Photo by Justin Malvin

By Collin Peters ‘10
Features Editor

Whether walking through the senior parking lot or taking laps on Foley Field, Windward students can’t help but notice the massive hole that has been created on the southeast side of campus. Although students were used to the loud noise that came with the construction of the new buildings, no one can help but wonder what’s going on in Windward’s backyard.

The City of Santa Monica, which owns the land on the south side of Windward’s campus, is building a water remediation plant just east of Foley Field. Upon completion, the plant will pump and purify water, which will be used by homes and businesses throughout Santa Monica.

The new water filtration plant comes 14 years after Santa Monica’s water was contaminated and deemed unsafe by the city. According to Steve Kierman, Windward’s Director of Finance and Operations, a series of gas pipes, traveling below ground from San Pedro to the San Fernando Valley, leaked a considerable amount of gasoline which seeped into the soil and eventually found its way into the water supply. Because of the leakage, a large amount of water stored in wells around Santa Monica was never used because of the gasoline additive.

The city hopes that the new well will be able to pump and clean all of the water that was contaminated in 1995, but the process will be far from speedy. Kierman informed The Bridge that the construction could continue until as late as December 2010. “After seven to 10 years, the well will have cleaned and purified all of the water that was contaminated from the leakage,” he said.

Although the finished product will undoubtedly benefit the city of Santa Monica, the racket from the construction has become increasingly noticeable on campus, particularly in the Sawtelle parking lot and on the field. “It’s a little loud sometimes,” said A.J. Frank ‘10, “especially when we have football practice.”

The construction is not on Windward’s campus, and the administration has minimal input in the way it can take place. In a letter to the school, the City of Santa Monica assured Windward and the public that “project inspectors will carefully monitor the work to ensure that it is done as quickly, quietly, and safely as possible.” Kierman also noted that he is trying his best to make sure that the new plant has little impact on the daily operation of the school. “I have talks on a regular basis with (the workers) to make sure to minimize interference with the school,” he said. “We want to support them and their plant, but make sure they’re not interfering with Windward’s operations.”