Luxury Hotel Development Faces Sediment Control Violations

The North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board issued a stop-work order to a luxury hotel and housing development near Healdsburg, Calif., due to sediment releases into Foss Creek. The developer failed to correct poor storm water management practices following previous citations.

According to The San Francisco Gate, Montage Healdsburg, previously known as the Saggio Hills Development, includes a 130-room hotel resort, 70 privately-owned residences, a public park and fire station and 150 units of housing. The 258-acre site faced sediment control violations in November 2018 and failed to correct erosion control measures.

"Active construction sites that are not properly prepared to control runoff during rainfall pose a significant threat to water quality by causing exposed soil and unsecured slopes to erode and pollute waterways," North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board Executive Officer Matt St. John said in a news release.

The stop-work order requires the developer, The Robert Green Company of San Diego, to halt further discharges of sediment into waterways, conduct monitoring of waterways and report on subsequent efforts to mitigate releases of sediment from the construction site.

According to samples taken by The Water Board since December 2018, the development site continued to show damage to waterways due to insufficient protective measures to control sediment. Water quality samples taken from Foss Creek to measure water turbidity at the site significantly exceeded permit standards.