Fall 2007 California Runoff Rundown Newsletter

8/3/2019 Fall 2007 California Runoff Rundown Newsletter

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Commission about the plans.He says a $450,000 project with

the colorful name WetCAT, for

Wetland Capture and Treatment in the nearby city of Laguna Nigueluses plants to remove pollutantsand is a better and more naturalway to improve water quality.

The engineering solution,Gardner said of the planned projectat Poche Beach, is sterilize it.Putting a pipe in the beach anddumping urban runoff is stupid.

Overwatering by residents is thereal problem behind ocean waterpollution, he added, because that

A N E W S L E T T E R O F T H E W A T E R E D U C A T I O N F O U N D A T I O N

CONTINUEDONPAGE 5

Fall 2007

BYRYANMCCARTHY

A

n inflatable rubber dam,ultraviolet light bulbs andfiltration tanks are planned

as part of a $2.2 million project toimprove water quality at a popularSouthern California beach regularlylisted as among the most bacteria-rich in the state.

Perpetually problematic, is howa California environmental grouphas described Poche Beach inOrange County in the city of SanClemente.

That description by Heal the Bay,and frequent postings at the beachabout elevated bacteria levels that

exceeded state standards, however,

didnt speed review of the PocheBeach project designed to treatwater from a creek that runs into

the Pacific Ocean.Weve been trying to get this

constructed since the original grantof 2002, said engineer SoniaNasser, project manager for OrangeCounty. The Orange County Boardof Supervisors awarded a contract inJuly to build the project after theCalifornia Coastal Commissionapproved it.

Orange County resident RichardGardner, an engineer who alsoserves as a director of a local water

district, questioned the Coastal

In This IssueCentral Valley Ag Waiver

Program Spurs Praise,

Criticism and Questions ...... 3

Officials Aim to Limit Tahoe

Fire Impacts ....................... 9

Nonpoint Source News ...... 10

Urban Runoff News............ 14

TMDL Roundup ................. 15

Days at the Beach:What is the Qualityof Ocean Water in California?

Fall 2007


2/16

Editors

Rita Schmidt SudmanSue McClurg

WriterRyan McCarthy

Editorial Assistance

Robin Richie

PhotosElisha Allan, University of

New Hampshire

California State ParksCounty of Orange Public Works

Gold Country Media

Golden State ImagesCity of Lodi

Design and LayoutCurt Leipold,

Graphic Communications

The Water Education Foundation thanksall the sources and experts who reviewed

this newsletter for balance and accuracy.

Water Education Foundation

717 K St., Suite 317Sacramento, CA 95814(916) 444-6240

Fax (916) 448-7699e-mail: [email protected]

Web page: www.watereducation.org

President

Michael Armstrong

Executive Director

Rita Schmidt Sudman

Grant Davis, The Bay Institute

Dennis Dickerson,Pima Association of Governments

Steve Fagundes, State Water Resources Control Board

David Guy, Yosemite Association

Jake Mackenzie, City of Rohnert Park

Summer Waters, County of San Diego

Sam Ziegler, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

The California Runoff Rundown is published

by the Water Education Foundation. Themission of the Water Education Foundation,an impartial, non-profit organization, is to

create a better understanding of water issuesand help resolve water resource problemsthrough educational programs. TheCalifornia Runoff Rundown is publishedthrough a grant from the State WaterResources Control Board with funding fromthe U.S. Environmental Protection Agencyunder the Federal Nonpoint SourcePollution Control Program (Clean Water ActSection 319). Its contents do not representpositions of the State Board or U.S. EPA, andneither organization has endorsed thecontents.

E-mail your story ideas to Ryan McCarthy,

[email protected]

2 THE CALIFORNIA RUNOFF RUNDOWN FALL 2007

The story of California water in 2007 has had the ailing Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta at its center and necessarily so, since this hubof our states water system and valuable ecosystem must be fixed.

But the most direct contact most residents of the Golden State have withwater happens not in the Delta but at the beach. Millions go to play, swimand surf along the California coast and the quality of water at the statesbeaches is a critical, if sometimes overlooked, part of the water story.

This California Runoff Rundown looks at the issue of water quality alongCalifornia beaches and reports that most California beaches had goodwater quality during dry weather in 2006-2007.

In this issue, you also can read about matters related to the IrrigatedLands Program in the Central Valley, an effort to address farming runoffon more than 7 million acres stretching from Bakersfield to near theCalifornia-Oregon border.

We recognize the magnitude of the problem, Tam M. Dudoc, chair ofthe State Water Resources Control Board, said of the impact of agriculture

on water quality at a September 13 workshop in Clovis.The environmental community has criticized the ag waiver/coalition

approach in the valley, but Ken Landau, assistant executive officer forthe Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board, pointes outthat hundreds of chemicals, thousands of water bodies, tens of thousandsof growers and some 100,000 discharge points are involved.

Agriculture and Central Valley water quality is a complex issue likeso much else in the world of California water. N


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FALL 2007 THE CALIFORNIA RUNOFF RUNDOWN 3

The State Water ResourcesControl Board (State WaterBoard) is concerned about

progress made by the Central ValleyRegional Water Quality ControlBoards (Central Valley Board)agricultural waiver program in-tended to address farm runoff onmore than 7 million acres of landin Californias Central Valley.

At a joint State Board-CentralValley Board Sept. 13 workshop inClovis, State Board Chair Tam M.Dudoc closed the meeting by notingthat agricultural discharges will notbe eliminated immediately. But shedid call for measures to strengthenthe monitoring and reportingportions of the Irrigated LandsProgram.

