Mayor's Corner
By: Mayor Joe Stapleton
Newport Beach’s picturesque beaches, harbor and Upper Newport Bay Nature Preserve are enjoyed by millions every year and provide a critical refuge for countless wildlife. Protecting and improving water quality in these areas is a top priority for the City of Newport Beach.
That’s why I am excited about an innovative clean-water project launching in February that will keep hundreds of tons of trash from entering the upper bay every year.
The Newport Bay Trash Interceptor is a sustainably powered system that collects floating trash from the San Diego Creek before it enters the Upper Newport Bay Nature Preserve, Newport Harbor and beaches.
The $5.5 million system is placed strategically about 800 feet upstream from the Upper Newport Bay Nature Preserve. The system sits on a floating platform that rises and falls with the tide. The platform holds a 14-foot wheel that spins using power from the river current or solar panels to move trash from the creek to a collection system.
Trash floating downriver is collected in four steps:
A boom system directs floating trash toward the collection system.
A spinning rake moves trash from the boom area to a conveyor belt.
Trash moves from the conveyor belt into a collection container.
When full, the container is moved by a short rail system to be transferred to a standard trash truck.
This system will capture 80 percent of the floating trash and debris from the San Diego Creek. Depending on the amount of rainfall, between 100 and 500 tons of trash reaches the Upper Newport Bay via San Diego Creek every year.
I am proud that Newport is at the forefront of innovative solutions to protect and preserve our natural beauty!
Mayor Joe Stapleton is serving his first term as Mayor of Newport Beach.
