20 • April 8 - 21, 2016 • The Log


thelog.com Wilmington oil spill affecting surrounding


March 25 to discuss the cleanup efforts and the potential liability of the responsible party. Two major themes surfaced: will the cleanup be handled properly and are any civic leaders pay- ing attention to the concerns of affect- ed boaters. Morgan E. Griffin, who keeps his


boat in Wilmington, confirmed some work is being done in the area but most boat bottoms are covered in oil. “There is still oil in the water. Yes


the port has been cleaning underneath the big docks with big pressure wash- ers [but] there’s oil on the bottoms of three-quarters of the boats,” Griffin told The Log in an email. “We haven’t had any elected officials down here at all [but] there have been two gentle- men down here from insurance. They’re trying to reach out to the peo- ple now.” Griffin said oil from the spill has


Congressional candidate Marcus Musante (far left) with shares a sign he and Wilmington boaters created in response to last month’s oil spill at the Port of Los Angeles. Musante said boaters need more political repre- sentation to ensure their interests are protected during disasters such as an oil spill.


Port of L.A.’s recreational boaters say water is still con- taminated.


By Parimal M. Rohit


WILMINGTON — Recreational boaters at the Port of Los Angeles coined a new hashtag – #WilmingtonLivesMatter – in hopes to draw attention to damage they are allegedly suffering as a result of a recent oil spill caused by a large freighter vessel. The ship allegedly responsible for


the March 13 oil spill at a berth in Wilmington is Istra Ace, a 577-foot vehicle carrier and cargo ship. Coast Guard officials determined faulty pipes to be the cause of the incident that spilled an estimated 50 gallons of heavy fuel into the water. Coast Guard and Los Angeles Fire


Department officials responded to the spill and launched a cleanup effort, but recreational boaters claim they are still reeling from the residual damage of the disaster. A few dozen recreational boaters met at Marina Café in Wilmington on


penetrated local docks. Fumes associ- ated with the spill have been circulat- ing in the air, he added. The Wilmington boater said he hopes someone would first remove oil from the docks and then clean the boats. “We need to have somebody stand up and say, ‘We’re not going to take it,’” Griffin said. “There are rules on the books that say we’re a working port. We’re functioning human beings with lungs. We need to head out there and nail this now. We have cancer causing stuff [such as benzine] in our water.” Kevin Villalobos, a 20-year veteran


diver, who cleans growth on the sides and bottoms of boats, said he has turned down jobs since the oil spill, worried about the potential health


risks of being exposed to contaminated water. “It’s scary,” Villalobos said. “I don’t want to get cancer but this is my bread and butter. I’ve been going hungry the past couple of days.” Villalobos said he observed oil sheen on the water’s surface and blotches of chemicals floating around since the March 13 oil spill. “It’s like a rainbow everywhere.


You’d think it’d go away because of the wind but it keeps on coming. I think it’s stuck in the docks,” Villalobos said. “The oil spill came and [the cleaners] put a substance on top to put all that oil to the bottom. Now you just see the sheen of substance and different stuff than oil. You see the fuel and other toxin stuff that won’t go down because it’s too heavy.” Judy Lott, a Wilmington boater who attended the March 25 meeting, said her boat is covered in oil and she could not afford to pay for the haulout and cleanup. “Come what may my boat has to be


hauled. It’s got oil on it. The bumper has oil on it. The docks have oil on them,” Lott told The Log. “[The oil spill] was the cause; we’re very meticu- lous about our boat. There are so many chemicals here. I want to find out who’s going to assist and help pay for the haulout of my boat.” Lott agreed with Griffin’s idea of cleaning the water before attending to the boats. “When you put [the boats] back into the water I want to be sure [the chemi- cals] are gone,” Lott said. Marcus Musante, a candidate for the congressional seat currently held


Avalon council discusses upcoming projects


Cabrillo Mole revitalization, fuel dock project and mooring exchange all on city’s agenda.


By Parimal M. Rohit


AVALON — Change isn’t cheap. The Avalon City Council realized as much on March 15, when its members approved changes to two revitalization projects and a plan to make harbor traffic a little more efficient. Avalon hired a diver to conduct


underwater monitoring services as part of the fuel dock upgrade, an expenditure city staff confessed was necessary but initially overlooked. The city will also spend an additional $5,500 to study community input for the Cabrillo Mole Revitalization Plan. A planned mooring exchange to allow cruise tender boats to use both sides of Float 5 could result in the city losing up to $7,392 in revenue.


Fuel Dock Project


Building an on-the-water fuel dock means someone needs to monitor the progress of underwater work. As Avalon makes progress on the rebuild of its fuel dock near the Casino a diver will inform workers whether piers and other materials supporting the new infrastructure are properly placed into the sea floor. The City Council unanimously


approved a request to add geotechni- cal services to the fuel dock project. Dennis Jaich, Avalon’s interim capi-


tal improvements director said his department requested the geotechni- cal services so a diver could be hired to ensure the fuel dock’s underwater infrastructure is secure and strong. “The fuel dock is proceeding,” Jaich told council members. “We had one setback with the asbestos demolition removal, it cost us six weeks, but we’re still on schedule now. “We may have overlooked the need for this at the beginning, that’s why it’s


coming to you now, but we feel it’s very prudent to ensure [the fuel dock] is constructed properly on the ocean floor,” Jaich continued. The fuel dock, restrooms and build-


ings are still on pace to be completed by the end of May; restaurant con- struction will be completed later as part of the project’s second phase. Jaich added the project is, to date, still within budget. Costs for fortifying the nearby seawall have not yet been determined but would not increase the budget beyond its approved 15 percent contingency.


Cabrillo Mole Revitalization Listening to the voice of the people


isn’t always free. Regional Government Services (RGS) was hired by Avalon in September 2015 to develop a Cabrillo Mole Revitalization Plan as part of the plan development called for stakehold- er outreach and input. While RGS com- pleted most of the services it was hired to perform the firm requested an addi-


tional $5,500 to reach out to even more stakeholders to, according to city staff, “ensure a comprehensive assessment of the community’s input.” Kendall Flint, a project manager


with RGS, said her firm’s goals for the Cabrillo Mole Revitalization Plan was to determine its overall viability, iden- tify revenue opportunities, engage the public for input and drive economic development through involvement of local businesses and interests. RGS developed a project specific


website (TheCabrilloMole.com) and had more than 1,700 people partici- pate in online surveys, Flint told coun- cil members. One comment RGS received from the community: possibly moving cruise ship tenders from floats to the Green Pleasure Pier. Flint said her firm wanted to flesh out this issue to deter- mine whether moving tenders from floats to the pier is worth considering. Removing pier fishing from Cabrillo


Mole was another concern raised by the community, according to Flint.


Parimal M. Rohit photo


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