Chevy Chase Estates Association

by Lee Scott 4/09

In the midst of an arid landscape a stream is a rare and beautiful thing. We in Glendale live in such a place, yet our precious few streams are under threat.
The City of Glendale Municipal code provides for specific protections for “blue line streams” only. A blue line stream is a natural stream course that appears on the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) topographic map as a blue line. We propose that all streams be given the benefit of protection under the City of Glendale Municipal code.
The code states -
16.04.037 Blue-line streams-Preservation
D. Prohibitions. No grading, engineered slopes, housing construction, streets, utilities, or other man-made features shall be permitted within thirty (30) feet of the centerline of any identified blue-line stream. Grading may be allowed between thirty (30) and one hundred (100) feet from the centerline of any identified blue-line stream, provided that any riparian habitat shall be fully preserved.
Why does this code need to be changed? There are two reasons: Legal – to make the Glendale code more consistent with both state and federal laws, and, Aesthetic value – to recognize the beauty and charm of a stream so the quality of life of future generations may not suffer.
Legal –
Currently all Glendale streams fall under the jurisdiction of the Army Corps of Engineers, the State Fish and Game Dept. and the California Regional Water Quality Control Board. The protection of the streams is provided for under the Federal Clean Water Act – section 404, the Fish and Game Code - Section 1602, Title 23 of the California Code of Regulations and Chapter 5.5 of the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act. The California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Los Angeles Region has the most immediate interest in protecting local streams. Recently there have been legal conflicts over a stream in Mandeville Canyon in the city of Los Angeles. These legal problems are a direct result of inconsistencies in the laws between the City of Los Angeles and the aforementioned state and federal laws. Glendale could help avoid such legal entanglements by applying the blue line stream preservation code to all streams, thus diminishing confusion over what can and cannot be done in the vicinity of streams.
Aesthetic –
In a near desert environment such as ours a stream is as beautiful as it is rare. Every human being innately appreciates the peacefulness and serenity of a babbling brook. Poets, saints and sages have sung its praises for ages.
We Glendalians greatly value our native trees – oak, sycamore and bay. So much so that we have enacted laws, with severe penalties for those who may violate said laws, to protect and preserve these trees for the benefit and enjoyment of all Glendalians and its future generations. If a protected tree is destroyed the culprit will face fines and legal charges. However, the tree may be replaced with one or more trees and it will take many, many years for that tree to re-attain the grandeur of what was lost. But eventually the community will again be able to enjoy that tree.
On the other hand, should a stream be destroyed it is gone forever. I have compared my Chevy Chase neighborhood to the USGS map. I have found streams where there are none on the map and I have found streams on the map that no longer exist. Where are those streams? They are buried beneath asphalt and development. Those streams are gone forever, never to return, too late for any federal, state or city code to save them. As one can see, the USGS map is inaccurate and cannot be relied upon to protect our remaining streams.
If, as a city, we have agreed to vigorously protect our native trees, which, if destroyed may return; should we not protect our few remaining streams even more strongly  - a stream that once destroyed will never come back?