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Water Quality
Environmental Indicators
Report
United States Environmental Protection Agency
Region 9
September 1997
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Table of Contents
Introduction 1
Indicator 1a
Drinking Water Systems Violating Health Standards For Coliform Bacteria 2
Indicator 1b
Drinking Water Systems Violating Health Standards for Nitrate 4
Indicator 2
Unfiltered Community Surface Water Systems at Risk from
Microbiological Contamination 5
Indicator 3
Drinking Water Systems Exceeding Lead Action Levels 6
Indicator 4
Source Water Protection 7
Indicator 5
Fish Consumption Advisories 9
Indicator 6
Shellfish Bed Growing Water Classification 12
Indicator 7
Biological Integrity 15
Indicator 8
Species at Risk : 18
Indicator 9
Wetland Acreage 19
Indicator 10
Designated Uses 21
Indicator 11
Groundwater pollutants: Nitrate 25
Indicator 12
Surface Water Pollutants 27
Indicator 13
Selected Coastal Water Pollutants in Shellfish 29
Indicator 14
ESTUARINE EUTROPHICATION CONDITIONS 29
Indicator 15A
Contaminated Sediments: Sites Posing a Potential Risk to Humans
AND AQUATIC LIFE 30
Indicator 15B
Contaminated Sediments: Trends in Contamination of Surficial Sediments 32
Indicator 16A
Selected Point Source Loadings to Surface Water 34
Indicator 16B
Point Source loadings to Groundwater Through Class V Wells 37
Indicator 17
Nonpoint Source Loadings to surface Waters 38
Indicator 18
Marine Debris 39
Regional Indicator
Water Recycung in Coastal Areas 41
Acronyms and Abbreviations 44
References 45
Acknowledgments 46
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List of Figures -
Region 9
Large States 1
Figure 1a.1
Number of TCR Violations and Population Affected 2
Figure 1 b.1
Number of Violations of Nitrate Standard and population affected 4
Figure 2.1
Population Served by Unfiltered Surface Water Systems at Risk from Microbiological
Contamination 5
Figure 7.1
Aquatic Life Use Support in Rivers 17
Figure 7.2
Aquatic Life Use Support in Lakes 17
Figure 10.1
Designated Use Support: Drinking Water Supply - Rivers and Streams 21
Figure 10.2
Designated Use Support: Drinking Water Supply - Lakes 22
Figure 10.3
Designated Use Support: Fish Consumption - Rivers and Streams 22
Figure 10.4
Designated Use Support Fish Consumption - Lakes 23
Figure 10.5
Designated Use Support: Swimming ¦ Rivers and Streams 23
Figure 10.6
Designated Use Support: Swimming • Lakes 24
Figure 11.1
Number of Groundwater Wells Sampled for Nitrate 25
Figure 11.2
Trends in Nitrate Data from Groundwater Wells 25
Figure 12.1
Surface Water Pollutants - Phosphorus 27
Figure 12.2
Surface Water Pollutants - Cadmium 27
Figure 12.3
Surface Water Pollutants - Lead 28
Figure 16A.1
Estimated TSS Loadings From Municipal Wastewater Discharges 35
Figure 16A.2
Estimated BOD Loadings from Municipal Wastewater Discharges 36
Figure 18.1
Composition of Debris from 1995 Beach Cleanup 39
Figure 18.2
types or Sources of Debris from 1995 Beach cleanup 40
Figure 19.1
Water Recycling in Hawaii Coastal Areas 42
Figure 19.2
Water Recycling in California Coastal Areas 42
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List of Tables
Table 4.1
Population Served by Water Systems with approved WHPPs 7
Table 5.1
Fish consumption advisories in Region 9 11
Table 6.1
Shellfish Bed Growing water Classification 12
Table 6.2
Shellfish Bed Classifications by Waterbody (1990 data) 13
Table 6.3
Causes of Shellfish Bed Impairment 13
Table 15a.1
Characterization of NSI Sampling Stations in Region 9 by State 30
Table 15b.1
Summary of Sediment Chemistry Data for San Diego Bay, San Pedro Bay. Santa Monica Bay, and
San Francisco Bay Relative to NOAA's Effects Response Thresholds (NS&T 1984-1995) 33
Table 16A.1
Estimates of Point Source Loadings of Biochemical Oxygen Demand and Total Suspended
Souds to Region 9 Waterways During Calendar Year 1994 (PCS) 34
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Introduction
PA's Office of Water
(OW) has been
working for several
years to develop indicators of
environmental progress to
improve the effectiveness and
efficiency of water resource
monitoring and management
programs. In 1995, the
National Environmental Goals
Project was launched, which
established 12 national goals
to guide EPA's strategic
planning and budgeting during
the next decade. Two of the
goals promoted specifically
relate to water quality:
1. Safe Drinking Water —
Every American public water
system will provide water that
is consistently safe to drink.
REGION 9
Large States
Hawaii
2. Clean Waters -
All of America's rivers, lakes, and
coastal waters will support healthy
communities of fish, plants, and
other aquatic life, and uses such
as fishing, swimming, and drinking
water supply for people. Wetlands
will be protected and rehabilitated
to provide wildlife habitat, reduce
floods, and improve water quality.
Groundwaters will be cleaner for
drinking and other beneficial
uses.
The national goals are supported
by a framework of subgoals,
milestones, and indicators to track
environmental progress. OW has
proposed charting progress toward
project milestones and goals
through periodic Regional reports
on 18 water quality indicators.
This document represents the first
attempt by Region 9 to produce
such a report.
Indicators will be used by the
Region 9 States and EPA to
assess long-term program
effectiveness, and to select near-
and long-term program activities.
Currently available data related
to some of the 18 indicators
will provide a
baseline
against which
future trends
can be evalu-
ated. How-
ever, baseline
.data for other
indicators are
currently
unavailable or of poor quality
and will need to be developed
or improved over the coming
years. Many of the indicators
proposed by OW have been
modified for this report, and
most will be refined further
over time. It is recognized that
greater emphasis on data
quality assurance and data
management at Region 9 will be
essential to the success of the
indicators program.
Environmental indicators can
provide several different types
of useful information: (1) status
or trends in the state of the
environment, (2) measures of
pressures and stressors that
degrade environmental quality,
and (3) evaluations of society's
responses to improve environ-
mental conditions. The first two
types of indicators (state and
pressure indicators) are closely
linked to environmental results.
The third type (response
indicators) is primarily adminis-
trative. The ultimate intended
emphasis of the indicators
program in Region 9 is mea-
surement of the actual condi-
tion (or state) of aquatic
resources. Q
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73
Drinking Water Systems Violating
Health Standards for
Coliform Bacteria
Description
Public water systems must
monitor routinely for coliform
bacteria which can cause acute
illness or indicate the presence
of other pathogens that can
cause acute illness. This
indicator measures the number
of drinking water standard
violations for bacteria by water
systems in the four Region 9
States and on Tribal lands. The
indicator quantifies both the
number of violations per year
and the number of people
potentially affected by those
violations.
Definition
Our assessment of violations
for bacteria is based on the
Total Coliform Rule or TCR,
which was adopted on July 29,
1989 and became effective
December 31,1990. Drinking
water system violations are
stored in the Safe Drinking
Water Information System
(SDWIS) database.
INTERPRETATION
Figure 1A.1 shows the
number of violations of the
maximum contaminant level
(MCL) for coliform bacteria
incurred by public water
systems in the Region 9 States
and on Tribal lands between
1983 and 1995. The number of
MCL violations has generally
declined over that time. The
temporary increase in MCL
violations from 1991 to 1993
was due to the phase-in of a
stricter total coliform rule.
Concurrently, EPA and States
began efforts to improve data
quality and reporting to
SDWIS.
Figure 1A.1 also shows the
average number of people
potentially exposed to coliform
bacteria because of an MCL
violation by a water system.
Note that the "population
potentially exposed" includes all
of the water system customers
even though a violation may
affect only a portion of the
water system. The data also
reflect strengthening of the total
coliform regulation effective
January 1991 and concurrent
regulatory agencies' efforts to
improve data quality and
reporting. The large increase in
populations potentially exposed
is due to some large systems
having to report MCL viola-
tions for analytical results that
were not MCL violations under
the previous total coliform
regulations. Despite stricter
Figure Ia.1 Number of TCR Violations and
Population Affected
3000 r
7000
Number of Violations Population Affected
. 1996-/9 nt1nent
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DRINKING WATER SYSTEMS VIOLATING HEALTH STANDARDS
FOR COLIFORM BACTERIA
regulations and improved
monitoring and reporting, a
downward trend in the number
of people potentially exposed
during an MCL violation occurs
after 1991.