What were assuring you is thatwe recognize the magnitude of the

problem, she said to attendees atthe workshop.

Dudoc opened the meeting bystating that the ag waiver programunder discussion is not an exemp-tion from regulatory requirementsor from water quality objectives.The waiver, she said, has proven tobe a very important first step in anIrrigated Lands Program.

What actions would be taken toaddress water quality violations wasone of 20 questions the State WaterBoard posed to the Central ValleyBoard in the notice for the jointworkshop.

State law regulates any dischargerof wastewater. According to theState Water Board, agriculturaldischarges can transport pollutantsincluding pesticides, sediment,nutrients, salts, pathogens andheavy metals from fields intosurface waters. The Central Valley

Board has adopted the IrrigatedLands Conditional Waiver to pro-

vide a way for discharges to complywith the California Water Code.

The Central Valley Board was thefirst of the states nine regionalboards to adopt a waiver program,

which has taken a coalition ap-proach to runoff control. In 2006it said the program is an interimmeasure while the regional boarddevelops a long-term program toregulate irrigated agriculture.

Up to 75,000 owners or operatorsare involved in the more than 7million acres of irrigated lands inthe Central Valley, the CentralValley Board said, and the ag waiverprogram covers about 5.5 millionacres. Much of the remaining

acreage doesnt drain to surfacewaters and is not included in theIrrigated Lands Program. Someirrigated lands that should be inthe program have not been enrolledand locating them is part of theenforcement effort by the CentralValley Board.

Karl Longley, chair of the CentralValley Board, said at the Clovisworkshop that a lot of progress hasbeen made in the four years sincethe program began in 2003.

Central Valley Ag WaiverProgram Spurs Praise,

Criticism and Questions

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Central Valley Ag WaiverProgram Spurs Praise,

Criticism and Questions


4/16


Cleanup of this water is going totake a long, long time, he said.

Ken Landau, assistant executiveofficer for the Central Valley Board,

said there has been extensivecriticism of the program includingcomments that range from thecomplaints of excessive monitoringof agriculture to not enough moni-toring. But after initial resistance tothe program, farmers are nowcooperating. We have developedan effective program to deal withthe problems, he said, acknowledg-ing that agricultural discharges arecausing water quality problems.

Identifying and correcting ag

water quality programs is difficultand lengthy, he added. We are notdealing with a single case or evendozens, Landau said. The programinvolves hundreds of chemicals,thousands of water bodies, tens ofthousands of growers and some100,000 discharge points. In manycases, he said, more information isneeded to correct water qualityproblems.

The Irrigated Lands Programcovers a region that runs from near

Bakersfield where cotton is grownon the valley floor to wild ricegrown near the Oregon border.With 28,000 growers in the CentralValley, Landau said the CentralValley Board staff cant deal one-on-one with farmers.

Bill Jennings of the Stockton-based California SportfishingProtection Alliance criticized theIrrigated Lands Program because itlacks enforcement and the CentralValley Board doesnt know whosdischarging what.

Agriculture is the largest polluterin the Central Valley, Jennings said.Farmers will continue to pollutewith impunity until courts assumeoversight of the program. Im notsure this board can regulate agricul-ture.

Jennings wants growers to pre-pare water quality managementplans. He cited the success of a

traditional regulatory programinvolving rice growers focused onthe prohibition of discharge.

Al Vargas, an environmentalscientist with the California Depart-ment of Food and Agriculture, saidrequiring each grower to developplans for water quality makes little

sense. It defies logic to requireevery farmer to develop manage-ment plans.

Representatives of grower coali-tions praised the effort and cited itssuccess. Perry Klassen, board chairof the East San Joaquin River ValleyWater Coalition, said its absolutelywrong that growers are uninvolvedin the program. A total of 588growers in the last year changedpractices of their farms to addresswater quality issues, he said.

Environmental groups, includingClean Water Action and the Envi-ronmental Justice Coalition forWater, say agricultural drainage hascontaminated groundwater aquifers forcing residents of some areas ofthe valley to buy bottled water. Wehave a runaway train, said DebbieDavis of the Environmental JusticeCoalition. We need to know that atleast were putting on the brakes.

Environmental groups at theSept. 13 workshop asked thatofficials amend the ag waiverprogram to incorporate ground-water protection. Laurel Firestone,representing a range of environ-mental justice organizations, saidmore than 40,000 people in the

valley are exposed to illegal con-taminants in water, mostly fromgroundwater contaminated bychemicals used in fertilizers.

Landau said officials recognizedin 2003 with adoption of a newconditional ag waiver that irrigatedagriculture can impact groundwaterand that the Central Valley wouldneed to regulate discharges. Butsurface water discharges were dealtwith first because environmentalgroups that had petitioned theboard for more stringent regulationof agriculture were almost exclu-sively concerned about surfacewater.

Frankly, taking up groundwaterwould have greatly expanded thescope and effort of the program,he said, and neither the board norcoalitions could have handled theadditional workload at the time.

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Days at the Beach

CONTINUEDFROMPAGE 1


sends more runoff into the Pacificand wastes precious water. ThePoche Beach project is an engineer-ing solution to a behavioral issue,

he said.Poche Beach Project ManagerNasser disagreed. We looked at alot of different alternatives. Youalways have people who dont likethe way youre treating water.Everybody says they want cleanwater. But they want it their way,she said.

