AILING ANIMALS ENDANGERED LACK OF FUNDING MIGHT FORCE WAYSTATION TO CLOSE.

Byline: Holly Edwards Staff Writer

TUJUNGA - With donations and revenue drying up, the Wildlife Waystation lacks the money for county-ordered repairs and other expenses and may have to close permanently, its founder said Wednesday.

Martine Colette, who founded the animal rescue operation in 1975, said county officials ordered the waystation closed to the public in September because of health and safety violations. Without being able to conduct tours and fund-raising drives, she is in serious financial trouble.

``If the county doesn't allow us to start functioning soon, the waystation will be destroyed and thousands of animals will die,'' Colette said. ``I have dedicated my life to animals, and it's a personal heartache for me to know there are injured animals and I can do nothing for them.''

The closure - the second in nearly two years - was ordered because the nonprofit animal sanctuary had not met requirements to upgrade its wastewater disposal system, widened roads to allow fire truck access, or built a 700,000-gallon water storage tank for fire protection and drinking water.

The waystation is facing repair bills totaling about $5 million in addition to its $2.5 million a year in operating costs, said Colette, who caresses the tigers and wolves in her care as most pet owners would their cats and dogs.

Lari Sheehan, assistant administrative officer for the county Chief Executive Officer, said the public's health could be endangered if the rescue facility is allowed to reopen before the repairs are made.

``As long as they are taking injured animals there, we have no control,'' Sheehan said. ``And the more animals they have there, the more people they will have in an unsafe situation.''

Waystation representatives will meet with county officials today - the first such session since the mandate was issued last May. Colette said she will also ask for permission to treat injured animals while the problems are being resolved.

The 160-acre facility is home to more than 1,200 exotic animals and typically cares for about 1,000 injured native animals each month, waystation officials said.

When the facility is closed, most of the injured animals die of their injuries because there is no place else for them to be treated, Colette said.

The waystation's troubles began in April 2000, when the California Department of Fish and Game ordered it closed after inspectors found employees washing animal waste into a stream bed. They also said roughly 130 of the 200 cages were in violation of state law.

The facility reopened about six months later after the waystation upgraded the cages and removed about 50 structures that had been deemed unsafe.

At that time, the watermaster for the Los Angeles area determined that the sanctuary was not contaminating groundwater at the facility or in Little Tujunga Wash, which provides drinking water for a nearby ranch and children's home.

Though the waystation was allowed to reopen, the initial closure prompted an extensive county investigation that led officials to order upgrades to the roads and water system.

After repeatedly running afoul of county demands, Colette assembled a team of experts last year to help her through the regulatory process.

Carolyn Ingram Seitz, a consultant hired by Colette, said the waystation has been hindered by conflicting requirements imposed by the county, state and federal agencies that govern such facilities.

While the waystation wades through the bureaucratic red tape, Seitz said she believes it should be allowed to care for injured animals without bringing additional people onto the property.

``There are plans we've submitted that the county hasn't even reviewed yet,'' Seitz said. ``The county's order not to treat any injured animals reads like a punishment and smells like a punishment.''

Seitz added that the waystation's difficulties are particularly troubling since the facility's 20-year conditional-use permit to operate expires in March.

``We've applied for a new CUP, but I'm worried about going into the process with these violations dragging on,'' she said.

According to Lisa Borsha, executive director of the National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association, wildlife agencies throughout the country repeatedly confront regulatory difficulties because of the number of agencies that oversee them.

And, she said, wildlife rescuers sometimes establish adversarial relationships with neighbors or government officials.

``It's common for animal care facilities to have problems like this,'' she said. ``It's never as simple as treating an animal and releasing it. There are regulations that dictate everything you have to do.''

CAPTION(S):

3 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color) Wildlife Waystation director Martine Colette visits with Drifter.

(2 -- color) A peacock sits on a fence inside the Wildlife Waystation, where a sign gives a clue to the organization's ongoing battle with Los Angeles County authorities over health and safety issues. The waystation's operating permit is due for renewal in March.

(3) Llamas are home at the Wildlife Waystation, which has had to turn away other injured animals while shut down by the county.

David Sprague/Staff Photographer