I just read in my local paper today that the beaches in Huntington beach had to be closed because of high bacteria count caused by our local sewage processing plant leaking stuff into the oceans this weekend, probably y2k related. They call this a victory over y2k I think it sucks. Our environment is being trashed. I woonder how many other environmental things are being covered up by the govt and media that is y2k related. Maybe radiation releases at shut down nuke plants, Like NC and Oak ridge and Japan, or maybe it's Hazmat Hazards like up in Oregon. The cost of y2k is growing not just because of the growing environmental screwups this computer bug is now causing but because of a Govt/Corp media apparatice in place that doesnt care about protecting the safety of the public in order to protect their Spin on things. If the world was experiencing major y2k chem or nuke meltdowns can we trust the media to keep us properly informed as to what safety precautions to take. I dont know if we can trust them anymore, that is why forums like this maybe the only early warning we will get if things start going south. We have to watch out for each other, as it is said we dwell safely by our nieghbor. We are not out of the y2k woods yet. stay vigilent.

-- y2k aware mike (y2k aware mike @ conservation . com), January 05, 2000

Answers

"I just read in my local paper today that the beaches in Huntington beach had to be closed because of high bacteria count caused by our local sewage processing plant leaking stuff into the oceans this weekend, probably y2k related."

Um, is the "probably y2k related" simply your guess or was it in the article? Just asking since people have had a habit of proclaiming stuff y2k related when the articles they reference don't mention it, or it's abundantly clear whatever problem it is COULDN'T be y2k- related (The Indian power shortage story, "Rome in Chaos" etc.)

Also, your mention of Huntington Beach caused me to remember a feature on the nightly news (I believe NBC) about sewage pollution problems at Southern California Beaches..often with closures.

I did some quick web searches and found that Huntington Beach was closed for TWO MONTHS this summer due to high bacteria levels from sewage.

I found surfer messages using Deja.com describing Huntington Beach as "Poo Poo Beach" "Bowel Movement Beach" etc. This was in September.

Quickly found the "Huntington Beach News" on-line, updated as of 1/4, no mention of a closure, and had stories/pics with the beach open over the past weekend, but uncrowded because the weather was bad.

LA Times turned up NOTHING on a Huntington Beach closure, and in terms of beach closures I found that Corona Del Mar was closed because of a 1,500 gallon sewage spill.

http://www.latimes.com/communities/news/newport_beach_metro/20000104/t dp0004354.html

"The sewage leak occurred near Avocado Avenue and Waterfront Drive in Corona del Mar. A half-mile stretch of pipeline cracked because of tree roots that blocked the passageway, authorities said."

Did the embedded chips in the trees fail or something? :-)

"Larry Honeybourne, director of the county's health agency, said there are between 20 to 40 sewage spills every year in Orange County. Eventually, the contaminated water will likely be washed into the ocean by the outgoing tide."

Odd how there were a lot of sewage spills before Y2K, don't you think?

Finally, did find a reference to a sewage spill in a Y2K article on the LA Times site: http://www.latimes.com/editions/ventura/vcnews/20000104/t000000941.htm l

"Doug Beach of the Ventura County Environmental Health Division said sewage plants, water treatment facilities and companies with chemical stockpiles emerged unbitten by Y2K bugs. The only notable event was a 50-gallon sewage spill in Fillmore over the weekend, which resulted from a clogged pipe, not a computer error, according to officials"

There was an article about 4 local beaches with pollution advisories on 12/31 in the LA Times:

http://www.latimes.com/editions/ventura/vcnews/19991231/t000119515.htm l

. "People are urged to keep out of the water at Rincon Beach, near the flagpole; Emma Wood State Beach, near the storm drain; and Oxnard's Hobie Beach and Channel Islands Harbor Beach Park. Tests show excessive amounts of disease-causing bacteria have caused water at those locations to fail minimum health standards, according to tests taken this week by the county Environmental Health Division."

"Since the county began weekly ocean water quality testing in October 1998, unsafe levels of bacteria have led to warning signs posted at beaches 283 times, according to data compiled by county officials" So somehow all of that that mutated into a closure of Huntington Beach due to a Y2K glitch in your local paper? I'd cancel my subscription :-)

All those pollution problems sound pretty awful...and something needs to be done about that crap (literally and figuratively)...I know that we don't have nearly the same problems here on the East Coast, in general...at least in my area.

But it's been pretty bad long before Y2K.

-- John H Krempasky (johnk@dmv.com), January 05, 2000.

John you are thick. Our country is in deep trouble both by y2k and the abusive of power. You are blind to it. Y2k is contaminating our envirnoment. They wont let any real news out about y2k problems because they have made it a policy to cover up. Just because the lights and phones work doesnt mean that other industries are as successful. they are easier to hide until someone gets hurt or killed. As in regard to HB it may or may not be y2k related but you are quick to dismiss y2k at every turn. Bad y2k stuff is happening our defense dept was blind for several days this is serious stuff. We are very blessed that we did not get attacked those days. We still might have impaired defense readiness that could leave us open for attack from unfriendly nations. Or our allies might suffer one and we would not be able to come to their aid. Watch the stock market the next couple of days it is begining to bounce

-- y2k aware mike (y2k aware mike @ conservation . com), January 05, 2000.

Calm down there, Mike. I'm from Orange County as well, which has gone through bankruptcy, a drastic scaling back of social services and an increase in the amount of people who think solely negative thoughts about the government and wish to contribute nothing to it. Given that all this is the case, I'm frankly surprised things work as they do!

And as the other fellow reported, we've already *had* those sewage spills before just this past year. I for one would much rather focus on those officials who consistently block efforts to intensify proper sewage control work and cracking down on polluters despite the hard evidence otherwise rather than immediately wingdinging off into 'it's all Y2K and we gonna die' land.

-- Ned Raggett (ned@kuci.org), January 05, 2000.

I'm astonished that people tolerate 283 beach closures over two years in ONE county. That's pathetic.

I'm not real familiar with California but local government has to be a disaster there......and solving sewage problems isn't laser brain surgery...

The Potomac and Delaware Rivers used to be total cesspools...I mean, in the 60s, not only were there signs warning people not even to touch the water, but the Potomac SMELLED.

Now it's clean, full of fish (great fishing right in downtown DC for a wide variety of species).

Don't know what is wrong with California.

-- John H Krempasky (johnk@dmv.com), January 05, 2000.