I agree that over-irrigation byresidents is probably the real prob-lem behind ocean water pollution,she continued. But it takes time to

change behavior and the public isdemanding immediate water qualityimprovement.

Even as it faces ocean waterquality issues including harmfulalgal blooms, septic tanks in theHollywood beach community of

Malibu and dis-putes over how bestto measure oceanwater contamina-tion, California getsmostly high grades

for its beaches.Literally. TheSanta Monica-basedenvironmentalgroup Heal the Baygrades beachesthroughout thestate on the A to F scale. Problemsat Poche Beach in Orange Countyare more the exception than thenorm for ocean water quality inthe state.

Most California beaches had

good water quality, with 295 of 360locations receiving very good toexcellent A and B grades for the yearduring dry weather, the groups2006-07 report states.

Grades for California beachesdrop during the rainy season. Why?

Youre flushingthe watershed,said Ryan Dwighta researcher forthe Coastal WaterResearch Group,

describing theseasonal weatherpattern, and itall goes to thebeach.

Runoff fromcreeks, rivers and

stormdrains, Heal the Bay noted, isthe largest source of pollution toCalifornia beaches and may containmaterials including pesticides,petroleum hydrocarbons andanimal waste.

For the first time, were startingto see progress in beach waterquality during the summermonths, said Mark Gold, executivedirector of Heal the Bay, largelydue to funding from the CleanBeaches Initiative (a state grant

CONTINUEDONNEXTPAGE

Youre flushing

the watershed and

it all goes to the

beach.

Ryan Dwight,

Coastal Water

Research Group

Imperial Beach in San Diego County


6/16


program) and the efforts of localgovernments.

But water quality alongCalifornias coast, especially inSouthern California, has not im-proved during wet weather, Gold

said. In fact, California has madenegligible progress towards reducingstormwater runoff pollution fromurban and agriculture areas. As aresult, many Southern Californiabeaches look like landfills after everyrain, stormdrain and creek runoff isoften toxic to aquatic life, and overhalf of the beaches receive poorgrades on our Beach Report Card.

Los Angeles County beachesreceived the lowest grades, Heal theBay said. Why? One reason is that

Los Angeles County was among thefirst in the state to change its watermonitoring program to collectsamples directly in front of flowingstorm drains and creeks.

Such point zero monitoring isthe best way to minimize healthrisks to swimmers, Heal the Bay said.

Despite a state law establishingbeach water quality standards, Gold

said, countiesmonitor waterquality in differentways. To bestprotect publichealth, Heal the Bay

recommends thatsamples should becollected directlyin front of flowingstormdrains andcreeks. Manycounties, as LosAngeles once did,collect samples 25yards from flowingdrains.

That status forLos Angeles County after it helped

lead the way to more accuratemonitoring also indicates thecomplications that come withCalifornias rigorous measurementof ocean water quality.

We sample more than any placeelse, said John Griffith, marinemicrobiologist with the SouthernCalifornia Coastal Water ResearchProject. We have the most heavily

monitoredbeaches in theworld. Californiais doing morethan any otherplace to try to

clean up thewater.The state needs

to, said MichaelBeanan, a direc-tor of the SouthLaguna CivicAssociation inOrange County.Californiabeaches dontdeserve even a D

grade, he said, noting that beach

report cards check bacteria but notalgae and other indicators of waterquality. Ive gone toe to toe withHeal the Bay, Beanan said of whathe seesas deficiencies in standards thatlead to better grades than beachesdeserve.

Gold said the State Water Re-sources Control Board (State WaterBoard) and the California BeachWater Quality Work Group haveendorsed the groups grading

system. The Beach Report Cardlooks at fecal bacteria densities,he noted, not trash or toxics.

The state has not faced theproblems of Hawaii, where in March2006 the health department closedWaikiki Beach after a major sewagespill. The Stanford UniversitySchool of Medicines magazinenoted, The microbe-contaminatedwaters were blamed for severalillnesses and implicated in thedeath of a man who became in-fected by flesh-eating bacteria.

Efforts to improve ocean waterquality in California include the$2.2 million project at Poche Beachand the nearby wetlands works inLaguna Niguel.

Nancy Palmer, senior watershedmanager for Laguna Niguel, cau-tions about comparing the twoprojects in Orange County. Itsa different problem, she said of

We have the most

heavily monitored

beaches in the

world. California is

doing more thanany other place to

try to clean up the

water.

John Griffith,

Southern California Coastal

Water Research Project

Constructed wetlands help filter

pollutants at Laguna Niguel Beach.


7/16


Laguna Niguels situation, witha different solution.

A 1999 cleanup and abatementorder by the San Diego RegionalWater Quality Control Board (SanDiego Regional Board) after reported

high bacteria levels in runoff from astorm drain outfall started LagunaNiguels effort, she recalled. (Threeyears later, monitoring demon-strated that high fecal coliformconcentrations are not unusual forstorm drains, Palmer would note ina presentation to the San DiegoRegional Board.)

After the 1999 abatement order,Palmer began work on a responseby the city. The three treatmentwetlands project, a series of ponds

where reeds and other plants absorbelements including nitrogen toimprove water quality, followed.If the water goes through thesystem slowly enough, Palmer said,it gives it time for the biologicalprocess to work.

At Poche Beach in San Clemente,a creek runs into the ocean, shenoted, while in Laguna Niguel, Ihad gravity, I had space and I hadtime to let the biological processeswork. We were able to capture

nuisance urban runoff from guttersand storm drain pipes at higherelevations and route it via a pipingsystem to flow through the threetreatment wetlands, and then aftertreatment flow back into the pipesor directly into the creek.

