Los Angeles County supervisors approved $2 million to build a system to clean oily water runoff that occurs during the rainy season when current storm drains cannot handle the excess water. Traces of oil pollution from the seeping asphalt pools on Wilshire Boulevard have been found to contaminate our ocean beaches via the storm drain system. According to Curbed LA the new system will include a “large vault with purifying equipment” where the petroleum-laced water will be treated before entering the storm drain system. Work will begin January 2012 and be completed by the spring. There will also be some new landscaping, giving our neighborly mammoths a new look.
Read more full details in the Los Angeles Times or  Curbed LA.
In a related video below, California Travel Tips takes viewers inside the back rooms of the Page Museum and La Brea Tar Pits, in case you haven’t been there for a while.
The Buzz learned today that the oil residue may NOT be directly attributed to the La Brea Tar Pits. According to today’s Curbed LA: ” “DPW is confident that the measures in place right now prevent runoff into the storm drain system.” Lee explains that the new capital investment is meant to improve on a temporary fix that was never meant to be permanent, not because the system is polluting Ballona Creek.” See the Curbed LA article for mor information.