Upper Newport Bay

High levels of a chemical element that has been known to cause deformities in birds have been found in Upper Newport Bay. State water quality officials have ordered Newport Beach, the county, and several cities that sit upstream from the estuary to pay millions of dollars to fix the problem. Preliminary estimates put the cost of taking measures to prevent high levels of the chemical element selenium from leaching into Upper Newport Bay at $42 million to $137 million. The options for cleanup range from diverting groundwater runoff into the sewer system, instead of letting it flow into the bay. “We’re basically trying to develop some long-term cleanup plans to deal with selenium in the watershed area,” said Kurt Berchtold, assistant executive officer for the Regional Water Quality Control Board.

High levels of a chemical element known to cause deformities in birds have been found in Upper Newport Bay. State water quality officials have ordered Newport Beach, the county, and several cities that sit upstream from the estuary to pay millions of dollars to fix the problem. Preliminary estimates put the cost of taking measures to prevent high levels of selenium from leaching into Upper Newport Bay at $42 million to $137 million. One option for cleanup involves diverting groundwater runoff into the sewer system, instead of letting it flow into the bay. “We’re basically trying to develop some long-term cleanup plans to deal with selenium in the watershed area,” said Kurt Berchtold, assistant executive officer for the Regional Water Quality Control Board.

As discussions continue about raising funds to continue dredging of Upper Newport Bay, one resident and environmental activist has an idea he believes would help relieve some of the burden: Save Skimmer Island. Skimmer Island is a bird habitat in Upper Newport Bay near Eastbluff Drive and Jamboree Road. It was created decades ago as a bird habitat and is named for the skimmer, a small tern-like bird. But the next phase of the dredging project calls for the elimination of Skimmer Island.

With the $39-million Upper Newport Bay dredging project about one-third finished, officials are realizing they may have to scramble for more funding to get the work done. Newport Beach and Orange County leaders asked the federal government for $14 million in the 2008 fiscal year, which would be enough to finish the project. But in July, the Senate only put $4 million for the Back Bay in a water appropriations bill ? four times what the House put in its bill, and when the two are reconciled, the Senate amount will be the upper limit.

The Irvine Co. has agreed to give Newport Beach $3 million to end a local environmental group’s lawsuit over a city agreement that gives the company permission to create a new planned community in Newport Center. “It’s a very good outcome for people of Newport Beach and a great step forward,” said Bob Caustin, founder of the group Defend the Bay, which sued Newport Beach and the city council in January. Irvine Co. officials quietly agreed to the deal last month after lengthy negotiations with Defend the Bay, Caustin said.

NEWPORT BEACH — While waiting for her turn to speak Saturday, Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-California) shielded her eyes from the sun and looked over her shoulder, taking in the view. Between Fashion Island's towers to the left, homes to the right and commercial airliners soaring overhead, Upper Newport Bay was at high tide and full of life. If some politicians had their way years ago, this 750-acre watershed would look vastly different, probably with homes and baseball fields.

The Federal Aviation Administration plans to change a satellite-guided takeoff procedure for some flights from John Wayne Airport. Newport Beach residents had complained that the system was diverting noisy aircraft over the Bluffs neighborhood on the east side of Upper Newport Bay. “It’s a tiny little tweak in the procedure that we hope will eliminate noise concerns for people in the Bluffs neighborhood,” said Ian Gregor,...

"Discover Orange County" has become quite popular for its detailed take on the region, whether it's the old cottages at Crystal Cove State Park, tracking where your trash goes from the garbage can to the dump, or checking out Old Town Orange. Now comes another program. Only this time it's going to give viewers a sneak peek into the Upper Newport Bay and introduce them to all sorts of wildlife that live there — from the flora and fauna to migratory birds. Called "Upper Newport Bay," the segment will premiere at noon Sunday and again at 9 a.m. Tuesday on KOCE-TV, the PBS station that airs from Ventura to San Clemente to Palm Springs.

UPPER NEWPORT BAY — They came to make a better home for the wildlife. As a pair of ospreys tended their three new chicks up the road on Shellmaker Island, about 100 volunteers pitched in just down Bayside Drive to help remove invasive plant species from the hills that overlook the bay Saturday in an attempt to revive native plants in the area. The Roots program enlisted the help of the volunteers to remove sprawling black mustard plants that popped up after last week's rain.