More than two acres were usedfor the treatment wetlands. Passagethrough the treatment wetlandtakes two to five days from influentto effluent points, Palmer added,in order to reduce the amount ofbacteria consistently.

Poche, by contrast, is a singlelocation at the extreme downstreamend of the drainage area basicallyin the pipe just upstream from thedischarge outfall to the ocean,Palmer continued. The volume ofwater means the Poche site does nothave anywhere near enough spaceto use treatment wetlands.

And the treatment point was

already at the bottom of the drain-age area. The only way to achievethe desired bacteria reductionsunder these conditions is throughtechnological sterilization, Palmer

said of Poche.Water quality at California

beaches, many observers say, isimproving thanks to projects suchas those undertaken by LagunaNiguel and planned by SanClemente. The city of Dana Point inOrange County installed a treat-ment system in 2005 at Salt CreekBeach, a project similar to the oneplanned for Poche Beach. Officialssay the effort improved waterquality at Salt Creek Beach andadjoining Monarch Beach.

Another major beach pollutionproblem is trash in the rivers thatlead to the beach. The Los AngelesRegional Water Quality ControlBoard has adopted a total maximumdaily load (TMDL) for trash in areawaterways. Trash carries with itpollutants, said Francine Diamond,chair of the board. They reach thebeaches.

Diamond said water qualityefforts are paying off. Manybeaches in our region have beensignificantly improved over the last10 years, she said. It takes a long

time to see the results of regula-tions.

Improvements can be overlookedby the public amid beach closuresthat come as a result of improvedtesting and the standards of the1999 state law, suggests a NorthernCalifornia official.

We do post beaches much morethan we used to, said Steve Peters,water quality specialist for SantaCruz County who has surfed inCalifornia for more than 40 years.The legislation requires measuringthree indicator bacteria totalcoliforms, fecal coliforms andenterococci weekly at high-usebeaches.

Rick Wilson, coastal managementcoordinator for the Surfrider Foun-dation in San Clemente, said thelack of data before the new lawcomplicates knowing how muchwater quality has improved.

Storm channel to Poche Beach


8/16


What was thewater quality likebefore that? askedWilson. No onereally knows. Itseems like the

more you test, themore problemsyou find, saidWilson, a chemicalengineer who hasa bachelor ofscience degree inchemical engineering fromStanford University. Its goodthat we do as much testing as wedo, added the representative forSurfrider. The San Clemente organi-zation has praised voter passage

in 2006 of Proposition 84 and the$90 million the measure providesfor the Clean Beaches Programto protect coastal waters frompollution.

Efforts to improve ocean watersucceeded, suggests a study ofsurfzone water quality at Hunting-ton Beach in Orange County. Onaverage, total coliform concentra-tions have decreased over the past43 years, the 2002 report for theAmerican Chemical Society states.

However, point sources of shore-line contamination (stormdrains,river outlets and submarine outfalls)continue to cause transiently poorwater quality.

Not everyone is sure waterquality is improving.

The quality of water at Californiabeaches is not known, said EdMcGowan, who has served on theboard of directors of the CitizensPlanning Association & Foundationof Santa Barbara County. Withoutdramatic problems, he added, oceanwater is not a key concern of thepublic.

As long as people arent justdropping dead, he said, its notperceived as a problem. McGowansaid measurements of ocean waterdont tell us enough to know thepossible risks.

Santa Barbara County is home toa long battle over the permit for a

sewage district todischarge intoocean waters.

The environ-mental groupHeal the Ocean

challenged theGoleta SanitaryDistricts try for anew five-yearwaiver from therequirements ofthe federal Clean

Water Act (CWA) that require fullsecondary treatment of sewage. Healthe Ocean went with a camera tothe ocean floor as part of its effort.

Jim Knowlton, who has filmedand edited shark documentaries for

Discovery Channels Shark Week,shot an underwater video in 2002of the sewer outfall and what hesaw sent into the Pacific. You couldsee the chunks, Knowlton said,describing brown items the size oferaserheads.

Kathleen Werner, technicalservices supervisor for the GoletaSanitary District, said that whateverKnowlton saw was not raw sewage.All wastewater is treated and thedistrict monitors conditions at the

ocean.Is it pure water? No. Itsnot, Werner said of the treatedwastewater discharged by thedistrict. Its not snowmelt.

But the district is not pollutingthe Pacific by the discharge fromits mile-long offshore pipe, she said.There was no indication that thetreatment process was adverselyaffecting the ocean waters.

The sanitary district filed alawsuit against the State WaterBoard after the board upheld theCentral Coast Regional WaterQuality Control Board (CentralCoast Regional Board) decisiondenying a new five-year extensionof Goletas 301h waiver under CWAprovisions.

The 2004 settlement of the caseincludes a requirement that thedistrict upgrade its facilities by 2014to allow full secondary treatment ofall sewage discharge, Werner said.

To the south of Santa BarbaraCounty on Avalon, Catalina Island,a 2001 study led by the Universityof California, Irvine, found thatdecaying sewage pipes in the down-town next to Avalon Bay had leaked

human waste into the shorelinewater.In response the city lined its

downtown main sewer pipes andmanholes and repaired and linedlateral sewer pipes within the firstthree blocks of the waterfront.

While many see ocean waterquality in California improving,agreement is widespread that abetter way to test it is needed.

