OPEN LETTER TO MISSION VIEJO MAYOR FRANK URY

UPDATE: Response Received From the City
I just received a response from Jerry Hill, Public Services Operations Manager for the City of Mission Viejo. He says:

"We can absolutely help by once again turning off the recycled irrigation on city owned landscapes.
We will begin turning of our systems today and will keep the recycled irrigation water off until Sunday night / Monday morning.
We have been in communications with SMWD and will continue to encourage resolution of the Oso Reservoir anaerobic situation as soon as possible."

Mr. Hill, thank you for helping to ease the suffering from symptoms of this "anaerobic situation". Now, let's keep the pressure on SMWD to get the CAUSE fixed once and for all.

I just sent the letter below via email to Mayor Ury, the City Council, and the Public Works department. Feel free to copy, paste, and send it to them, too.
Mayor Ury - fury@cityofmissionviejo.org
City Council - cityadmin@cityofmissionviejo.org
Public Works - publicworks@cityofmissionviejo.org
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Dear Mayor Ury, et al:

On behalf of your constituents in northern Mission Viejo, I am asking for your help in easing our suffering from the incredibly pungent sulphur smell coming from the Upper Oso Reservoir. I am urging you to take whatever action necessary to recommend suspension of the irrigation again for as long as possible. Although the SMWD and other specialists are working to correct the problem, hundreds of Mission Viejo residents are forced to endure the malodorous side effects because the Reservoir feeds the irrigation lines that water public and median areas in northern Mission Viejo.

After last week's City Council meeting, Mission Viejo agreed to stop irrigation of the public spaces for three days in order to help ease the terrible smell that lingers throughout the northern Mission Viejo neighborhoods and it seemed to make a noticeable difference. Then the irrigation began over the weekend and the foul smell of rotten eggs and feces returned. This stench stays all night, penetrating our homes and in the morning, the smell is still there, just as pungent.

One of the aspects that I and so many of your other constituents love about living in Mission Viejo, one of the safest cities in the United States, is that we can enjoy our neighborhoods and the mild climate we are so fortunate to have here. Families can leave windows and screen doors open in the evenings for fresh breezes and overnight instead of eating up electricity with A/C units running all night. People could enjoy walking and jogging through their neighborhoods in the mornings or the evenings. But with this terrible rotten egg smell not only lingering outside, but suffocating us in our homes, we cannot enjoy any of these cherished aspects of Mission Viejo life.

If you are in doubt about just how acrid this smell is or simply have not had the opportunity to personally experience what whole neighborhoods must suffer through every night and every morning for the past two+ weeks, I strongly encourage you to drive through the Pinecrest area (Marguerite and Santa Margarita Pkwy) between 10pm and 9am. You only need to drive through with your windows down to get a sense for what many neighborhoods full of people are living with inside their own homes because of this issue.

Feel free to also visit my blog post about this issue and read the 160+ comments left by Mission Viejo residents who are dealing with this issue on a daily basis. The blog post URL is http://finkythekid.blogspot.com/2009/10/smell-that-ensnared-mission-viejo.html

Again, I urge you to PLEASE help your fellow Mission Viejo residents by whatever means necessary while SMWD continues to resolve the algae issue. Any further pressure you can apply to SMWD to continue making the resolution of this issue a priority is also greatly appreciated. Thank you for your time and assistance.

Best Regards,

Ryan Fink
Concerned Mission Viejo Resident

Stench Rally at Mission Viejo City Hall! (Mission Viejo STILL Stinks!)

ATTENTION ALL:

There will be a rally at the Mission Viejo City Hall on THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12th at 4pm to demonstrate to our elected officials how badly we need their attention and assistance in resolving this issue. Tell your friends! Tell your neighbors! The more people that show up, the more they will understand this isn't just five or six people "complaining" about a pesky smell.

City Hall is located at:
200 Civic Center
Mission Viejo, CA 92691
(across from the Library)

While I would really like to be there, my work schedule isn't going to permit me. But I strongly urge EVERYONE reading this to attend, if possible. It obviously doesn't stink down i nthat part of Mission Viejo, so at least take the opportunity to breathe some "fresh air"!

And a big thanks to the Anonymous poster who first proposed this rally. They can ignore emails, but they can't ignore bodies!