Evaluation
Drinking Water is safer now
than ever before due to im-
proved technology and addi-
tional water quality regulations.
However, a challenge for
water systems and regulators to
continue providing safe drinking
water remains, due to newly
recognized health hazards and
susceptible populations, and
limited resources. Q
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Drinking Water Systems Violating
Health Standards for Nitrate
Description
High levels of nitrate/nitrite in
drinking water can lead to a
condition in infants called
methemoglobinemia (blue baby
syndrome), a situation where
hemoglobin loses the ability to
transport oxygen to the body
tissues. Some sources of
nitrate/nitrite include nitrate
fertilizers, septic tanks, and
animal feedlots. Rainfall leaches
the nitrate from soil into
streams and groundwater,
which serve as sources of
drinking water supplies.
Definition
This indicator measures the
number of drinking water
standard violations for nitrate
by water systems in the four
Region 9 States and on Tribal
lands. This indicator quantifies
both the number of nitrate
violations per year and the
number of people potentially
affected by those violations. The
drinking water standard maxi-
mum contaminant level (MCL)
for nitrate or a combination of
nitrate and nitrite is lOmg/l.The
MCL for nitrite is 1 mg/1.
INTERPRETATION
Figure 1B.1 describes the
number of drinking water
systems that contained nitrate
levels exceeding the drinking
water standard since 1980 and
the associated population
served by those systems.
Because high levels of nitrate/
nitrite can cause acute illness in
infants, drinking water suppliers
usually take immediate correc-
tive action in those areas where
the concentrations of nitrate/
nitrite approach or exceed the
maximum contaminant level.
Water with high levels of nitrate
can be treated, or water supply
sources are often simply
removed from service.
The data reflect a situation
where Region 9 public water
systems have had to either
abandon sources of water with
high nitrate levels or install
expensive treatment, in order to
continue providing safe water to
their customers. Ongoing efforts
by regulatory agencies and public
water systems to address high
nitrate levels in source waters
have, over time, decreased the
number of nitrate violations.
(See Also Indicator 11.) ~
Figure 1 b.1 Number of Violations of Nitrate
Standard and Population Affected
400 r
Number ot Violations Population AHected
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Unfiltered Community Surface Water Systems at Risk
from Microbiological Contamination
Description
Drinking water systems
supplied by surface water can
sometimes withdraw water that
contains harmful levels of
disease-causing microbes, such
as Giardia lamblia,
Legionella, and viruses. Under
the Surface Water Treatment
Rule (SWTR), EPA and the
States require all drinking water
systems using inadequately
protected surface water sources
to install filtration and disinfec-
tion treatment, to remove
microbiological contaminants
from drinking water. The
SWTR requirements went into
effect in 1993. Compliance
with the rule will dramatically
reduce the probability of human
exposure to harmful levels of
microbiological contaminants
from surface water sources.
Definition
This indicator measures the
number of systems (and the
population served by those
systems) that have not yet
complied with the requirements
to filter their water to remove
microbiological contaminants.
INTERPRETATION
Drinking water provided to
the population by unfiltered
Figure 2.1 Population Served by Unfiltered
Surface Water Systems at Risk from
Microbiological Contamination
350000
300000
00
(97)
250000
m
200000
150000
100000
50000
0
.f-vSSgfs
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t' Ur' i r--' ¦
iH <54,
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1993
1994
1995 1996
(Number of systems shown in parentheses)
surface water systems that
have not yet complied with the
SWTR requirements is shown
graphically on Figure 2.1. In
1993, approximately 300,000
people in Region 9 were
provided drinking water from
approximately 98 community
water systems that were not in
full compliance with the
SWTR. By 1996 the number
of systems not in full compli-
ance was reduced to 54, and
the population served by those
systems was less than 50,000.
Evaluation
The number of water systems
meeting the SWTR require-
ments has increased annually
through the efforts of State
drinking water program staff.
The number not meeting the
requirements has been reduced
by half, and the population at
risk has been reduced by a
factor of six. The total
population potentially at risk is
small compared to the total
number of people in Region 9
served by such systems. The
next challenge is to work with
the remaining systems, which
tend to be smaller and have
limited resources, to achieve
100 percent compliance with
the SWTR requirements and
thus, reduce the population at
potential risk to zero. ~
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Drinking Water Systems Exceeding
Lead Action Levels
Description
Lead can come from many
sources (such as paint, con-
taminated fish, and through the
air). Lead in drinking water can
pose a significant risk to the
public and a large problem for
water systems. EPA estab-
lished a series of steps that
water systems must take to
reduce the likelihood of lead
entering the drinking water
from the systems' structural
components. Lead can ad-
versely affect the central
nervous system in humans,
especially children.
This indicator measures the
number of people who receive
drinking water from public
water systems that are required
to minimize the water's ability
to leach lead from pipes,
solder, and fixtures, or to
remove lead from source
water.
Definition
The data for this indicator are
reported by the States to EPA's
Safe Drinking Water
Information System (SDWIS).
When 10 percent of a system's
tap samples exceed the lead
action level of 15 parts per
billion (ppb), the system is
required to take actions such as
corrosion control, treatment of
distributed water, treatment of
the source waters, and inform-
ing the public about lead levels.
Large systems (over 50,000
people served) must take
certain actions even if they do
not exceed the lead action level,
unless the system demonstrates
that optimal corrosion control
has already been achieved.
INTERPRETATION
Data for Region 9 indicate
that 1,740,015 people are
served by public water systems
where 10 percent or greater of
the monitored samples ex-
ceeded the 15 ppb action level
for lead. Of that total, approxi-
mately 1,382,772 people
received water from systems
with lead levels between 15
and 30 ppb (i.e., slightly over
the lead action level), 357,243
received water from systems
with lead levels over 30 ppb (a
significant exceedance), and
approximately 750 received
water from systems with lead
levels greater than 130 ppb
(extreme exceedance). ~
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Source Water Protection
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Description
Source water protection is
safeguarding a community's
drinking water source, whether
it is groundwater or surface
water, from contamination that
may affect the quality of the
drinking water and make it
unsafe to drink without
substantial treatment. Usually,
this protection involves
establishing a boundary around
the water source and ensuring
that activities occurring within
the drawn line will not ad-
versely affect the water
quality. If the drinking water
source is groundwater, the
program is called Wellhead
Protection. If the drinking
water source is surface water
(rivers, lakes, reservoirs), the
program is called Watershed
Protection.
Definition
This indicator measures the
progress of efforts to reduce
the number of people with
drinking water sources that are
not protected. Each State with
an approved Wellhead Protec-
tion Program is required to
report to EPA on its progress in
protecting its communities'
drinking water sources. In
Region 9, the States of Ne-
vada, Hawaii, and Arizona and
the Territory of Guam all have
approved Wellhead Protection
Programs (WHPPs).
Interpretation
The information presented in
Table 4.1 shows the number of
people in Region 9 whose
drinking water comes from a
groundwater drinking water
supply with a Wellhead Protec-
tion Program. The Wellhead
Protection Program protects
sources through four primary
activities: (1) delineating or
drawing a line around the area
to be protected; (2) identifying
the potential sources of con-
tamination within the delineated
area; (3) developing a contin-
gency plan that would be
implemented if the source
became threatened by contami-
nation; and (4) developing a
management plan to make sure
that potential sources of
contamination within the
delineated area are controlled.
Currently, most source water
protection activities focus on
protecting groundwater
sources. In the near future,
more surface water drinking
sources will be protected.
Region 9 receives and main-
TABLE 4.1 POPULATION SERVED BY WATER SYSTEMS WITH APPROVED WHPPS
Hawaii Nevada ' Arizona Guam ¦ Total % Total
POP'N OF STATE • 1.108.229 1.201.833 3.665.228 140.000 6.115.290 100
J. Delineations - 222.000 • . . ' 62.940 2.959.155 ;: * 100.000 3.344.095 55
2. Source Inventories 6.000 61.663 2.959.155 :>-'V »o 3.026.818 49
3. Contingency Plans 0 54.513 2.959.155 ' 11 . o 3.013.668 49
4. Source Management - 0 54.513 2.959.155 ; : . ' o 3.013.668 49
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SOURCE WATER PROTECTION
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tains information on the
H number of water systems that
have applied for wellhead
0
protection assistance grants
from EPA; however, this data
set does not include the
majority of programs, which
are community-based and
unrelated to the wellhead
protection grant program.