Surfrider Foundation representa-tive Wilson said the 24-hour gap

between testing and results meansthe beach posting is always out ofdate. You find out today that youshouldnt have gone in the wateryesterday, he said.

Added Wilson: the standards usedin testing need to be updated.

The Southern Californiabeachfront community of Malibu,best known as the home of Holly-wood celebrities, faces an issuethats not the stuff of movies. Nosewer system is in place and resi-

dences must rely on septic tanks.To us it doesnt make sense,

Wilson said. Septic tanks rightalong the coast.

But the prospect of Los AngelesCounty building a sewer system, aproject seen as spurring growth, ledthe community to incorporate in1991. The septic systems remains inplace as do questions about theirrole in ocean water pollution. InMarch, a Los Angeles County panelwon approval to test the waters todetermine whether Malibu septictanks are polluting the Pacific.

Nearly 200 miles to the northalong the California coast, anothercommunity faces the issue of septictanks and water quality.

Quarter-acre lots are more com-mon in Los Osos, the San LuisObispo County town three milesfrom the beach, than the exclusive

CONTINUEDONPAGE 12

Anything that

goes on the road is

going to go into

the ocean without

treatment.

Rick Wilson

Surfrider Foundation


9/16

Officials Aim to LimitTahoe Fire Impacts

highest amount of sediment to thelake.

The effects of ash and sedimentdelivered to Lake Tahoe from theAngora Fire, while not chronic, willnonetheless be a cumulative effect

in a situation in which there issubstantial concern over a treasuredresource to the state of Californiaand Nevada, the report states.There is a high probability that

post-fire flows from the first runoff-producing rain events will see ahigh concentration of ash dis-charged from the burn area a longdistance downstream to the UpperTruckee River and Truckee Marsh.

Increased sedimentation thatcould affect cold water fish habitatis expected in all of the burn areasub-watersheds, the report adds.

Strategies to mitigate waterquality threats include providingimmediate cover on severely burnedhillsides to help prevent increasedsediment delivery by retaining asmuch of the materials as possible onthe land, according to the report.

Seeding by hand is planned on14 lots covering 25 acres to reduceerosion and prevent the introduc-tion or spread of invasive plants onland with high soil burn severity. N

The Angora Fire that burnednear South Lake Tahoe overthe summer will not impact

the entire famed alpine lake, but itdoes raise concerns over the cumu-lative effect on Lake Tahoe, the U.S.Forest Service says.

Its only about 5 percent of theentire watershed that was affectedby the fire, Stephanie Heller,hydrologist with the Forest Servicesaid of the June 24-July 2 fire.Impacts wont be lakewide, Heller

said. [But] there will be increasedsediment and nutrient delivery tothe lake.

The fire near South Lake Tahoethat started June 24 destroyed 242residences and 67 commercialstructures. A total of 3,100 acreswere burned.

The burned area report com-pleted by the Forest Service statesthat the Upper Truckee River, themain conduit for Angora Creek toreach Lake Tahoe, contributes the


Officials Aim to LimitTahoe Fire Impacts


10/16


Farmers in the Grasslands areaof the San Joaquin Valley areasking for a decade-long

extension to delay the 2010 sele-nium goals established in the basinplan for the Central Valley.

As a result of the request, theCentral Valley Regional WaterQuality Board (Central ValleyBoard) reviewed the basin plan. Thewater quality control plan for theSan Joaquin and Sacramento river-basins includes a selenium objectivefor Mud Slough. Discharge ofagricultural subsurface drainagewater is prohibited after Oct. 1,2010 unless the water qualityobjectives for selenium are met,according to a staff report preparedfor the Boards Sept. 13 meeting.

The dischargers have madesignificant progress towards thisgoal, the report states, but havebeen unable to complete the drain-

and Delta-Mendota Water Authorityto implement the Grassland BypassProject. The project consolidatessubsurface drainage flows on aregional basis and uses a portion ofthe San Luis Drain to convey the

flows around wildlife habitat areas.Drainage recycling systems mixsubsurface drainage water withirrigation supplies under strictlimits, according to a 2007 report.

Grasslands Area farmers havemade significant improvements inwater quality since waste dischargerequirements were set in 1998, GailCismowski, the Central ValleyBoard environmental scientist, saidat the Sept. 13 meeting addingthat the staff supports considering

the request for a time extension.Joe McGahan, drainage coordina-

tor for the Grassland Area farmers,said 40,000 acre-feet of water weredischarged from the Grasslands areain 1995 containing 12,000 pounds ofselenium and 230,000 tons of salt.

By 2006 the selenium load wasreduced to 3,800 pounds and saltwas cut nearly in half, he said.

McGahan said Grasslands Areafarmers have asked for a delay in theselenium goals to further refine the

technology used in the drainageeffort. Selenium performance goalsand water quality objectives for theSan Joaquin River have been met, hesaid, and selenium is not impactingthe waterway.

David Cory, representing theFirebaugh Water Canal District inFresno County, said the program hasbeen very effective at removingselenium and salt, but that furtherconcentration of drain water issought.

Professor Peggy ODay of theSchool of Natural Sciences at theUniversity of California, Merced,said, The practical goal is to getagricultural discharges down in saltand selenium so when the runoffgoes into the San Joaquin (River) itsnot impacting the quality of theriver.

Selenium in the Central Valley isfrom sediment in the soil not from

Central Valley SeleniumControl Program Seenas Success

age projects that would enable themto eliminate discharges from theproject area entirely.

