MEETING TARGETS WATER POLLUTION IN ARROYO SIMI; PLAN CONSOLIDATES REGULATIONS.

Byline: Sylvia L. Oliande Staff Writer

As part of a nationwide effort against polluting local waterways, the city will hold a town hall meeting to unveil a new ordinance that it hopes will help keep the Arroyo Simi clean.

City officials said not only should Simi Valley residents be concerned about polluting the waterway in their own back yard, they they also must think about the arroyo as it goes downstream toward the ocean.

``During heavy storms the Arroyo Simi can reach all the way out to Calleguas Creek and Mugu Lagoon,'' said Anne Schubert, deputy director source control for the city. ``It's important that the water quality from here is as good as we can so we don't impact the estuary.''

The objective of Wednesday's meeting is to gather input from the business and residential community on the proposed new city ordinance before it is sent to the City Council on July 19.

The Stormwater Quality Management Ordinance's goal is to consolidate all the state and federal regulations against illegal dumping into the waterways under one city law.

``The regulations are scattered now and it's very difficult for people to search for them all, let alone get it together and find out what they need to comply with,'' Schubert said.

The ordinance is federally mandated, and cities across the county are expected to devise their own.

Ventura County passed its own ordinance in 1997, but officials said they have not seen a marked difference in enforcement.

Vicki Musgrove, manager of the county's stormwater program, said the ordinance provides a way to crack down on polluters because it clearly spells out the county's authority to do so.

Largely, she said, the program has been used to educate people.

``When we find problems, people who are discharging pollutants,'' Musgrove said, ``we notify them, talk to them and let them know what's going on and give them a chance to stop it immediately. We haven't gone out and beat them over the head with fines. For the most part, people are more than willing to stop what they're doing once they realize they're polluting.''

Simi Valley's proposed ordinance addresses two main kinds of illegal dumping, illicit discharge and stormwater contamination with pollution.

Officials said illicit discharge involves dumping any substance other than stormwater, unless there is an exemption for the material, into the stormwater system.

Contamination of stormwater involves pollution from industrial facilities and construction sites, as well as run-off from residential areas, into the system.

Schubert said that unlike the sewage system, which is treated before it hits the Arroyo Simi, anything dumped in the storm drain system goes directly into the waterway.

The ordinance also deals with the ability of city officials to investigate the source or potential for pollution, as well as mete out punishment to businesses or individuals who do not comply.

AT A GLANCE

Town hall meeting to discuss the city's new Stormwater Quality Management Ordinance

7 p.m. Wednesday in the City Council chambers, 2929 Tapo Canyon Road.

Copies of the proposed ordinance will be available at the meeting, or by calling [phone].

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BOX: AT A GLANCE (See text)