River Musings - an LA River blog
Viewing entries posted in March 2011
Sewage spill in LA River forces Long Beach beach closures
Posted by on 23 March 2011 | 0 Comments
Heavy rains overwhelmed the sewage system in the city of Los Angeles on Sunday and allowed 250,000 gallons of waste to spill into the LA River in Studio City. Today, city officials in Long Beach closed several beaches, according to the Daily Breeze.
The Los Angeles County Bureau of Sanitation said the winter-storm rains overwhelmed the system Sunday night and caused the overflow into the river, about 39 miles upstream.
In addition to the closure of the open coastal beaches, the city health officer issued a general rain advisory for all swimming areas, including beaches and bays, due to contaminated runoff.
Sunday's storm on the first day of spring roared in like a lion with gusts up to 39 miles an hour recorded at Long Beach Airport, said Mike Pigott, a meteorologist with AccuWeather.
With skies clouding over this morning, looks like weather forecasters' predictions for more rain today, with scattered showers the rest of this week, are on the money.
LA River clean-up planned
Posted by on 21 March 2011 | 0 Comments
Earier this year, the Canadian rock band, Twin, got cited for canoeing down the LA River during a series of storms. Well, they're back, this time with a plan for a river clean-up, according to the Long Beach Post:
"True to their word, Twin has scheduled the cleanup for April 9. "Rain or shine … Meet on the NW side of the Balboa bridge North off of 101 freeway at 10 a.m.," says the Facebook event page. "We are going to work our way towards the dam and see how far we get." If you wish to contact Twin about this event, e-mail David Fort and Lesley Brown at [email protected]."
We've got more rain on the way this week so, as always, steer clear of the river during and after the storms. Dangling from a rescue copter is a rotten way to make your TV debut.
Photo/illustration via Thomas Hawk on Flickr.
Storm swells the LA River
Posted by on 21 March 2011 | 0 Comments
The LA River showed its wild side this weekend as record rainfall fell on SoCal in the final hours of winter. The LAFD reported that the river ran so high, city engineers decided to hold back water in the Sepulveda Basin. Nice photo of the cresting current at the LAFD's Flickr page.
Do we need to remind everyone to steer clear of the river when it's in this mood and mode?
Yeah, didn't think so.
This photo is from 1922, when heavy rain automatically equaled heavy flooding.
Photo: Courtesy of LAPL
Once upon a time
Posted by on 16 March 2011 | 0 Comments
Ask the average Angeleno where this vintage photo was shot and they'd be hard-pressed to identify it as the Los Angeles River. Where's the concrete? And what's with all the trees and water? Yet that's how our river once looked -- a meandering current that ran from the mountains to the sea. Most years, it was a good neighbor, providing water and recreation and respite. But every decade or so, during severe rains, the river would flood and turn into a monster. For more about the epic floods that led the Army Corps of Engineers to bury the LA River beneath tons of concrete, check out the history section of the web site.
(Photo: Courtesy of LA Public Library)
LA River in the news
Posted by on 16 March 2011 | 0 Comments
From a rescue to a tsunami warning to the arrest of a crew of rogue canoers, it's been a busy few weeks on our favorite river...
The force of the tsunami reached -- albeit gently -- the mouth of the LA River in Long Beach. Here's the tsumani warning, via the LA Times, and a bit of video of the quake-altered current, from the river blogger, LA Creek Freak.
In case you missed it, members of a Canadian rock band took to the river during a rain storm (not exactly a good idea) last month and were promptly arrested for tresspassing. Via Yahoo news.
Turns out LA County is responsible for the polluted runoff that runs through both the LA and San Gabriel rivers and into the Pacific. The story from the LA Times. and a copy of the ruling here.
While we're on the subject of pollution, city trash boats in Long Beach pick up 93 tons of garbage each month from Queensway Bay, most of which comes from the LA River.
In good news, the LA City Council unanimously adopted a bike plan, 1,680 miles of interconnected paths, including new routes along the LA River. Via LAist.
Speaking of which, the city broke ground on the West Valley River Bike Path, LA Streets Blog reports.
Two new charter schools to be located in Taylor Yard have been approved by the board of the LAUSD.
Some beautiful sights along the LA River in Sherman Oaks, via the local Patch site.
Here comes the LARCC
Posted by Veronique on 14 March 2011 | 0 Comments
What's the LARCC? It's the Los Angeles River Revitalization Corporation, a somewhat formal name for a group of LA River lovers who have joined together to help promote, protect and reclaim the river that runs through our fair city. The LARCC is a non-profit corporation formed in 2009 to help guide the LA River Revitalization Master Plan to fruition. A diverse group of Angelenos, the board members have a passion for the LA River that lets them see beyond the steep cement walls of a 52-mile drainage system to the real and vibrant river that waits within.
Here's a photo from the board's inaugural board meeting last year, along with many key city staffers who helped give birth to the group. Check out the list of bios of the members of the LARCC board (yes, that's actress Daphne Zuniga front and center) and some of the ideas on the agenda.This website is the public face and ongoing progress report of the LARCC and its efforts. It's also a bit of a love letter to the LA River, and to all fellow river enthusiasts. For policy wonks, there's board's meeting schedule. For activists, a way to get involved. There's river history, a number of detailed guides, info about LA River water quality and a photo gallery of the river's past, present, and potential future.
And this blog? We'll update regularly with river news, events, happenings and stories. We 'd love to hear from you, both in the comments (play nice) and via email. Send us your river pix, stories, questions, comments, wish lists, thoughts and ideas. You can also subscribe to our monthly newsletter, Current Affairs.
See you on the river!
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