The Grasslands area consists of105,000 acres of farmland, wildliferefuges and duck clubs on the westside of the San Joaquin Valley.Return flows from this area are highin salt and selenium. Selenium is anessential trace mineral for peopleand animals that can become toxicat high doses. Drainage in the 1980sfrom the Westlands Water Districtresulted in high selenium levels atKesterson Reservoir in MercedCounty, a problem linked to water-fowl deformities that ultimatelyclosed the reservoir. Irrigationdrainage water was provided to thereservoir through the partiallycompleted San Luis Drain.

In 1996, Grassland Area farmersformed a regional drainage entityunder the umbrella of the San Luis

Central Valley SeleniumControl Program Seenas Success


11/16

NPS News

Water QualityConferences

Two headline issues will befeatured at two upcomingwater quality conferences.

Reconciling food safety andenvironmental protection will bediscussed at a Nov. 7-9 conferencesponsored by the Central CoastAgricultural Water Quality Coali-tion. The 2007 National Confer-ence on Agriculture & theEnvironment in Monterey alsowill focus on data, methodology,trends and advancements in waterquality monitoring; agricultural andenvironmental innovations; and


industry or a pollution source andagricultural practices can wash themineral into runoff, she said.

Karl Longley, chair of the CentralValley Board, said the seleniumcontrol program is commendable

but said a second issue the build upof salt in the region must beresolved to sustain agriculture overtime.

If this is going to be a viableeconomy for the next century,obviously there have to be othersolutions, he said.

ANorthern California casinowill pay $300,000 in penal-ties for problems with its

wastewater treatment plant after themechanical failure of advancedtechnology failed and existingultraviolet systems couldnt treateffluent with increased turbidityconcentrations.

Half of the State Water ResourcesControl Board (State Water Board)penalty paid by Thunder Valley

Casino, located in Rocklin 30 milesnorth of Sacramento, will go towardimproving water quality at a vernalpool preserve near the city ofLincoln. The other $150,000 will gointo the State Water Boards cleanupand abatement account.

The casino and preserve arewithin the same Lower SacramentoRiver Watershed, the Central ValleyRegional Water Quality ControlBoard (Central Valley Board) noted

Casino Penalty Will FundVernal Pool Work

Supporters of what has beentermed an out-of-valley solutioncite the success of a brine line in theSanta Ana area of Southern Califor-nia that transports salt-rich waste-water to the ocean.

Soapy Mulholland, a member ofthe Central Valley Board, said thatwhile the best efforts possible havebeen undertaken to address sele-nium and salt problems, the issueremains unsolved. Its a horribleproblem, Mulholland said. Wedont know what to do with it.N

in documents filed this year as partof the settlement.

Enhancements to marshes anddrainage in the vernal pool preservewill increase the time water staysin the site and the absorption of

nutrients, the Central Valley Boardsaid.The treatment plant discharged

treated wastewater to a tributary ofOrchard Creek, which eventuallyruns into the Sacramento River.Problems at the plant led to re-ported coliform levels in the waste-water effluent exceeding TotalColiform Effluent Limitations.

Although numerous such viola-tions took place, public health wasprobably not compromised, the

Central Valley Board stated.After ultraviolet systems couldnt

treat the effluent, the plant operatorbegan using chlorine for disinfec-tion, which led to possible effluentchlorine residual violations. Theseviolations were not reported to theCentral Valley Board until after thestaff found the potential chlorineresidual violations when inspectingcoliform violations. According tothe Central Valley Board, it tookmany months to resolve the prob-

lems with the casinos treatmentplant. N

Casino Penalty Will FundVernal Pool Work

Water QualityConferences


12/16

Theres certainly nothing suggestingLos Osos septics are contaminatingocean water throughout San LuisObispo County.

As the Central Coast and South-ern California deal with septic

tanks, Malibu resident Ed Niles saidtrash along the four-lane, 26 milesof Pacific Coast Highway throughthe community is an overlookedproblem for ocean water quality.

The roadway can be thick withlitter, particularly after holidays likethe Fourth of July, Niles said. All ofit goes directly to the Malibu la-goon, he said.

Surfrider representative Wilsonagrees the highway litter adds topollution. Anything that goes onthe road, he said, is going to gointo the ocean without treatment.

Dan Freeman, Caltrans deputydistrict director for maintenance inLos Angeles and Ventura counties,said the state agency works withMalibu, which is responsible forstreet sweeping of the Pacific CoastHighway within the municipallimits. Caltrans takes care of thetrash, Freeman said.

beachfront properties of Malibu.But Los Osos shares the same lackof a sewer system as the moreglamorous community to the

south.Dean Wendt, a marine biolo-gist who has a PhD. from HarvardUniversity and works with theSan Luis Obispo Science andEcosystem Alliance, said theCentral Coast Regional WaterQuality Board has shown theseptic systems have contaminatedthe groundwater in the Los Ososarea located next to Morro Bay.

The Central Coast RegionalBoard in 2007 stated that dis-

charges from septic systemshave degraded groundwaterquality and threaten publichealth.

Shallow groundwater seeps insome areas of Morro Bay areaccessible for sampling andindicate that fecal coliformbacteria greatly exceed standards,the state agency noted. DNAtesting indicates the largestsource of the bacteria is humans,the report stated.

The impact on Morro Bayand the ocean is less well-docu-mented, Wendt said. No onecan answer what the septicsystems are contributing to theBay.

Dan Berman, program directorfor the Morro Bay NationalEstuary Program, said connectingocean water problems and septicsis not simple. Its not an easything to establish these links inany scientifically conclusiveway.

