Dunes pollution curb sought

Commission urges board to take ‘any and all’ steps to revegetate the Oceano Dunes, even if it means temporarily closing areas to vehicles

By Bob Cuddy | bcuddy@thetribunenews.com

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The county Health Commission is urging the Board of Supervisors to take “any and all” steps within its power to revegetate and stabilize the Oceano Dunes state park — a move that could, in theory, lead to a temporary shutdown of parts of the recreational area.

The commission voted Monday night to send a letter to supervisors recommending that they take immediate steps to address the public health problem on the Nipomo Mesa created by particulate matter that blows to the mesa from the Dunes.

A study released last month by the county Air Pollution Control District documented the trajectory of the particulates — a type of pollutant shown elsewhere to cause respiratory distress, especially for the elderly, children and those with pulmonary problems.

Click image to see caption

Particulate matter from the Oceano Dunes — like that stirred up by this dirt bike rider — is blowing onto the Nipomo Mesa.

By Tribune file photo by David Middlecamp

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In a 2008 photo, senior environmental scientist Ronnie Glick walks across an area of the Oceano Dunes where straw has been punched into the sand to encourage revegetation.

By Tribune file photo by David Middlecamp

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Joetopia blog: What 'revegetating' would really mean for the Oceano Dunes
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There are as yet no epidemiological studies measuring specific health effects on those who live on the Mesa.

The study concluded that break-up by off-highway vehicles of a natural crust that forms on sand dunes, and a lack of vegetative cover in areas where OHVs are ridden, are the primary causes of high particulate air pollution being blown from the park to populated areas of the Nipomo Mesa.

Health commissioners on Monday expressed concern about the people who live on the Mesa, several of whom testified in favor of acting aggressively to curb the pollution.

“The right to breathe supersedes the right to recreate,” said one audience member.

As to the economic impact of a temporary closure of the Dunes, another person in the audience said, “I am not willing to risk my health for small business, bottom line” or “risk my life so people can have fun.”

Off-roaders in the Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area are a powerful force because of the money they bring in.

Commissioners did not specifically recommend a shutdown. Instead they advised supervisors to take action, leaving the question of what those actions would be to the supervisors.

The commission’s vote to send the letter was 6-0 with two abstentions.

Several speakers said that dune vegetation could not be brought back to life without shutting down the dunes to off-roaders, at least temporarily.

Some speakers questioned the science and results of the study and noted the lack of complete information about the effects of the wind-blown sand.

It is not clear exactly what the supervisors have the power to do, commissioners noted, because the off-riding area is under the control of state parks.

Commissioners also urged supervisors to find ways to get out the word that there is a health problem from the Dunes on the Mesa. Again, they left the mechanics of that to supervisors.

The health study has drawn considerable interest since its release. A hundred people attended an informational meeting about it in Arroyo Grande last week, and the Air Pollution Control District has scheduled a hearing March 24.

MEETING IN SLO The Air Pollution Control District will address the Oceano Dunes study at a hearing on March 24. It begins at 9 a.m. in the Board of Supervisors chambers at the County Government Center, 1055 Monterey St. in San Luis Obispo.

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