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County hits speed bump in effort to fix Oak Creek culvert |
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Tuesday, 14 October 2008 |
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By Mike Gervais
Register Staff
10-11-2008 Inyo County is still in a state of local emergency resulting from the Oak Creek flood in July as local leaders wait for the completion of the Oak Creek culvert that will allow the creek to flow its natural course without disturbing homes.
The culvert is the last of the infrastructure repairs the county must make since Oak Creek overflowed its banks and roared into valley below, but “all of us think this is taking a little longer than we intended,” Acting Public Works Director Doug Wilson said.
Despite cooperation and help from the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, the county has run into a couple road blocks from federal agencies with interests in the Oak Creek area.
Crews from LADWP and Inyo County began work on the culvert shortly after July’s flashflood, with LADWP floating the bill for a pre-fabricated culvert structure.
The California Department of Fish and Game briefly scrutinized work on the culvert when it contacted Wilson, requesting that the county complete a permit for conducting work within the streambed.
Wilson said that issue was resolved quickly, and he was only required to present the DFG with the county’s 1610 permit that allows emergency work to be conducted by the county.
The county ran into another road block last month when the U.S. Forest Service made a number of requests regarding the culvert work, Wilson said.
The Forest Service requested that the county provide its plans for the construction and hydrological calculations to federal staff.
Wilson said the county does not have that information because it is working on an emergency basis, hoping to get the culvert installed and operating as soon as possible. “If we did the planning and the specs, we probably wouldn’t be building yet,” Wilson said.
According to Inyo County Administrative Officer Kevin Carunchio, “it is unclear, with the Forest Service communications,” if the county is being asked to quit work until it sorts through the issues with the Forest Service. “We have not received a cease and desist order,” Carunchio said, noting that Inyo County Road crews will keep working on the culvert until the Forest Service issues such an order.
“Everybody is working to get this system to be able to handle water again,” and as soon as possible, he added.
The Forest Service also asked Wilson if the new culvert structure will allow fish to swim freely through it, Wilson said, noting that the DFG had no such concerns.
Carunchio said the flood wiped out all the Oak Creek fish.
Representatives from the Forest Service were invited to attend Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting to discuss the culvert conflicts, however no one took the county up on the offer.
Wilson said he would call Forest Service District Ranger Margaret Wood or Forest Supervisor Jim Upchurch “and see if we can get a better working relationship on this.”
The implication that the county would have to consult the Forest Service to perform maintenance on the road has the Board of Supervisors on edge, and even considering abandoning the road if it can’t reach an agreement with the federal agency on maintenance issues.
Wilson explained that the Forest Service and county entered into an easement agreement in 1958 that allows the county access to maintain Oak Creek Road.
He added the culvert reconstruction is considered maintenance, even if it is being done on an emergency basis, without the benefit of standard planning.
“The board always has the ability to abandon the road and give it back to the Forest Service,” said Fourth District Supervisor Jim Bilyeu.
Wilson agreed, saying that if the county will be required to consult the Forest Service “for everything, we could give it back.”
Without any input from the Forest Service, the board decided county road workers should continue reconstruction of the Culvert until the Forest Service issues a cease and desist order.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 25 November 2008 )
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