^ : Evaluation
L " Prevention is usually much
less expensive than cleanup.
With this in mind, EPA and the
States will be working towards
expanding the Wellhead
Protection Program to include
more groundwater supplies,
while at the same time bringing
similar program success to
surface water supplies. The
goal of reducing the number of
people exposed to harmful
contaminants from drinking
water supplies is consistent
with the policies of the public
water system regulatory
program and reflects a new
direction towards preventing
pollution at its source. Q
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Fish Consumption Advisories
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Description
Fish may accumulate pollut-
ants in their tissues at concen-
trations greater than back-
ground water quality. Fish
consumption advisories
indicate areas where pollutant
concentrations in edible fish
tissue have increased to levels
that potentially pose a risk to
human health.
This indicator tracks the
percentage of rivers, lakes, and
coastal waters with fish that
States have determined should
not be eaten, or should be
eaten in only limited quantities.
States issue fish consumption
advisories to warn recreational
and subsistence anglers and
other members of the public of
the risks associated with
consuming contaminated,
noncommercial fish.
Definition
This indicator is reported in
terms of the percentage of total
river miles and lake acres in a
State for which fish consump-
tion advisories have been
issued. Fish advisories are
issued in Arizona by the Game
and Fish Department; in
California, by the California
Environmental Protection
Agency; in Nevada, by the
Department of Game and Fish;
and in Hawaii, by the Depart-
ment of Health. The primary
source of the data is EPA's
National Listing of Fish Con-
sumption Advisories (1995),
which compiles the advisories
issued by all 50 states. The
State agencies in Region 9
responsible for fish consump-
tion advisories were also
contacted directly to confirm
and update information from
the National Listing.
Interpretation
The list of fish consumption
advisories that have been issued
in Region 9 is shown in Table
5.1. Arizona has issued adviso-
ries for the Gila, Salt, and
Hassayampa Rivers for pesti-
cides (DDT, toxaphene,
chlordane, dieldrin) and
mercury. The advisories cover
a total of 82 river miles or 0.08
percent of the 104,200 total
river miles in the State. Arizona
has also issued a mercury
advisory for Pena Blanca Lake
and more recently, for Arivaca
Lake (Mark Dahlberg, personal
communication). These two
lakes comprise less than 0.05
percent of the total 302,000
lake acres in Arizona.
In California, fish advisories
have been issued for southern
California coastal waters (PCBs
and DDT) and the San Fran-
cisco Bay region (PCBs, DDT,
mercury and dioxin). Mercury
advisories have been issued for
a number of lakes and rivers in
the State, and selenium warn-
ings have been issued for the
large Grasslands area of the
Central Valley (which encom-
passes a number of streams and
lakes) and the New River.
Advisories have been issued
for 130 river miles (less than
0.06 percent) of the total
211,513 river miles in Califor-
nia and approximately 312,477
acres (approximately 18.7
percent) of the total estimated
1,672,684 lake acres in the
State.
The California State Water
Resources Control Board
(SWRCB) estimates that there
are approximately 645,000
acres of bays, harbors and
estuaries in California, of which
San Francisco Bay comprises
43 percent. It is estimated that
the total ocean coastal area with
advisories is approximately
37,217 acres, or approximately
1 percent of the State's coastal
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FISH CON SUMPTION ADVISORIE S
Advisories range from blanket
warnings to not consume any
fish from a particular area, to
recommendations of the
maximum amount of tissue
from particular fish species that
should be consumed.
Fish advisories are not based
on random sampling of States'
waterbodies; data tend to be
collected in areas where there is
suspected contamination.
Information on fish tissue body
burdens from other areas may
be extremely limited. Also,
areas with advisories represent
a small fraction of a State's
total waters, both in terms of
total number of waterbodies
and areal extent.
Not all States provide infor-
mation on the areal extent of
the waterbodies affected. In
some cases the advisory applies
to a general area (e.g., the
Grasslands area of the Califor-
nia Central Valley or coastal
waters off southern California).
Finally, differences in the way
States manage their programs
make it difficult to aggregate
data from multiple States in a
meaningful way. EPA recently
developed a series of guidance
documents for States that may
improve future data comparabil-
ity.
Linkages
The location and areal extent
of advisories coincide with
areas where significant point or
nonpoint source pollution enter
the waterbody. These areas
may also have substantial
sediment contamination. Over
time, the spatial distribution of
fish consumption advisories
should reflect changes in point
and nonpoint source loadings.
~
waters.
In Nevada, mercury adviso-
ries have been issued for the
Lahontan Reservoir (14,800
acres), the Carson River below
Lahontan Reservoir, and all of
the waterbodies in the
Lahontan Valley. These areas
comprise approximately 0.04%
of the total 143,578 river miles
and 2.8% of the 533,239 lake
acres in Nevada.
In Hawaii, a lead advisory has
been issued for Manoa Creek,
which comprises approximately
0.1 % of the total river miles in
this State.
Evaluation
There are qualitative differ-
ences in the types of fish
advisories issued by States.
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FISH CONSUMPTION ADVISORIES
Table 5.1 Fish Consumption Advisories in Region 9
STATE WATER BODY TYPE AREA . CHEMICAL
ARIZONA
RIVERS
GILA RIVER
73MLES
DOT. TOXAPHENE. CHLOROANE. DEILDRIN HG
SALT RIVER
1 MILE
DOT. TOXAPHENE. CHLOROANE. DE1LDRIN. HG
HASSAYAMPA RIVER
2 MILES
DOT TOXAPHENE. CHLOROANE. DEILDRM HG
LAKES
PENA BLANCA
49 ACRES
HG
CALIFORNIA
COASTAL WATERS
BELMONT PIER / PIER J
DOT. PCBs
HORSESHOE KELP
DOT. PCBs
LOS ANGELES / LONG BEACH HARBOR
DOT PCBs
LOS ANGELES / LONG BEACH BREAKWATER
DOT PCBs
MAUSU PIER
DOT PCS*
MALJBU / POINT OUME
DOT PCBs
NEWPORT PIER / REDONDO PIER
DOT PCBs
PONT VICENTE / PALOS VERGES • NORTHWEST
DOT. PCBs
SHORT BANK
DOT PCBs
WHITES PONT
DOT PCBs
RIVERS
NEW RIVER
60 MILES
HG SE
ALAMTTOS CREEK
21 MILES
HG
GUADALUPE RIVER
12 MILES
HG
GUADALUPE CREEK
6 MILES
HG
LAKES
SALTON SEA
220 OOO ACRES
KG SE
CLEAR LAKE
43.000 ACRES
HG
LAKE BERRYESSA
20.700 ACRES
HG
LAKE NACIMIENTO
S^TOACRES
HG
CALERO RESERVOIR
350 ACRES
HG
LAKE HERMAN
1IO ACRES
HG
GUADALUPE RESERVOIR
00 ACRES
HG
ALMAOEN LAKE
62 ACRES
HG
HARBOR LAKE
50 ACRES
CHLOROANE. DOT
ESTUARIES
SAN FRANCISCO BAY
220 B20 ACRES
DOT AND OTXEB PrsnCiDCS PCBS HG DtOXINS
RICHMOND HARBOR. SANTA FE HARBOR
DOT PCBS. DtELDRlN
GRASSLAND AREA
SE
HAWAII
STREAMS
MANOA STREAM
SMILES
PB
NEVADA
RIVERS
CARSON RIVER
60 MILES
. HG
LAHONTAN RESERVOIR 14300 ACRES a* HG
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3
Shellfish Bed Growing Water Classification
Description
Shellfish-growing areas in the
United States are classified
using the National Sanitation
Program guidelines developed
by the Interstate Shellfish
Sanitation Commission. These
guidelines are primarily based
on fecal coliform bacteria
levels.
This indicator tracks the
percentage of estuarine and
coastal shellfish growing waters
that are approved for harvest
for human consumption.
Definition
The primary data source for
this indicator is the National
Shellfish Register of Classified
Estuarine Waters (Register).
The Register was initiated by
the Food and Drug Administra-
tion (FDA) in 1966 and is
currently produced by the
National Oceanographic and
Atmospheric Administration
(NOAA), in conjunction with
the Interagency Task Force on
Shellfish Growing Waters. The
Interagency Task Force
includes the FDA, EPA, and
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
(USFWS).
