A federal judge has hit the cities of Sunnyvale and Mountain View with hefty penalties after years of stormwater discharges polluted local creeks, racking up more than a thousand violations of the Clean Water Act. The court found repeated bacterial contamination in Stevens Creek and Calabazas Creek that exceeded state water-quality limits, and ordered each city to pay $1,178,400 in civil penalties.
San Francisco Baykeeper, which sued the cities in February 2020, said in a press release that the court held the municipalities responsible for 1,208 Clean Water Act violations. The group said its sampling detected E. coli readings up to 50 times legal limits, with evidence pointing to human fecal contamination. According to Baykeeper, the case finally went to trial in June 2025 after the cities repeatedly sought dismissal, and the ruling marks what the group called a long-overdue step toward better protections for local creeks and the Bay.
Read MoreSource: Hoodline