After Massive Sewage Spill In Santa Monica Bay, LA To Pay $20M To Settle Criminal Probe

LOS ANGELES, CA — The city will pay at least $20 million to fix issues at the Hyperion Water Reclamation Plant and complete related environmental projects following a federal criminal investigation that began after issues at the plant led to the discharge of 12.5 million gallons of raw sewage into Santa Monica Bay, prosecutors announced Tuesday.

The plant, located adjacent to Dockweiler State Beach, treats and disposes of wastewater for LA, Beverly Hills, Culver City, El Segundo, Santa Monica, San Fernando and West Hollywood, servicing an area that includes more than 4 million people.

In July 2021, the plant's debris filtering mechanism failed, causing raw sewage to flood the area. Some 12.5 million gallons of untreated wastewater was discharged through an outlet located 1 mile west-southwest of the plant in the bay — which is only permitted to discharge chlorine-treated water in emergency situations, according to government documents.

Subsequent testing conducted around another outlet, located 5 miles west-southwest of the plant, showed an excessive level of total coliform bacteria, E. coli, and Enterococcus, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

Prosecutors claimed the spill “resulted from the city of Los Angeles’ failure to adequately staff Hyperion, train its employees at Hyperion and/or maintain Hyperion’s equipment,” though the settlement notes that the city does not concede these points, the Los Angeles Times reported.

As part of the settlement announced Monday, the federal prosecutors will not pursue any potential violations of the Clean Water Act and other federal laws.

“This agreement requires the city to take concrete steps and commit substantial funds to improving the Hyperion facility and thereby prevent a disaster like this from reoccurring. Our office is committed to protecting our environment and we will continue to use our federal authority to ensure the safe use of our natural resources for future generations," U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said in a statement.

The settlement calls for the city to spend no less than $20 million to complete projects at the plant, which the city previously agreed to perform in an order issued by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The work includes improvements on sensors, upgrading antiquated alarms, training workers and other improvements, prosecutors said.

The city will also hire a third-party auditor to annually review the Hyperion's operations to determine if it's in compliance with the agreement and the Clean Water Act.

Officials will also perform a one-year community outreach service project that will include meetings with government officials and community members, developing an improved emergency communications plan and coordinating educational outreach with residents and schools.

The cost of the additional monitoring, rapid bacteria testing study, and the community outreach project is estimated to be no less than $800,000, according to the agreement.