IRVINE : City Wary of Bill on Water Recycling

The City Council reacted with caution this week to the Irvine Ranch Water District’s efforts to amend a state law that would allow the water district to recycle hazardous waste water.

The proposed changes to the California Water District Act come in the form of SB 1191, authored by state Sen. Marian Bergeson (R-Newport Beach).

If the bill is approved, the district might build a hazardous waste-water recycling center somewhere in Irvine.

That prospect concerned council members, who on Tuesday demanded that plans for such a center be approved by the city before any building begins. The council also agreed to meet with district officials to discuss the issue and to inform Bergeson that the city hasn’t decided whether to support or oppose the legislation.

Mayor Michael Ward said he raised the issue at Tuesday’s council meeting partly in response to questions from residents concerned with the bill.

Water district officials stressed that the legislation does not deal with any specific proposal for a waste recycling center and that no plans for such a facility have been advanced.

The bill “clarifies” and “cleans up” wording in the California Water District Act, giving the Irvine Ranch Water District the same right as the Orange County Sanitation District to recycle hazardous waste, said Peer Swan, president of the Irvine Ranch Water District.

Swan said the district might have the authority to run the recycling center even without the bill. He said the district sought the legislation to thwart possible legal challenges if it decides to build a center.

But City Atty. Joel D. Kuperberg questioned that assessment. He said the district would not be authorized to operate the center without the new legislation.

City officials also complained that they were not informed about the bill when it was introduced in March.

“When you have a (bill) that if approved could possibly--possibly--put a hazardous-materials treatment center in the city, (the council) needs to know about it,” Ward said.

City officials eventually learned about the bill on their own. They then worked with the water district and added language to the bill that would require any recycling center proposal to go through the Irvine planning process.

“We think at this point that the city is sufficiently protected,” said City Manager Paul O. Brady Jr. “We think we’ve got the protection . . . that requires the IRWD to come through the city review process.”

Several council members suggested that Irvine consider the added step of becoming the “lead agency” for a recycling center project. Such a move would give the city more authority over what is built.

Both Ward and Swan agreed that public education on the bill and the waste recycling process is crucial to reduce fears and clear up misconceptions.

“Public education here is the key,” Ward said. “We all have a quality-of-life issue here.”