California State Parks officials got off to a rocky start in pitching a project to remove Malibu’s Rindge Dam at Monday’s City Council meeting, coming under fire from city officials and residents who remain uneasy with the idea of spending upwards of $100 million to possibly help revive a trout population in the Malibu Creek. Critics argue the negatives of the project outweigh the positives, and taxpayer money should not be prioritized on such a risky undertaking by State Parks, an agency that has faced heavy scrutiny in the past year.
“The bottom line that I would say to you…is that there’s a lack of trust here,” Councilwoman Laura Rosenthal told Jamie King, a senior environmentalist with State Parks.
Proponents argued the project is necessary because the dam is obsolete and obstructing a key upstream migration point for the endangered steelhead trout fish in Malibu Creek. But State Parks, which has been mired in financial troubles since an accounting scandal last year, could face strong resistance locally. A vocal portion of Malibu residents still harbors resentment over the Malibu Lagoon restoration project, which divided the community before it was completed in May. In February, a Serra Retreat resident was controversially barred by a State Parks official from attending a technical meeting for the dam removal project.
Early estimates suggest the dam removal project could cost more than $100 million, officials with State Parks and the federal U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said Monday. But the officials have not yet identified where the money would come from.
“We would have to seek a lot of grant funding as well as scratch our heads internally to see what resources are available at the federal and state level,” King said. “We haven’t started the process of thinking where these funds might come from because you need to have a plan first.”
Hard figures will be addressed after November, King said, when the project’s environmental documents and design are finalized and released for public review.
Malibu officials expressed skepticism that the project could get off the ground.
“I can’t imagine where we’re going to get from a state that was just literally on the brink of bankruptcy last year [100] million in taxpayer dollars to pay for this,” said Councilman Lou La Monte.
Monday’s presentation mainly touched on four potential outcomes the state and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have determined to be the most feasible ways to deal with Rindge Dam. Three involve removing the dam in increments and trucking out debris, while another option leaving it intact.
Environmental documents to be released in November will contain a final recommendation as to which method is the most feasible, according to King.
La Monte predicted problems with sediment being trucked away from the site. The trucks would be making constant trips north and south on Malibu Canyon Road, either to Surfrider Beach or Calabasas for dumping, and contribute to an already congested roadway.
Others criticized a lack of scientific detail outlined in Monday’s presentation, such as hydraulic modeling of how the dam’s removal would affect the entire 109-square-mile Malibu Creek watershed.
“It bothers me that we’re doing piecemeal projects along the Malibu Creek without looking at the entire picture,” said Councilman John Sibert. “It’s very hard to support something if you don’t know whether the homework’s been done.”
Rindge Dam is located three miles upstream from the Malibu Lagoon and Surfrider Beach. Also downstream is the Serra Retreat neighborhood, where many residents fear removing the dam will unleash a flood of sediment into the nearby creek and lagoon, and possibly even take out the Pacific Coast Highway bridge above the creek.
“I certainly hope the Army Corps of Engineers proves the science. I did not see any science. I’m a former science teacher, I would love to see some science,” said Anne Payne, a resident of Serra Retreat.
King, accompanied by Army Corps engineer Marriah Abellera, cited a 20-minute presentation time limit regarding the lack of details. She said more scientific details would be revealed at a July 19 film festival at Malibu City Hall and in future community meetings planned throughout Malibu this summer. The July 19 event costs $15 for admission.
Former Mayor Pamela Conley Ulich was among several Malibuites who said the removal of the dam was the wrong priority to take on in a time of great financial uncertainty. The dam removal would create 10 additional miles of creek access for the trout, according to King. Ulich and others said the cost was not worth it.
“We’re going to spend $10 million a mile on the steelhead trout,” she said. “It’s shocking.”