For this report, we evaluated
(1) trends in the quality of
shellfishing waters related to
four pollution-based classifica-
tions: approved, conditionally
approved, restricted, and
prohibited; (2) pollution
sources contributing to perma-
nent or temporary closure of
shellfishing waters since 1985;
and (3) recent trends in com-
mercial landings and area-
specific data on major causes
of reductions in shellfish
landings.
Interpretation
California is the only State in
Region 9 that is represented in
the Register's inventory. A
total of approximately 129,000
acres of shellfish habitat in
California had been inventoried
as of 1990. Approximately
605,000 acres of estuarine
shellfish beds had not been
classified, and less than 1,000
acres of offshore habitat had
been classified.
There was not much change
in the areal extent (Table 6.1)
or the locations (Table 6.2) of
affected shellfish beds between
1985 and 1990.
We recently received prelimi-
nary data for NO A A's 1995
report. Unfortunately, the 1995
data set is substantially differ-
Table 6.1 Shellfish Bed Growing Water
Classification (Acres x 1,000)
1985
1990
1995
APPROVED
2
2
<1
CONDITIONAL
12
12
12
RESTRICTED
2
2
2
PROHIBITED
94
114
9
TOTAL
110
129
23
NON-CLASSIFIED
451
605
<1
1996~ /p „eiflent „, et .nial
•p. *ienlfV °?s report
-------
SHELLFISH BED GROWING WATER CLASSIFICA TI O N
z
~
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>
Table 6.2 Shellfish Bed Classifications by Waterbody (acres x l .000).
(1990 data) "•
APPROVED CONDITIONAL RESTRICTED PROHIBITED 0
SAN PEDRO HARBOR
15
SANTA MONICA BAY
1
MORRO BAY
t
1
MONTEREY BAY
1
SAN FRANCISCO BAY
1
16
CENTRAL SAN FRANCISCO.
SAN PABLO. AND SUISUN BAYS
65
DRAKES ESTERO
2 1
TOMALES BAY
5
1 1
HUMBOLDT BAY
5
12
ent from the previous data
sets in terms of extent of
reporting. Whereas the 1990
report provided information
on approximately 729,000
acres of shellfish beds in
California, the 1995 report
only reports on approximately
24,000 acres. Reporting for
non-classified beds was
reduced from approximately
605,000 acres in 1990 to less
than 1,000 acres in 1995. The
overall reduction in reported
acreage was largely due to the
omission of San Francisco Bay,
Suisun Bay, and San Pedro
Bay, which accounted for
approximately 80 percent of
prohibited shellfish beds in
1990 (approximately 114,000
acres). Based on the 1995 data
set, 39 percent of the approxi-
mately 23,000 acres of classi-
fied shellfish beds were classi-
fied as prohibited.
In 1990, approximately 88
percent of the classified
shellfish beds were classified as
prohibited. Stressors to beds
Table 6.3 Causes of Shellfish Bed Impairment
SAN PEDRO HARBOR
INDUSTRY. URBAN RUNOFF. BOATING
SANTA MONICA BAY
NOT REPORTED.
MORRO BAY
SEWAGE TREATMENT. URBAN RUNOFF. WILDUFE. BOATING
MONTEREY BAY
INDUSTRY. SEWAGE TREATMENT. URBAN RUNOFF. WILDUFE. BOATING
SAN FRANCISCO BAY
INDUSTRY. SEWAGE TREATMENT, URBAN RUNOFF. BOATING
CENTRAL SAN FRANCISCO, SAN
PABLO, AND SUISUN BAYS
INDUSTRY
DRAKES ESTERO
AGRICULTURAL RUNOFF
TOMALES BAY
SEWAGE TREATMENT. SEPTICS. URBAN RUNOFF. AGRICULTURAL RUNOFF
HUMBOLDT BAY SEWAGE TREATMENT. SEPTICS. AGRICULTURAL RUNOFF. WILDLIFE
Ljtile8 SU, „rti*entalPto, .eticy . fr"»cisCo .
^ env 't*0 eciiort 9 • ' ca . p. I4
-------
SHELLFISH BED GROWING WATER CLASSIFICA T I O N
Z
~
n
>
H
0
73
that were identified in the 1990
census are presented in Table
6.3. NOAA estimated that
approximately 68 percent of
the shellfish beds were affected
by industrial discharges and
approximately 13 percent were
affected by sewage treatment
plants. Nonpoint source
stressors on shellfish beds
included urban runoff (20%),
boating (20%), agricultural
runoff (14%), wildlife (14%),
and septic systems (9%).
Evaluation
The change in reporting
seriously limits the utility of
NOAA's data for tracking long-
term, statewide changes in
shellfish bed condition. How-
ever, the data are still useful for
tracking site-specific changes in
bed classifications. Q
v-
fyenlrv"1 *vitonf °?s repo^
-------
Biological Integrity
Description
The Clean Water Act has as a
goal, the achievement of
aquatic life designated uses in
U.S. surface waters. Many
States use biological integrity
indicators to assess aquatic use
support. Biological assessment
or bioassessment is intended to
be a direct measure of the
extent to which surface waters
maintain healthy, balanced
aquatic communities (i.e.,
biological integrity). Rapid
bioassessment protocols
(RBPs), EPA's methods for
measuring biological integrity,
have been adopted in some
fashion by more than 31 State
agencies. The protocols involve
collection and enumeration of
key indicator organisms
(generally invertebrates or fish)
that are sensitive to stream
conditions. These data can be
combined to create an index
that reflects the general condi-
tion of the waterbody (e.g.,
index of biotic integrity). The
results are then compared with
expectations derived from
appropriate reference sites.
Definition
For this indicator, we com-
piled information from our
States' 305(b) water quality
assessment reports on aquatic
life beneficial use support and
our States' progress in develop-
ing and applying biocriteria for
making these use determina-
tions.
Arizona
According to EPA's River
Reach File 3 (RF3) stream
coverage database, there are
104,200 river miles in Arizona.
Many of these are intermittent
or ephemeral streams and
washes. The Arizona Depart-
ment of Environmental Quality
(ADEQ) assessed approxi-
mately 5,205 miles (5 percent)
of the total river miles in its
1996 305(b) report. Of the
assessed river and stream miles,
1,933 miles (37 percent) were
fully supporting the aquatic life
beneficial use; 603 miles (12
percent) were supporting but
threatened; 1,648 miles (32
percent) were partially support-
ing; and 1,021 miles (20
percent) were not supporting
the aquatic life beneficial use.
There are approximately
302,000 acres of lakes and
reservoirs in Arizona, of which
approximately 19 percent
(58,860 acres) were assessed
for the 1996 305(b) report. Of
the assessed acreage, approxi-
mately 4,115 acres (7 percent)
were fully supporting the
aquatic life beneficial use;
27,285 acres (46 percent) were
supporting but threatened;
25,953 acres (44 percent) were
partially supporting, and 1,507
acres (3 percent) were not
supporting the aquatic life
beneficial use.
ADEQ is implementing a plan
for developing narrative
biological criteria and incorpo-
rating them into State water
quality standards. Initial
program efforts focused on
small- to medium-sized waters.
The State will be using
bioassessment to (1) develop an
inventory of aquatic biological
resources within Arizona
streams; (2) compare assess-
ment methods; (3) investigate
biological community-habitat
relationships; and (4) identify
regional differences in commu-
nity structure. As the program
develops, ADEQ will expand its
scope to develop numeric
biological standards for perennial
streams and other waterbody
types (e.g., large rivers, intermit-
tent, effluent-dominated streams,
and ephemeral streams).
^tanciSCo
* * envtt°n Action °>t 9 • ^ ' ca ,-p. Is
-------
BIOLOGICAL INTEGRITY
California
There are approximately
211,513 stream miles in
California; 12,541 stream miles
(6 percent) were assessed for
the 1996 305(b) report. Of the
stream miles assessed, 3,531
miles (approximately 28
percent) were fully supporting
the aquatic life beneficial use;
237 miles (2 percent) were
supporting but threatened;
8,245 miles (66 percent) were
partially supporting; and 438
miles (4 percent) were not
supporting the aquatic life
beneficial use.
There are 1,672,684 lake-
acres in California; approxi-
mately 678,221 acres (41
percent) were assessed for the
1996 305(b) report. Of the
assessed lake acres, approxi-
mately 122,027 acres (18
percent) were supporting the
aquatic life beneficial use;
7,448 acres (1 percent) were
supporting but threatened;
545,345 acres (80 percent)
were partially supporting; and
3,401 acres (less than 1
percent) were not supporting
the aquatic life beneficial use.
