A nine-year battle to rid Rincon Point of septic tanks in the hopes of improving ocean water quality is nearing an end.

Homeowners in the posh beachside community overlooking a world-famous surfing point have been voting whether to replace the tanks with sewer service at a cost of about $88,000 per home. Mailed to residents in August, the ballots will be counted publicly Tuesday.

If approved, 72 homes and an empty parcel on the Ventura County side of the Rincon will be annexed to the Carpinteria Sanitary District, which operates the sewer lines. The conversion project also would involve connecting homes on aging septic tanks in the Sandyland Cove, Sand Point Road and Padaro Lane communities, all in southern Santa Barbara County.

Residents, surfers and environmentalists say they are confident that the switch will be approved, but whether the project will go forward smoothly remains a question.

Controversy, procedural delays and lawsuits have dogged the proposal since 1998, when DNA tests first found fecal bacteria in Rincon waters.

"We have our antennae up. There is always a fight," said Hillary Hauser, an environmental activist working on the issue. "The Rincon homeowners working on this want this. The opposition is small but very, very vocal."

'Septic tanks less polluting'

Linda Ulvaeus is one of the opponents. She believes that septic tanks are less of a threat to the ocean than sewer lines that could fail and dump raw sewage into the water.

"My research shows the worst septic tank is less polluting than the best sewer," said Ulvaeus, who has lived on the Rincon since 1972. "The fact that this is being touted as a way to clean the ocean is a big lie. It is about development — people who want to build bedrooms and build out."

Ulvaeus and other opponents who have filed lawsuits and protests during the project's planning say the water at Rincon Beach is clean. Several wrote in response to the project's environmental impact report, finalized in 2006, saying no human waste bacteria has been detected or directly linked to septic tanks.

But state and federal regulators say otherwise. Removing septic tanks from the Rincon has been part of a state plan to improve beaches since 2000.

The community is built on soft, porous soil, and homes are densely packed on lots usually smaller than a quarter of an acre. The groundwater table is within five feet of the surface in some areas, upping the risk of leaking contamination during heavy rains and high tide, according to a 2005 report by the state's Central Coast Regional Water Quality Board.

In September, the board awarded $2.1 million to the project for construction costs. The money would reduce the cost of hookup for homeowners by about 25 percent, said Craig Murray, general manager of the sanitary district.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency also supports the project.

Draw for surfers

The waters off Rincon, dubbed the "Queen of the Coast" for its majestic surfing conditions, are a major draw for surfers worldwide.

Shaun Thomson, a South African surfer, moved to Ventura to be near the spot. The waves form perfectly at the point and keep their shape for long stretches.

"A Rincon wave feels like it was made by God's machine," Thomson said. "Tens of thousands of surfers surf out at Rincon every year. It's a national treasure.

"It's absolutely unfathomable to me that any right-minded person can object to this project. People are getting sick every single year."