Anecdotal evidence, alongwith DNA technology usedseveral years in a study showeda mix of sources, includinghumans, cattle and horses, inMorro Bay.

All of it, Berman said,suggests that septics in Los Ososare contributing at least on a verylocal scale to bacterial pollution.

Days at the Beach

CONTINUEDFROMPAGE 8


exploring the nexus betweenagricultural and environmentalsustainability. For more informa-tion, visit http://www.agwaterquality.org/2007con-

ferenceSuccessful watershed-based

approaches to nonpoint sourcepollution will be the focus of aSpring 2008 conference. The 2008California Nonpoint SourceConference Integrated Water-shed Management: ReducingNPS Pollution will be held at theMission Valley Marriott in SanDiego May 5-7.

According to the State WaterResources Control Board (StateWater Board) web site: This confer-ence will be aimed at showcasinghow sustainability and an inte-

CONTINUEDFROMPAGE 11

NPS News

grated holistic watershed perspec-tive can be incorporated into non-point source problems solving steps,through local regional and globalefforts.

The State Water Board, RegionalWater Quality Control Boards,California Coastal Commission andU.S. EPA Region 9 are sponsors of theconference. For more informationvisit, http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/nps/conference2008.htmlN


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We have a concern about any-thing that gets into that system, hesaid of litter that can reach stormdrains that go into the ocean.

Caltrans spokeswoman JeanneBonfilio, said of the historic high-

way that parallels the Pacific, Its ahighway that means a lot. Itsbeautiful.

Were trying hard through ourpartnership to keep it that way.

The Orange County city of DanaPoint, in its own effort to targettrash within the municipal streets,switched in 2002 from broomsweepers often inefficient atcapturing small particles, the citysaid to vacuum sweepers thatremove much more material and

pollutants.The city is also exploring

Mother Natures potential contribu-tion to impaired water quality inthe form of bird wastes, accordingto a February municipal report.

At low tide, seagulls and otherbirds feed upon exposed marinelife, the document notes. Thesebirds also travel to the landfill inSan Juan Capistrano for their food.The one thing that is certain is thatbirds will return to the beach and

leave a large amount of untreatedbacteria.

Bird waste has a very highbacteria count and its impact oncoastal water quality and humanhealth has yet to be quantified, thecity said. A project is underway tocollect bird droppings at Baby Beachat Dana Point Harbor in OrangeCounty to see if removal of thedroppings results in a drop ofbacteria counts in beach water.

While birds and trash are tar-geted, Wilson of the SurfriderFoundation said conditions atCalifornia beaches have generallyimproved. A beach in northernOrange County was known as TinCan Beach when he started surfingin the 1960s, he recalled. The trashwas pretty horrendous.

Along with septics and highwaylitter, harmful algal blooms are anissue for ocean water quality. Excess

nutrients are linked to the increasedgrowth of algae in the ocean,known as algal blooms. Algae in theform of phytoplankton are a vital

part of the oceans food web but canincrease to a potentially toxicbloom when nutrient levels andwater temperatures rise.

The Center for Sponsored CoastalOcean Research in Maryland notedthat a massive algae bloom alongthe California coast in April led tohundreds of seabird and marinemammal deaths from San LuisObispo to Los Angeles.

Marine biologist Wendt in SanLuis Obispo said the blooms are partof a natural cycle but that thequestions for scientists are 1)whether theyre now more frequentand 2) more severe.

Its the same kind of situation inclimate change, Wendt said.Tracking algal blooms over time isthe way to answer the questions, hesaid.

Coastal Water Research Groupresearcher Dwight participated in a

2002 study of urban runoff andcoastal water quality in OrangeCounty that found runoff dis-charged by the Los Angeles, San

Gabriela and Santa Ana riversrepresent a primary source ofcoastal water pollution.

Dwight worked as well on a 2005case study of illnesses from beachuse in Orange County that noteddecades ago domestic sewagedischarged along coastlines was theprimary sources of beach waterpollution in the United States.Upgrading of sanitation facilities tocomply with federal law has led to anew focus on untreated urbanrunoff, the study said.

The potential problem of virusconcentrations in beach water isunder study, Heal the Bay notes inits most recent Beach Report Card.The amount of indicator bacteriapresent in the surfzone is now thebest indication of whether a beachis safe for recreation contact, thegroup said.

CONTINUEDONPAGE 15

Bolsa Chica State Beach, aka Tin Can Beach,taken in 1960


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Students Serve asStorm Drain DetectivesBYRYANMCCARTHY

The Storm Drain Detectivesin the Northern Californiacity of Lodi got their start

after problems at the citys watertreatment plant resulted in a fineassessed by the Central ValleyRegional Water Quality Control

Board.Up to half of the payments for

the 2000 penalty could go into aneducational program, said FrankBeeler, the citys wastewater super-intendent. The result? A cadre ofTokay High School students theStorm Drain Detectives who testthe Mokelumne River runningthrough Lodi. The program ispraised for allowing teens an up-close look at water issues.

Stormwater and what goes into

municipal drains can rate low on

the list of issues for most youths,said Barry Larson, a recently retiredchemistry teacher at Tokay HighSchool. After they get started, theysee theres something to this,Larson said of the response ofstudents. This is a really good

introduction to real world environ-mental issues.

Results of testing include findingsthat water samples taken from theMokelumne River after a majorstorm showed the water was nottoxic to the adult Ceriodaphniadubia, known as the water flea.The organism is a small crustaceanthat is sensitive to pesticides, heavymetals, and other toxic substances.