California does not incorpo-
rate bioassessment results into
aquatic life use attainment
designations. The California
Department of Fish and Game,
in cooperation with the State
Water Resources Control Board
and the U.S. EPA, has formed
the California Aquatic
Bioassessment Workgroup to
facilitate development of
ecoregional reference condi-
tions, bioassessment proce-
dures, and biocriteria, and to
review and distribute standard
procedures for bioassessments
of California streams. The State
has also formed an ecoregional
workgroup with EPA and the
U.S. Forest Service to begin
work on establishing
ecoregional reference condi-
tions for streams.
Hawaii
Hawaii did not provide
information on aquatic life use
support in its 1996 305(b)
report. RBPs are under devel-
opment to assess aquatic life
uses of Hawaiian streams and
to support any narrative
biological standards that will be
incorporated into the State's
Water Quality Management
Program in the future.
Nevada
There are 143,578 river miles
in Nevada; many of these are
ephemeral streams and washes
(according to RF3). Approxi-
mately 1 percent of the total
river miles in the State were
assessed for the 1996 305(b)
report. Of the total assessed
miles, 561 miles (approximately
35 percent) were fully support-
ing aquatic life beneficial use;
409 miles (26 percent) were
partially supporting; and 624
miles (39 percent) were not
supporting aquatic life beneficial
use.
There are 533,239 acres of
lakes and reservoirs in Nevada,
and the 1996 305(b) report
provides information on
approximately 14 percent
(75,285 acres) of this total
acreage. Of the assessed
acreage, 44,850 acres (approxi-
mately 60 percent) were fully
supporting the aquatic life
beneficial use; 29,230 acres (39
percent) were partially support-
ing aquatic life use; and less
than 2 percent of the total acres
were not supporting the aquatic
life use.
Nevada's aquatic life use
determinations are based largely
on chemical data. However, the
State has been working with
EPA to develop a modified
RBP for arid Great Basin
streams. The State and EPA
have an ongoing program that
consists of intensive surveys,
bioassessments, and priority
pollutant sampling, and in the
future, the State intends to
develop macroinvertebrate
sampling using new protocols at
key routine sampling sites. Q
, • J 996-/p „e,iflent a9te „/gr .
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-------
BIOLOGICAL INTEGRITY
Figure 7.1 Aquatic Life Use Support in Rivers
14
CI)
-o
c
CO
3
o
-C
1-
c
co
(D
U
>
ir
12
10
z
o
o
>
H
o
D Not Supporting
E3 Partially Supporting
Threatened
Fully Supporting
Pll
ill
Not
Reported at
This Time
Arizona California Hawaii Nevada
Figure 7.2 Aquatic Life Use Support in Lakes
800
(/)
"D
C
(0
(/)
3
O
(0
0)
b.
(J
<
03
600
400
200
B Not Supporting
~ Partially Supporting
Threatened
~ Fully Supporting
RSlifc
i m
Not
Reported at
This Time
Arizona California Hawaii Nevada
j te$ si**.
envi
ito#
°e.
eciion
ettctf »te jxanctSc
y*°tt 9 V ' Ca . V- 1"
-------
Species at Risk
The Office of Information
Resources Management in EPA
is developing a strategy with the
Nature Conservancy, the
Association of Biodiversity
programs, and federal agencies
that are members of the Federal
Geographic Data coordinating
committee to achieve data
standards and improve access
to scientifically reliable biodi-
versity data. If successful, these
data will be made available to
EPA and other agencies, and
made available to communities
via the Internet.
Strategy efforts include
developing a set of minimum
data standards and a model
data sharing agreement, and
analyzing resources to achieve
the data standards. Access to
this information will facilitate
data tracking, not only on a
state-by-state basis, but by any
geographically-based emphasis
that the Agency may need to
evaluate "Species at Risk".
This information, combined
with water quality standards
within specific watersheds that
can be identified, linked, and
tracked with indicator species,
will allow us to get closer to
developing an indicator that
corresponds to actual changes
in ecological health. Q
0.1996-/q „eiflent a?te .nW1 in®ic«, ,,
p. 18 9? mantQ e»ienlfV
-------
Wetland Acreage
Region 9 is unable to report
wetland acreage at this time
due to the lack of a Region-
wide database; however,
several federal, state, and local
agencies are in the process of
developing tracking programs
that may provide the necessary
database for future reporting of
this indicator. Wetland acreage
is a problematic indicator for a
number of reasons. First, there
is not a single definition of
"wetlands" that is consistently
applied by the various entities
concerned with wetlands
regulation and conservation.
The term "wetlands" is not
even consistently applied
across federal agencies [e.g.,
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service wetland classification
scheme encompasses a much
broader range of habitats than
those meeting the criteria of
the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers (Corps) three-
parameter wetland delineation
method]. Secondly, the
regulatory definition of wet-
lands is politically controversial
and potentially subject to
change with modifications in
state and federal regulations
and policies.
The following programs are
expected to provide some basis
for future reporting on Region
9's wetland resources.
¦ Natural
Resources
Conservation
Service (NRCS)
The NRCS tracks acres of
wetlands enrolled in the
NRCS's Wetlands Reserve
Program.
¦ U.S. Army Corps Of
Engineers
Section 1135 of the Water
Resources Development Act
of 1986 authorizes the Corps
to make structural or opera-
tional changes to completed
Corps water resource
projects that would improve
the quality of the environ-
ment in the public interest.
Wetland losses and mitiga-
tion associated with issuance
of Section 404 permits have
not been consistently tracked
in the past, but the Corps is
currently phasing in the new
Regulatory Analysis and
Management System
(RAMS). Consistent use of
RAMS throughout the Corps
Districts (and its utility for
Region-wide reporting) is still
several years off, but the
system will eventually allow
reporting of the following
parameters related to
wetland acreage: (1) acreage
requested for impacts (in
Section 404 permit applica-
tions), (2) acreage autho-
rized for impacts by the
Corps, and (3) acreage
mitigated.
¦ U.S. EPA
The Region's Water
Division is undertaking a
new pilot project to review
wetlands mitigation success
for Section 404 permits
issued from 1990 to 1991.
The pilot project will focus
on permits issued for north-
em California only, but the
program may be expanded
later to other parts of the
Region.
¦ U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service
National Wetland Inventory
(NWI) mapping for Region 9
is currently incomplete and
the system, in general, is too
imprecise to serve as an
effective acreage tracking
mechanism. Furthermore,
NWI maps are not updated
on a sufficiently frequent
basis to show year-to-year
Ijtite$ ^ntalP*o, %te2, ,n {jtanci^0 ,q
** * enVtt0 ection W °*t 9 • ' ca . j). V'
-------
WETLAND ACREAGE
z
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0
changes in wetland acreage.
However, NWI may be
useful for examining the
Region's long term wetland
trends after the initial map-
ping for Region 9 is com-
pleted.
i CA Coastal
Commission
The California Coastal
Commission is developing a
system for tracking wetlands
within its jurisdiction. The
program, which is being
funded by an EPA grant, will
use data generated by the
coastal development permit
process to track wetlands in
the coastal zone by acreage,
location, type, and associa-
tion with a mitigation project.
However, the database will
not include any historical
wetlands data for the coastal
zone. The system is expected
to be up and running by late
1996. ~
0. 7996-/p 7nent ay t quality fltai in»ic
-------
Description
The Clean Water Act
requires States and Tribes (if
authorized) to adopt standards
with designated uses (e.g.,
drinking water supply, fish/
shellfish consumption,
swimming, and aquatic life
support) for their waterbodies
or waterbody segments.
Section 305(b) of the Clean
Water Act requires that these
States and Tribes assess the
degree to which their surface
waters support the designated
uses. The results of these
assessments are reported to
EPA every two years in
305(b) reports. EPA is
currently working with the
States to provide flexibility in
the 305(b) reporting cycle.
We will require annual
electronic reporting of key
data for the waters assessed
each monitoring year. How-
ever, in some cases formal
hard-copy reports with a
comprehensive statewide
assessment may be submitted
every five years to better
coincide with the watershed
cycling approach.
