Hi from Hillary

During the past few months, we have reflected back on the beginnings of Heal the Ocean and realized just how naive we were. We had set out to discover the source of Santa Barbara's ocean pollution during the first year and then we would clean it up the second year. We automatically assumed our regulatory agencies would welcome our help and that the public - which so ardently embraced the plans we announced - would jump at the chance to upgrade, improve, and change the way human waste is handled. We were confident that once we produced cost feasibility studies and scientific reports that indicated wastewater infrastructure or septic systems as a source of ocean pollution, everyone would jump at the chance to change.

Very quickly we received our wakeup call! Regulatory agencies overseeing water quality issues in the state, county and city were not very receptive to our urgings to look at septic systems and wastewater handling. Why should they? State standards were being met. Then we discovered that almost everything with a price tag is met with opposition. Achieving our goals were clearly going to take more than two years and the sailing would not be smooth.

Nevertheless, we forged ahead, chipping away at the resistance with cost feasibility studies for upgrading wastewater plants and with high-tech methods (DNA) to determine whether or not septic systems were leaching into lagoons, creeks, rivers, groundwater and oceans. We tested, sampled, rallied and spread the word.

Today, nine years later, the regulation of septic systems is most definitely in the future for the state of California, and wastewater infrastructure is being upgraded almost everywhere. This, combined with the fact that Heal the Ocean now enjoys healthy and productive working relationships with our regulatory agencies, is enabling us to continue on our path towards a cleaner ocean.

A few of our past year accomplishments are:

• - The Regional Water Quality Control Board passed a resolution commending HTO, along with other project proponents, for their work on the South Coast Beach Communities (Rincon) septic-to-sewer project.


• - The State Water Resources Control Board, which oversees all nine regional boards in the state of California and gives Clean Beaches Initiative grants, has given HTO a $333,000 to study the fate and transport of sewage once it is discharged into the ocean, in this particular case, off a beach in Montecito.


• - Santa Barbara residents have proven that they are willing to pay to change their wastewater ways by signing up for the city of Santa Barbara's Sewer Lateral Incentive Program (SLIP) to replace old, impaired laterals, and in February 2008, the city council voted to invest another $240,000 into the program.


• - In October 2007 the homeowners within the South Coast Beach Communities project, which includes Rincon, Sand Point, Sandyland and Padaro Lane, voted YES to pay the price for abandoning their septic systems and hooking into public sewer.

Again, these successes have not been without a price. Heal the Ocean has been subjected to many negative accusations and angry scrutiny this past year from those in opposition to what we fight for (specifically, the Rincon septic-to-sewer conversion). We have not allowed this to discourage us or lessen our efforts. Instead, we consider ourselves most fortunate for the continual outpour of community support, which exponentially outweighs our opposition. We cherish every kind word of encouragement that comes our way.

It is especially moving to receive these signs of support and appreciation from children in the cards, letters, pictures and donations they send in. The young students of Cold Springs School brought in a big donation collected from ticket sales to their talent show, and three months later these same students followed up with a whopping donation from a penny drive! We have pictures of a lemonade and cupcake stand accompanied with a love letter and donation, and we have a fabulous picture of the great kids of FUND (Families United for Nurturing Development) holding a big bake sale wherein "copious amounts of homemade pumpkin pies, brownies and chocolate chip cookies sold out in record time."

The photos of these youthful enterprises, held on our behalf, hang on our office walls, side by side with the youthful artwork and thank you cards we get - including one by six-year old Kayla, who made a pen and pencil drawing of a seabird dipping beneath an ocean wave into a school of little fish. These young people are our future, and every day, when we look at these pictures, artwork, cards and letters, our hearts are filled with renewed purpose. We share with you in the pages of this newsletter their wonderful industry and love.

And to all of you who have come forward with financial help, we are pleased to report to you that our Year End 2007 drive was the most successful in our history. The significance of this support is not only the tremendous gift of funds that enables us to continue with our goals, but it is your vote of confidence towards the work we promised you we would do and will continue to do for the children, and for you.

Thank you for helping.

Executive Director, Heal the Ocean