The six monthly water tests tomonitor stormdrain runoff measure

dissolved oxygen, water temperature,

Students Serve asStorm Drain Detectives

turbidity, electrical conductivity andpH for how acidic the water is.

According to the city of Lodi,removal of river vegetation can

change water temperature as cansoil erosion, stormwater runoff andchanges to river flow. Bank erosion,excessive algal growth, and changesin the rivers flow increases turbiditywhile runoff from city streets andfarms can significantly increasenitrate levels.

John Teravskis, with the environ-mental consulting firm WGRSouthwest, which has been involvedwith the Storm Drain Detectivesprogram, credits city watershededucation coordinator Kathy Grantfor much of its success. She has apassion for the Mokelumne Riverand water quality, Teravskis said ofthe river that runs through Lodi.

Grant, who describes herself as astormwater geek, said the waterquality measurements the studentstake are demanding. Its kind oflike driving a Ferrari, she said.Youve got to be really careful. N

Ceriodaphnia dubia

Students monitoring the Mokelumne River


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He added that the Central ValleyBoards goal is to look at alternativesto how groundwater discharges areregulated.

Environmental groups have

criticized the Central Valley pro-gram as makeshift and lackingenforcement but Pamela Creedon,executive officer for the CentralValley Board, said the undertakingis achieving its goals. This is a goodstarting point, she said, describingthe program as the first concen-trated effort in the United States todeal with agricultural runoff.

Jennings, however, is critical ofthe program saying it allowscoalitions of farmers to oversee

implementation of waiver condi-tions.

These legally fictitious coalitionshave no enforcement authority andcannot require an individual dis-charger to take any specific action,the Sportfishing Alliance said in anAugust statement. The RegionalBoard doesnt know who is actuallydischarging, where the dischargesare occurring, the constituentsbeing discharged, the volume andconcentration of discharged pollut-

ants, whether management mea-sures have been implemented orwhether implemented measures areeffective.

The group challenged the agwaiver program in a petition to theState Water Board last year; theprogram was upheld. TheSportfishing Alliance and Baykeeperof San Francisco filed a lawsuit inSacramento County Superior Courtearlier this year against the CentralValley Regional Board over the agwaiver program.

Attorney Michael Lozeau, whorepresents the environmentalgroups, said no hearing date hasbeen set yet for the lawsuit filed inSacramento County Superior Court.He told The California Runoff Run-down that despite the coalitioneffort to improve water quality thedata all indicate the problem is justas bad if not worse.

CONTINUEDFROMPAGE 4

We have a lot more sedimentissues, he said. We havent seenany improvement whatsoever.

John Hewitt, attorney for theCalifornia Farm Bureau Federation,said the legal action by the environ-mental groups is not anythingmore than another attempt toundermine the progress agriculturalgroups are making.

Theres an incredible awarenessof water quality obligations andpotential impacts, he said.

The Central Valley Board ac-knowledged that not all the waterquality problems are being fullyaddressed due to a variety oftechnical and resource issues, andthat the focus has been on effec-tively using the resources at handby prioritizing quality issues so thathigh priority and critical issues arebeing addressed first.

Los Angeles (Region 4)

Regional Board approved August 9 a TMDL for trash in theLos Angeles River Watershed.Contact Ginachi Amah 213/576-6685; link to staff report at:http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/losangeles/html/bpaRes/bpa.html

Regional Board approved June 7 TMDLs for trash in Legg Lake,Lake Elizabeth, Munz Lake, Lake Hughes, Machado Lake,the Santa Clara River, the Ventura River Estuary,Calleguas Creek, Revolon Slough, Dominguez Channeland Beardsley Wash.Contact Eric Wu 213/576-6683; link to staff report at:http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/losangeles/html/bpaRes/bpa.html

Colorado River Basin (Region 7)Regional Board approved May 16 a TMDL for bacteria indicators

in the Coachella Valley Stormwater Chanel.Contact Ivory Stark 760/776-8933; link to staff report at:http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/coloradoriver/tmdl/TMDL_Status.htm

Santa Ana (Region 8)The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on May 16 approved a TMDL

for bacterial indicators in the Middle Santa Ana River.Contact Hope Smythe 951/782-4493; link to staff report at:http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/santaana/html/tmdls.html

Liz Kanter, a spokeswoman forthe Board told The California RunoffRundown that officials understoodthe ag waiver program wouldnt bea quick fix. It was intended to bea long-range program, she said. N

Days at the Beach

CONTINUEDFROMPAGE 13

Unlike bacterial indicators, noavailable data links health risksinvolved with virus concentrationsand swimming, Heal the Bay said.An epidemiology study began thissummer to try to identify viralpathogens at Doheny State Park.Surfrider Beach is planned to betested in 2008. The study is ex-pected to be completed withinthree years. N


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Share Your Success

Have an interesting story to tell about your nonpoint

source pollution control or stormwater program?

Why not share your experience with others through

The California Runoff Rundown? One of the goals ofThe Runoff

Rundown is to be a forum for sharing ideas that have successfully

reduced nonpoint source or urban runoff. These can be programs

or policies initiated by cities, local and regional agencies,

regional water boards, or in the private sector. To share your

story, contact Ryan McCarthy, Water Education Foundation, at

(916) 444-6240, or send e-mail to [email protected].

717 K Street, Suite 317Sacramento, CA 95814Phone: (916) 444-6240Fax: (916) 448-7699www.watereducation.org

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