Designated Uses
O
>
H
o
Figure 10.1 Designated Use Support: Drinking
Water Supply - Rivers and Streams
10
•o
c
<0
>
ir
D Not Supporting
EH Partially Supporting
Threatened
Li* Fully Supporting
Not
Reported at
This Time
Arizona California Hawaii Nevada
Definition
The data presented in Figures
10.1-10.6 are taken from the
1996 Section 305(b) reports for
the States of California,
Arizona, and Nevada. Data on
attainment of designated uses
were not available for the State
of Hawaii.
INTERPRETATION
IOa. Drinking Water
Approximately 2.6 percent of
the total river and stream miles
in California, Arizona, and
Nevada were assessed for the
drinking water designated use.
Of the total assessed (12,054
miles), 3,930 miles fully
support the drinking water
supply designated use; approxi-
mately 618 miles fully support
drinking water, but are threat-
ened; 6,563 miles partially
support drinking water; and 943
miles do not support the
-------
z
~
DESIGNATED USES
o
>
0
3
Figure 10.2 Designated Use Support:
Drinking Water Supply - Lakes
,-fh
a A
TD
C
(0
CO
3
o
CO
Q>
k_
o
<
o
600
500
400
•- 300
200
100
B Not Supporting
B Partially Supporting
Threatened
Si Fully Supporting
E Not
; Reported at
FEiSr-'"'*'
PH® This Time
Arizona California Hawaii Nevada
Figure 10.3 Designated Use support:
Fish Consumption - Rivers and Streams
10
CO
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c
(0
C/>
3
o
CO
-------
DESIGNATED USES
29,147 acres fully support fish/
shellfish consumption, but are
threatened; 385,094 acres
partially support fish/shellfish
consumption; and 1,208 acres
do not support the fish/shellfish
consumption designated use.
10c. Swimming
California, Arizona, and
Nevada assessed approximately
4 percent of the total river and
stream miles in the three States
for the swimming designated
use. Of the total miles assessed
(18,281 miles), 6,302 miles
fully support swimming; 729
miles fully support swimming,
but are threatened; 9,780 miles
partially support swimming;
and 1,671 miles do not support
swimming.
Approximately 32 percent of
the total lake and reservoir
acreage in California, Arizona,
and Nevada was assessed for
the swimming designated use.
Of the total acreage assessed
(805,824 acres), 202,335 acres
fully support swimming;
19,705 acres fully support
swimming, but are threatened;
579,212 acres partially support
swimming; and 4,572 acres do
not support the swimming
designated use.
Evaluation
The indicators on designated
use attainment are problematic
due to inconsistencies in the
States' Section 305(b) report-
ing. The four States in Region
z
a
Figure 10.4 Designated Use Support:
Fish Consumption - Lakes
600
V)
"O
c
CO
in
500
400
- 300
o
<
H
o
B Not Supporting
C Partially Supporting
Threatened
Fully Supporting
Not
Reported at
This Time
J L
Arizona California Hawaii Nevada
Figure 10.5 Designated Use Support:
Swimming - Rivers and Streams
Not
B Not Supporting
IS Partially Supporting
Threatened
~ Fully Supporting
RePorted at
This Time
Arizona California Hawaii Nevada
flileV st*, nilifiertlalP*o, {^"cisco -
1 * envi*0 eciiori °*t p • ' ca . p. TP
-------
DESIGNATED USES
z
~
o
73
9 use different approaches and
formats for their Section
305(b) reporting that compli-
cate Region-wide aggregation
of data and even year-to-year
comparison of data for a given
State. For example, the State of
California is adopting a new
approach that will involve in-
depth evaluation of a few
selected watersheds in the State
each year, with reevaluation of
watersheds occurring on an
approximately once-every-five-
years basis. Other States in
Region 9 perform cursory
evaluations of their major
watersheds on a more frequent
basis. Section 305(b) reporting
by the different States is also
fraught with year-to-year
inconsistencies related to
budgetary factors. To increase
the incentive for diligence in
monitoring and reporting,
Region 9 is working with the
States to develop strategies for
measuring incremental im-
provement in water quality that
may result from effective
management approaches, even
though the waters may not be
meeting their designated uses.
Figure 10.6 Designated Use Support:
Swimming - Lakes
14 r
12
-o
c
CO
v>
D
o
-t=
10
& 6
E3 Not Supporting
13 Partially Supporting
Threatened
li Fully Supporting
Not
Reported at
This Time
i
Arizona
Hawaii Nevada
0,.l996~/p /,aer*ient tgt 1uali^ ^ ^alinBic«, ,
? martW **ient vizori& 0ts repo*
California
-------
Groundwater Pollutants: Nitrate
i
Description
Nitrate is the most widespread
agricultural contaminant. This
common contaminant of
drinking water wells is a human
health concern because it can
cause methemoglobinemia or
"blue-baby syndrome." Nitrate
is also an environmental
concern, as a potential cause of
nutrient enrichment of surface
waters. High levels of nitrate in
well water typically indicate
that pollution is seeping from
septic tanks, animal wastes,
fertilizers, municipal landfills or
other nonpoint sources.
Definition
For this indicator, we exam-
ined trends in groundwater
nitrate contamination using
drinking water well data from
California Department of
Health Service's Water Quality
Monitoring database (WQM).
The maximum contaminant
level (MCL) for nitrate in
drinking water is 10 mg/L
based on elemental nitrogen (N)
or 45 mg/L based on nitrate
(NO3). We examined trends in
(1) the mean annual concentra-
tion and (2) the percentage of
sampled sources exceeding the
MCL.
Figure 11.1 Number of Groundwater Wells
Sampled for Nitrate
6000
5000
s
0.
4000
E
W
in
ffl
3000
a
3
(O
2000
1000
0
1984
Total # Wells Sampled # First Time Wells Sampled
Figure 11.2 Trends in Nitrate Data from
Groundwater Wells
so r
40
i
E
r 30
o
a5
i 20
c
8
10
1 50
40
30
20
E
a
in
10
1984
*86
¦88
"90
¦92
¦94
"96
Mean Annual Concentration
% Samples Exceeding MCL
L7ttieB st*. nlii*entalP*o, ^nertcy • *. . faanciSCo
x * enPtfO eciion °*t Q • ' ca • p. v*
-------
GROUNDWATER POLLUTANTS! NIT RATE
z
~
n
> Interpretation
The WQM database repre-
sents 34,675 samples from
0 9,191 drinking water wells
sampled between 1984 and
^ 1995. The total number of wells
sampled per year increased
from approximately 1,000 in
* V:; 1984 to approximately 5,000 in
the mid-1990s (Figure 11.1).
Average nitrate concentration
increased from 15-20 mg/L in
the 1980s to 20-25 mg/L in the
early 1990s (Figure 11.2), but
remained well below the 45
mg/L MCL.
Our investigation shows that
approximately 5 to 6 percent of
the total sites sampled each year
had nitrate concentrations
greater than the MCL, even
though new sites were added to
the sampling program over the
years.
Evaluation
The average nitrate concentra-
tion in California groundwater
sources appears to be increasing
slightly over time. This trend
differs from that presented
under indicator IB (Drinking
Water Systems Violating Health
Standards for Nitrate), because
water systems are able to
remedy nitrate MCL
exceedances before the water is
served to the public through
blending. Q
,l996-/p ^enta?
P 20 »?manW ^ierttn>fl
tct rali
-------
~
n
Surface Water Pollutants >
H
0
PD
Description
The cumulative effects of
Clean Water Act municipal and
industrial pollution controls on
the environment are reflected
in concentrations of surface
water pollutants. This indicator
will track changes in levels of
surface water contamination
using data from EPA's Storage
and Retrieval (STORET)
database.
Definition
Figure 12.1 presents contami-
nant data from over 7,500
surface water sampling sites in
Region 9. STORET contains
the results of measurements of
ambient (environmental)
surface water quality con-
ducted by various governmen-
tal agencies. All of the surface
water measurements for three
contaminants - phosphorus,
cadmium, and lead - from sites
in Region 9 that were put into
STORET for the 20-year
period from 1974 through
1994 (a total of more than
150,000 measurements) have
been aggregated to obtain
Region-wide, median annual
values for each constituent.
Figure 12.1 Surface Water Pollutants -
Phosphorous
Interpretation
The data in Figures 12.1
through 12.3 show significant
reductions in each of the three
chemicals at monitored sites
over the 20-year period.
