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Community Corner

2 Million Gallons of Water Flowing From Imperial Beach Hotel Site is Clean, Professionals Say

The water is regularly monitored and recent tests found the water is clean.

As construction progresses on Imperial Beach’s new beachside hotel, a steady stream of water can be seen flowing from the construction area.

Quickly becoming a favorite amongst children in the area, and place of concern for some locals frequently in the water, professionals and project managers assure the water discharge is clean and safe.

A little over 2 million gallons of ground water is being pumped from the hotel site a day, but Allison Rolfe, director of planning with Pacifica Companies, said it is closely monitored.

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“The water is tested every two weeks to ensure we are meeting the standards per our current permit with the California Regional Water Quality Control Board,” she said.

So, why so much liquid?

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“Basically, we are building [in] a giant bathtub,” said Eric Solem, project manager.  

Near the ocean – the hotel site is only 40 feet away – underground water tables are much closer to the surface. This can make construction a wet business, particularly for projects like the hotel’s future underground parking garage. To keep things dry, Lusardi Construction has installed 12 wells on the perimeter of the location.

“Those wells help lower the water table to allow underground construction,” said Lance Reiman, project superintendent.

Pumping 24 hours a day, seven days a week, the wells pull water from the zone and feed it to connecting pipes. Pipes then transport water through a filtration system.

“Then it’s sent back to the ocean where it came from,” he said.

Paloma Aguirre, a Coastal Program Manager with WiLDCOAST, an environmental protection group, believes "this project was thoroughly studied before being approved by the council.”

Correction: The original version of this article stated that WiLDCOAST conducted tests of the water leaving the hotel site. WiLDCOAST does not conduct water tests.

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