowing in the wind."