SAN DIEGO, California, October 18, 2007 (ENS) - San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders was graded a C+ for his actions to preserve water quality by an environmental group, which Thursday released its sixth annual San Diego Water Quality Report Card.

Since 2001, San Diego Coastkeeper has commissioned Strategic Community Consulting to assess each San Diego City Council member in their actions on issues related to water quality through "an objective and quantifiable" report card. The student-managed consulting firm is part of the Graduate School of International Relations and Pacific Studies at the University of California, San Diego.

In this year's assessment, Mayor Sanders received the lowest grade - all City Council members were graded A or B.

New to the report card this year is an assessment of the mayor whose position has been strengthened by the "Strong Mayor" system.

"Under the 'Strong Mayor' system, the City of San Diego Water Department is under the direct supervision of the Mayor's Office via the Director of Public Works and operates independently of the City Council. Therefore, this report assumes that the Mayor is ultimately responsible for the City Water Department's performance and his report card grade is reflective of that," Coastkeeper says in its report.

The mayor was evaluated on the city's compliance with various regulations and his positions on water quality issues.

Coastkeeper releases its Water Quality Report Card each year on the anniversary of the Clean Water Act to promote discussion on the need to maintain clean and safe water. This year, the report card marks the 35th anniversary of the federal clean water law.

The report card is based on the water quality at San Diego County beaches and the number of beach closings and advisories issued to warn people to keep out of the water if swimming would be harmful to their health.

The report shows that about one-third of San Diego County beaches were always within safe limits in 2006.

The number of beach closings and advisories at San Diego beaches numbered 714 in 2006, an increase of 32 percent over the previous year.

"The consequences of a deteriorating water and sewer infrastructure also highlight the continued need for vigilance in the stewardship of San Diego beaches," the report says.

As in 2005-06, Coastkeeper says, the current year has been "marked by continued stress in San Diego's finances and the increasingly evident need to finance and upgrade the city's infrastructure, particularly as it relates to the water and sewer systems."

The city raised water and sewer rates this year, a rate increase that was the most controversial item on the City Council agenda. City Council President Scott Peters said, "The revenue produced by those rate adjustments will be used to replace aging pipes across the City to prevent breaks and spills, which are both financially and environmentally costly. In the coming year, Council will continue to improve our water infrastructure, as well as work to conserve, protect, and augment our water supply."

This year's grades reflect the balancing act between economic realities and environmental stewardship, Coastkeeper said. In general, grades have improved from the previous year, ranging from C+ to A+, as the City Council and Mayor have been very active in pursuing the financing and capital improvement of the city's water and sewer infrastructure.

Some of the city's beach water contamination comes from south of the border. With an average altitude 300 feet higher than that of San Diego, wastewater and sewage from Tijuana, Mexico poses a problem for San Diego.

Due to the difference in altitude, much of Tijuana's raw sewage flows down through gullies and ravines such as Matadera and Goat Canyon and ultimately finds its way into the Pacific Ocean. This contamination often flows north with ocean currents and threatens water quality along the coastline of San Diego resulting in regular beach closures at Imperial Beach and Coronado.

As both San Diego and Tijuana continue to grow, the extent and amount of this contamination will pose an increasing threat to public health, Coastkeeper warns.

On November 5, San Diego will have fluoridated drinking water, which might show up as high levels of fluoride in wastewater treatment outflows, Coastkeeper says. The City's 2006 Annual Water Quality Report listed several contaminants that were above their maximum contaminant levels including fluoride, nitrate and barium.

San Diego has radioactive contaminants in its water as well, but the number of contaminants was less than in the 2005 Annual Report.

Copyright Environment News Service (ENS) 2007. All rights reserved.