Group Claims UC, Santa Cruz violated Clean Water Act

Residents fighting plans for UC Santa Cruz to grow from 15,000 to 21,000 students are now accusing the campus and its building contractor of violating the federal Clean Water Act.

According to a report in the Santa Cruz Sentinel, members of the Coalition for Limiting University Expansion (CLUE) say water samples they collected in December prove that runoff polluted with sediment and phosphorus exceed allowable limits at two major construction sites.

CLUE mailed letters Tuesday to UCSC Chancellor Denice Denton, the UC Board of Regents, UC President Robert Dynes and Devcon Construction, giving them notice of intent to sue, as required by the Clean Water Act. Devcon, based in Milpitas, is building the 86,000-sq-ft humanities complex and the 81,600-sq-ft expansion of McHenry Library.

Storm water from the campus, which sits atop a hill overlooking Monterey Bay, flows into Wilder Creek, Moore Creek, Jordan Gulch and the San Lorenzo River.

"We hope this lawsuit will be a wake-up call to the chancellor and UC administration, resulting in an immediate halt to current illegal and destructive practices," said Don Stevens, a UCSC alumnus and co-founder of CLUE.

The alleged violations carry some irony in that UCSC has a reputation of being environmentally conscious. The campus is home to a well-regarded department of environmental sciences and its students are leaders in the sustainability movement.

UCSC spokeswoman Liz Irwin said the notice had not yet arrived Wednesday. Officials at Devcon did not have any comment.

Source: SCS