L.A. County receives $80,000 for surrendered, abandoned vessel program

The Los Angeles Board of Supervisors approved a request from the County Sheriff’s office to accept an $80,000 grant as part of California’s Surrendered and Abandoned Vessel, or SAVE, program, Oct. 17. The grant acceptance included a 10 percent matching obligation, meaning the total allocation for next year’s budget is $88,000.

California’s Harbor and Navigations Code mandates abandoned or surrendered watercraft be removed, stored and disposed of by the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department and similar agencies. Removing and ultimately disposing of such vessels, however, is an expensive endeavor for many local jurisdictions.

Los Angeles County will receive funding from the state’s Abandoned Watercraft Abatement Fund for a 12th consecutive year.

SAVE funding will help Los Angeles County maintain its environmental sustainability and water quality goals, according to a county staff report.

“In an effort to avoid potential health and safety hazards, it is imperative to remove these vessels in and around the Marina del Rey Harbor and Santa Monica Bay waters,” county staff said in its report to supervisors. “This grant will assist … in eliminating the Marina del Rey Harbor and Santa Monica Bay waters of abandoned and submerged vessels. The [county] will also be able to assist registered owners of recreational vessels who are no longer able to pay their slip fees due to economic hardships and have expressed an interest in surrendering their vessel through the SAVE Program.”