OCTA Grants $3.1 Million to 13 Cities to Keep Roadside Trash out of Waterways

The back of an Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) bus is seen in Orange County, Calif., on Aug. 21, 2020. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

The Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) has granted $3.1 million to 13 cities to improve water quality by keeping roadside trash out of waterways, officials announced last week.

The county’s approach is preventative—focusing on catching and removing litter and debris from roads before it makes its way into waterways and the ocean, according to an OCTA statement released Nov. 21.

The funds will be used to purchase or upgrade filters for catch bins and other tools.

A heavy rainstorm raises the water levels of the San Diego Creek in Irvine, Calif., on Dec. 14, 2021. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

The projects are funded by Measure M, a half-cent sales tax approved by county voters in 2006 for environmentally friendly transportation improvements. The measure is expected to generate nearly $12 billion over its 30-year lifetime, according to the Orange County Business Council website.

Five percent of the tax’s revenue goes toward environmental cleanup programs for transportation systems in Orange County cities that apply for the funding.

Mark Murphy, OCTA chairman and mayor of the City of Orange, said in the statement these projects can kill two birds with one stone—"protecting Orange County’s natural resources while improving and maintaining our transportation network.”

The largest portion of funding will go to Huntington Beach—$500,000 for a one-line trash trap that will filter storm flows and runoff—and to Anaheim, which will receive about $500,000 to install nearly 400 filters at existing storm drain catch basins throughout high-traffic areas in the city’s water system, according to the transportation authority.

An Orange County Transportation Authority bus transports passengers to Fullerton, Calif., on March 1, 2021. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

Other awardees are Laguna Hills, Stanton, Mission Viejo, Seal Beach, Fullerton, San Juan Capistrano, Orange, Costa Mesa, Westminster, Laguna Niguel, and Irvine.

On Nov. 14, the board approved a plan for Measure M projects over the next 10 years, which includes more water cleanup grants, 13 new freeway projects, and completion of the OC Streetcar construction.

Since the program’s creation in 2011, the OCTA board has approved $33 million for 212 projects, cleaning up more than 45 million gallons of trash, according to the agency’s website.

Last year, the board reported record-high revenue—$424 million—coming from the tax for the fiscal year 2021–22, a 23 percent growth from the previous year.