SAN DIEGO — There were no colorful fireworks over San Diego Bay on New Year’s Eve when 2009 came to a close. San Diego’s annual New Year’s Eve fireworks show was canceled — and the reason was a legal challenge raised by an environmental law group.

Photo by: yachtphotography.com Show Shut Down – Fireworks above San Diego Bay are in danger of being a distant memory, as the city of San Diego and the Port of San Diego discuss who is responsible for obtaining a federal permit for on-the-water displays following a threatened lawsuit.

Now, the issue threatens to cancel the annual Fourth of July fireworks show, and all future fireworks displays over San Diego Bay.

According to New Year’s Eve fireworks show organizers, the Coastal Environmental Rights Foundation of Encinitas — which bills itself as “a nonprofit environmental organization founded by surfers at Coast Law Group LLP” — threatened to sue if the show’s organizers did not obtain a federal permit for their on-the-water display. The permit, they argued, is required under the Clean Water Act and would allow the show to proceed with conditions that protect area water quality.

According to its Web site, the Coastal Environmental Rights Foundation “was established to aggressively advocate, including through litigation, for the protection and enhancement of coastal natural resources and the quality of life for coastal residents.”

As a result of the group’s plan to target on-the-water fireworks show organizers, “Fireworks over San Diego Bay may be a thing of the past,” said Sharon Cloward, president of the San Diego Port Tenants Association, who has helped fund the New Year’s Eve show for the past four years. “I think that we want to see fireworks continuing, but I just do not know in what format.”

Representatives of the San Diego Port Tenants Association, the Port of San Diego and local businesses have joined together to work on resolving the issue.

The show’s cancellation came after two months of deliberation among the association, city and port officials. One major hurdle has been answering the question of who is responsible for obtaining the permit. The Port of San Diego? The city of San Diego?

“After examining it, and I mean (at) lots of meetings, it comes down to what’s in a permit,” Cloward said. “There is a lot of liability — and there are a lot of unknown answers.”

Cloward explained that they are awaiting findings from an ongoing study of the effects of fireworks on water quality, which is set to be completed in three years. The report was prompted by a lawsuit mounted by San Diego Coastkeeper against SeaWorld in 2006, seeking an end to its tradition of evening fireworks over Mission Bay. The visitor attraction now operates its nightly fireworks show under a permit obtained through the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board. The park continually monitors water quality in Mission Bay to check for any possible contaminants from fireworks.

Replacing San Diego Bay fireworks shows with laser light shows over the bay had been suggested as an alternative to fireworks, but the idea was quickly ruled out because of San Diego Bay’s proximity to San Diego International Airport and strict Federal Aviation Administration rules about laser interference with aircraft.

“We can’t do a laser light show over our bay, but it may work in other areas,” Cloward said.

The Port of San Diego, the San Diego Port Tenants Association and the city of San Diego plan to continue discussions to resolve the issue of who will — and who should — be the permittee for on-the-water fireworks shows.

The New Year’s Eve Fireworks Show was originally sponsored by the city of San Diego. However, five years ago, due to budget constraints, the city asked individuals and businesses on the tidelands to fund the event.

The San Diego Port Tenants Association has helped fund the New Year’s Eve display since 2005, but it is not responsible for the annual Fourth of July fireworks show on the bay, which is produced through the Port of San Diego.