Mission Viejo - still smells!

Well, it still stinks in Mission Viejo and in a 3-5 mile radius around the Upper Oso Reservoir. The City of Mission Viejo says they have stopped the common area sprinklers that are fed from the Reservoir, which seems to have eased a little bit of the Stench, but it's still wafting heavily in the evenings and mornings.

KTLA was out Tuesday night covering the story and stopped by to interview a few locals, including myself:
http://www.ktla.com/videobeta/watch/?watch=a38197e5-23a8-4982-bab5-67e512d78ec3&src=front

I recognize that action is bein gtaken, but there are still soe questiosn left unanswered. Namely, how can SMWD continue to insist the fumes are "not harmful" to humans when they have not yet publiclly identified what the gas creating the Stench is. They've taken readings and determined - SOMEHOW - that there's no presence of hydrogen sulfide coming from the Reservoir. Funny, b/c there's definitely a strong sulfur component to the Stench.

Seems odd to tell people the gas is "harmless' when you haven't been able to positively identify what the gas is, right?

The Smell That Ensnared MIssion Viejo Continued (PART III)

UPDATE 2 : City of Mission Viejo posted video of the City Council Meeting last night. Skip to 58:00 into it to bypass the Closed Session. John Schatz, SMWD General Manager speaks shortly after they begin the public comments.
http://missionviejo.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=4&clip_id=398

UPDATE 1 : There's a new article on the Register website
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/oxygen-water-ferons-2634663-lake-reservoir

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Yes, the smell continues in Mission Viejo for yet another day.

Just wanted to post a big "THANK YOU" to everyone here who has helped make their voices heard about the STENCH that continues to haunt our neighborhood.

Not just here, but in places that really count like calling newsrooms, emailing reporters, contacting the SMWD and City of Mission Viejo, etc. It's unfortunate that the Stench still persists, but I feel like there is progress being made now that our voices are being heard.

Just curious, was anyone able to attend the MV City Council meeting last night? Would like to hear from anyone who did.

Although I cannot access the site from work, I do get updates from the City of Mission Viejo site (linked to in my Part II post) and I saw this message from a "caring soul" (I've edited it for content):

"Wow. What a bunch of hysterical SoCal pXXXXs--all of them with their little panties in a knot because a natural process in a lake nearby has resulted in an odor for a couple of days. I really love the woman who plays the "I'M PREGNANT!" card immediately. So? You're pregnant. Biology works again! Ease up, dipXXX, your precious little baby is fine."

Gee, thanks for the thougtful words from someone who is OBVIOUSLY not affected by this smell. Now, go back to your bridge underpass, troll. If I could access this page on the Mission Viejo City's site, I'd post a response to his dumbass.

The Smell That Ensnared Mission Viejo PART II

UPDATE #2 : As I posted in the comments in my original
post, there's a Mission Viejo City Council Meeting TONIGHT at 6pm at the civic center (where the Library is). Should we make our presence known? Just a thought...

UPDATE : 6:13pm - Nope, it came back. BARF!!

Halloween has come and gone, but in Saddleback, The Stench still lingers!

Thanks for all the feedback in the previous post below. It's good to know I'm not alone and crazy and that so many other people are making calls and sending emails to the City, SMWD, and news outlets to help spread the word about what is going on. It's amazing that SMWD and Mission Viejo had scant mentions of this stinky phenomenon until days after it had become incredibly noticeable (that's putting it nicely.)

Thanks in no short part to people who've commented here, it looks like there's not at least a litte bit of info on the Web about this, though it seems there's a few different stories out there. One rumor includes a broken sewer pipe causing the algae bloom.

Posts on The Stench of '09:
City of Mission Viejo (leave comments!): http://tinyurl/ykaz739
OC Register:
http://sciencedude.freedomblogging.com/2009/11/01/algae-bloom-causes-bad-smell-in-mission-viejo-area/66177/

Keep making those calls and sending emails on Monday.

And, let's be sure to remind any elected officials that Tuesday is election day. I know there aren't any huge races in MV (what about RSM?), but perhaps it'll at least remind them we are people, too. And we vote.

Uh oh, sundown. CLOSE YOUR DOORS AND WINDOWS!!