However, caution should be
exercised in interpreting these
results as reflective of actual
environmental conditions. The
data set does not represent a
truly random sampling of
ambient surface water quality
because agency monitoring
efforts usually target areas
suspected of having contamina-
Figure 12.2 Surface Water Pollutants-Cadmium
12 T
W; Kg jto
h—H 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1974 76 78 '80 '82 '84
¦86
•88 "90 "92 "94
Mite® „^entalpt0, »at>rlClJ *te9t nrif>tancisco oi
tl J envti0 Action °n 9 • ' ca . f.
-------
SURFACE WATER POLLUTANTS
z
o
o
30
tion. This will introduce some
bias to the results. Another
potential influence on sample
values over the 20-year period
is detection level. The apparent
downward trend in contaminant
concentrations over the 20-year
monitoring period may actually
reflect the changes in detection
levels of the higher precision
analytical protocols that were
employed during the later
years. In this case, the apparent
downward trend in chemical
concentrations could simply be
an artifact of lower detection
levels.
Evaluation
This large-scale data aggrega-
tion is not considered appropri-
ate for addressing site-specific
water quality issues; however, it
does provide a Region-wide
overview of changes in concen-
trations of these chemicals at
monitored sites. ~
Figure 12.3 Surface Water Pollutants-Lead
60 t
50 -
a> 40
Q.
W
1 30
CO
a>
2 20
o
E
10
1974 '76 '78 '60 '82 '84 '86 '88 '90 '92
'94
996-/p „te* 1ualill/„ fMat inB'c*, ,
-------
Selected Coastal Water Pollutants in Shellfish
Not Reported At This Time
Estuarine Eutrophication Conditions
Not Reported At This Time
rjtite8 itl*entalPto, j)^nc^Co
1 ^ envi*0 ection °>t 9 * ^ ' ca »j)-
-------
Contaminated Sediments:
Sites Posing a Potential Risk to Humans
and Aquatic Life
Description
Certain types of chemicals in
water tend to accumulate in
sediments. Chemicals often
persist longer in sediments than
in water, partly because deposi-
tional conditions might not
favor natural degradation. This
indicator measures the percent-
age of monitored sites with
sediment contamination that
might pose a risk to humans
and aquatic life.
Definition
Region 9 used information
from EPA's National Sediment
Inventory (NSI) to address this
indicator. The goals of the NSI
are to collect sediment quality
data nationwide, identify
potentially contaminated
locations, and describe the
sources of the contamination.
Based on available data, sites are
classified as having (1) a higher
probability of adverse effects
{Tier 1 Stations), (2) an interme-
diate probability of adverse
effects (Tier 2 Stations), or (3)
no indication of potential adverse
effects (Tier 3 Stations).
INTERPRETATION
The NSI data suggest that
sediment contamination is
present in all four of the Region
9 States (Table 15A.1), and that
the majority of the stations (Tier
1 and 2) have at least an inter-
mediate potential for adverse
effects on humans or aquatic
life.
The NSI takes a conservative
approach in assigning Tier
characterizations. For example,
a single measurement of a
chemical at a given station
during the period spanned by
the data set (1980 - 1993)
could result in a Tier 1
characterization.
Tier characterizations were
used to identify areas with the
potential for widespread
contamination (APCs). APCs
are defined as watershed areas
having at least ten Tier 1
stations and where 75 percent
of the stations are characterized
as either Tier 1 or Tier 2.
There are ten APCs in Region
9, all within California: Santa
Monica Bay, Seal Beach, San
Diego Bay, Newport Bay, San
Francisco Bay, Coyote Creek,
offshore areas near Los
Angeles, San Pedro Channel
Islands, Tulare-Buena Vista
Lakes, and Aliso-San Onofre.
These areas fall within three
major California geographic
regions: the southern California
Bight, San Francisco Bay, and
Tulare-Basin. The greatest
Table 15a.1 Characterization of NSI Sampling Stations in Region 9 by State
No. of Stns. % Tier 1 % Tier 2 % Tier 3
ARIZONA 124 35 47 18
CALIFORNIA 1.443 27 57 16
HAWAII 36 22 64 14
NEVADA 144 25 41 34
p 2,0 9? jnartflQ »tent *uitoni* °ts eepO{t
-------
CONTAMINATED SEDIMENTS: SITES POSING A POTENTIAL RISK
TO HUMANS AND AQUATIC LIFE
potential for widespread
contamination appears to be in
San Diego Bay, San Francisco
Bay, and offshore areas near
Los Angeles and San Diego.
Evaluation
The NSI data set is too
limited to make statements
about Region 9 as a whole or
track changes in areal coverage
of contaminated sediments.
The data are heavily weighted
for California and biased
toward ocean and coastal
waters. Little information exists
on sediment contamination in
rivers and streams. The largest
data sets, which are associated
with four major municipal
wastewater treatment plants
discharging into the Southern
California Bight, are from
EPA's Ocean Discharge
Evaluation System (ODES)
database and are fairly old
(1985 data). Sediment contami-
nant concentrations at these
plant outfalls have decreased
substantially since 1985 (see
Indicator 15B).
To be useful for environmen-
tal indicator tracking and to
provide useful data on the
extent of contaminated sedi-
ments in Region 9, the NSI
coverage would have to be
expanded greatly and continu-
ally updated.
Linkages
Further investigation of
problem watersheds identified
by the NSI could potentially
lead to better characterization
of the areal extent of sediment
contamination in Region 9,
better analysis of the contami-
nant sources, and the ability to
track contaminant trends at
given sites over time. By
including sediment monitoring
programs in watershed manage-
ment plans and linking sediment
monitoring to other regulated
programs (e.g., NPDES permit
program), the existing sediment
quality database for Region 9
would expand over time. As
data in the present NSI are
limited and of variable quality,
EPA should commit more
resources to data collection,
entry, and analysis to expand
the coverage of the NSI.
Without this commitment, the
usefulness of NSI data to this
environmental indicator will
continue to be limited. Q
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& J envttG ectiott °n 9 • ^ * ca • j)- *
-------
Contaminated Sediments:
Trends in Contamination of Surficial Sediments
Description
Many chemicals introduced
into the nation's waters tend to
become associated with par-
ticles, which settle and persist
in sediments. Because sedi-
ments are long-term reposito-
ries of chemical contamination
in waterbodies, changes in
concentrations of contaminants
in sediments can be used to
track the effectiveness of point
and nonpoint source pollution
controls.
Definition
No single long-term monitor-
ing program tracks sediment
contamination trends through-
out the entire Region. One of
the best available sediment data
sources for Region 9, NOAA's
National Status and Trends
(NS&T) program, addresses
areas within California only.
Ample evidence exists
showing that contaminant
concentrations in marine
sediments (e.g., DDT, PCBs,
and metals) have dramatically
decreased since the 1970s and
early 1980s (Meams 1993).
Region 9's own NPDES
monitoring data also show that
sediment contaminant concen-
trations near offshore wastewa-
ter treatment plant outfalls
have generally declined to
levels approaching background
concentrations (see Indicator
16A). Several studies relate
reductions in pollutant loadings
to sediment quality improve-
ments in offshore areas (e.g.,
Finney and Huh 1989; Phillips
and Hershelman 1996).
Nevertheless, sediment con-
tamination remains high in the
Region's harbors and bays.
In an attempt to evaluate
sediment contamination trends
in Region 9 harbors and bays,
data was downloaded from the
NS&T benthic surveillance
program for the west coast.
The data span the period from
1984 to 1995 and are from
sites in San Diego Bay, San
Pedro Bay, Santa Monica Bay,
and San Francisco Bay. Data
on concentrations of arsenic,
cadmium, chromium, copper,
lead, and mercury from
sediment sampling sites in each
of these four bays were plotted
over time.
Interpretation
There are no obvious temporal
trends in metals concentrations
at any of the evaluated sites.
As a secondary attempt at
summarizing the NS&T metals
data for Region 9 bays, we
evaluated the potential for
adverse environmental effects
at sites in the four bays by
comparing contaminant
concentrations in these areas to
NOAA's Effects Response
Values (Table 15B.1).
Concentrations below the
ER-L (effects response low)
are associated with minimal
risk. Concentrations above the
ER-M (effects response
median) are in the probable
risk range. Concentrations
between the ER-L and ER-M
are in the possible risk range.
With the exception of chro-
mium and mercury, all of the
metal concentrations are below
the ER-M levels.
EVALUATION
The data generated by the
NS&T program are compa-
rable in quality and therefore
appropriate for evaluating
trends over time. This being
said, there may be several
reasons for the lack of a
temporal trend in the sediment
contaminant data for the four
bays evaluated. Given the
limited number of data points
(a maximum of five at any one
-------
CONTAMINATED SEDIMENTS: TRENDS IN CONTAMINATION
OF SURFICIAL SEDIM E N T S
z
~
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>
Table 15b.1 Summary of Sediment Chemistry Data for San Diego Bay, San
Pedro Bay, Santa Monica Bay, and San Francisco Bay Relative to NOAA's H
Effects response Thresholds (NS&T 1984-1995) 0
3)
er-l
% ABOVE
ER-M
% ABOVE
ARSENIC
8.2
50
70
O
CADMIUM
1.2
6
9.6
0
CHROMIUM
81
54
370
4
COPPER
34
67
270
O
LEAD
25
32
218
0
mercury
0.15
47
0.71
9
location), trends (signal) may
be masked by the inherent
variability of the data (noise). It
is also possible that there has
not been sufficient time
passage over the period of
monitoring for a change in the
contaminant concentrations to
be discernible. This would be
the case if, for example,
removal rates for contaminated
sediments (e.g., due to erosion
or burial) are low relative to
input rates. A third possible
conclusion is that contaminant
concentrations in these areas
have not changed over time.
Linkages
Despite overall improvement
in pollution levels offshore,
sediment contamination in
harbors and bays continues to
occur at levels warranting
concern, and there does not
appear to be a downward trend
in concentrations of contami-
nants.
Sediment contamination is
closely related to point (Indica-
tor 16) and nonpoint source
loadings (Indicator 17). We see
that in California's offshore
waters, reductions in pollutant
loadings are associated with
sediment quality improve-
ments. Unfortunately, data
availability is far less for most
harbors, bays, rivers, and
streams in Region 9. In order
to show linkages between
pollution prevention activities
and sediment contamination,
EPA should continue to
encourage States to integrate
sediment monitoring into their
watershed management
programs. Q
. ni(0*»uUPto „ tyanCiSCo
* envttO*1 eeciiott *9 $> • ' <=a • j). 2,4
-------
Selected Point Source Loadings to Surface Water
Description
This indicator tracks point
source (or "end of pipe")
loadings of contaminants into
surface waters. For Region 9,
major point source dischargers
include municipal treatment
plants and industrial facilities.
Point source discharges are
regulated under the National
Pollutant Discharge Elimination
System (NPDES) permit
program.
Definition
We attempted to estimate
Region-wide point source
loadings of total suspended
solids (TSS) and biochemical
oxygen demand (BOD) into
surface waters from municipal
and non-municipal wastewater
treatment plants using EPA's
Permit Compliance System
(PCS) database. In PCS, TSS
and BOD data are expressed as
30-day averages in units of
milligrams per liter (mg/L).
Flow is expressed as a monthly
average in million gallons per
day (MGD). To obtain load-
ings in units of metric tons per
year (MT/yr), average annual
flow was multiplied by the
average annual concentration
of each parameter. Reporting
requirements, including
frequency of reporting to PCS,
vary among permit holders;
therefore, some degree of
error is introduced into Region-
wide loadings calculations
through aggregation of annual
averages.
We compared the aggregated,
Region-wide TSS and BOD
loadings values derived from
PCS with two other sources
of loadings data: the 1994
Discharge Monitoring Re-
ports (DMRs) for 14 major
publicly-owned waste treat-
ment works (POTWs) in
Region 9 and the Southern
California Coastal Water
Research Project (SCCWRP)
annual report. The 14 major
facilities selected for review
of DMR data include the four
largest POTWs in each of the
States of California, Arizona,
and Nevada, and the two
largest POTWs in Hawaii.
SCCWRP's annual report
tracks loadings by the four
largest wastewater treatment
plants in California (and EPA
Region 9): the POTWs for
the City of Los Angeles, Los
Angeles County, Orange
County, and City of San
Diego.
Interpretation
For 1994, PCS data indicate
that total loadings of TSS and
BOD into Region 9's surface
waters from NPDES permit
Table 16A.1 Estimates of Point Source Loadings of Biochemical Oxygen
Demand and Total Suspended Solids to Region 9 Waterways During
Calendar Year 1994 (PCS)
TSS (MUNICIPAL) 80.463 MT/YR BOD (MUNICIPAL) 135,450 MT/YR
TSS (INDUSTRIAL) 11,000 MT/YR BOD (INDUSTRIAL) 10.060 MT/YR
TOTAL TSS 91,463 MT/YR TOTAL BOD 145.510 MT/YR
j996-/Po «eVienta9*e tdmtocn, ,
-p. ^ ^7 maG?**ent G?*vizot%llX °*s zepoc
-------
SELECTED POINT SOURCE LOADINGS TO SlIRFAC E WATER
holders were 91,463 MT/yr
and 145,510 MT/yr, respec-
tively, with the bulk of these
loadings (approximately 88
percent of the total TSS and 93
percent of the BOD) coming
from municipal dischargers
(Table 16A.1). However, these
data appear to underrepresent
the total, Region-wide mass
loadings of TSS and BOD into
surface waters from NPDES
permit holders. According to
the DMRs for the 14 major
POTWs, combined loadings of
TSS and BOD during 1994
were 80,390 MY/yr and
153,057 MT/yr, respectively;
the SCCWRP annual report
indicates that combined TSS
and BOD loadings from the
four southern California
dischargers in 1994 were
68,126 MT/yr and 131,937
MT/yr, respectively. These
values suggest that reporting
into PCS is incomplete,
particularly because BOD
loadings for the 14 major
POTWs exceed the Region-
wide value calculated from the
PCS data.
Figures 16A.1 and 16A.2
present annual, combined
loadings of TSS and BOD,
respectively, from the 14
selected POTWs for the years
1989 through 1994. These
apparent trends are dwarfed by
the reductions in loadings that
were accomplished during the
early period following promul-
2
~
gation of the Clean Water Act.
Using the four Southern
California dischargers as an
example, in the 1970s TSS
concentrations from the four
municipal dischargers combined
ranged from around 250,000 to
close to 300,000 MT/yr
(compared to 1994 value of
68,126 MT/yr) and BOD
concentrations were generally
around 250,000 MT/yr (com-
pare to 131,937 MT/yr in
1994).
Evaluation
PCS is a useful database for
tracking trends in loadings from
individual discharge facilities,
and TSS and BOD are good
indicators of plant performance.
However, we believe that there
is limited value in tracking
Region-wide loadings of TSS
and BOD, because neither
constituent is innately toxic, and
the effects of TSS and BOD on
water quality depend on the
capacity of the environment to
assimilate loadings. In Region
9, the bulk of the TSS and
BOD loadings are from
POTWs that discharge to the
ocean, which has a large
capacity to accommodate both
suspended solids and BOD.
There may be more value in
tracking toxic loadings (e.g.,
metals and organic compounds)
to the environment; however,
use of PCS for estimating
Region-wide loadings of other
parameters is more limited due
O
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H
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x
figure 16a.i Estimated TSS loadings From
Municipal Wastewater Discharges
350 r
PCS Data
-B-
SCCWRP 14 POTWs
^ of*' «. . f. *
-------
SELECTED POINT SOURCE LOADINGS TO SUR FACE WATER
z
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H
0
3
to variability in plant reporting
frequencies and facility monitor-
ing requirements. Given this
variability, it may be more
appropriate in the future to base
tracking for this indicator on
pollutant loadings data for a
selected group of point source
dischargers in the Region, or for
selected water bodies, instead of
attempting Region-wide data
aggregations. Q
Figure 16a.2 Estimated BOD Loadings from
Municipal Wastewater Discharges
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CO
® -S3
a ?
i S
o P
E
-------
Point Source Loadings To Groundwater
Through Class V Wells
n
>
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PO
Description
Major sources of pollution to
groundwater are septic systems,
cesspools, or dry wells used to
dispose of industrial and
commercial wastewater. The
Underground Injection Control
(UIC) program was established
to protect drinking water from
underground disposal of
harmful wastes. Closures of
Class V wells that pose a threat
to underground sources of
drinking water (USDWs) may
occur on a voluntary basis or as
a result of an EPA enforcement
action.
Definition
Federal law requires facilities
to report their use of a shallow
injection disposal system (or
Class V wells) to EPA.
We know of 63 Class V well
closures during FY 96. There
have been in fact more clo-
sures than this number reflects,
but an effective tracking
system is not currently in place
within the States of this
Region. Much of the work in
California is at the county
level, for example. A vast
number of the Class V wells
still remains, including the
agricultural and storm water
drainage wells, and the septic
leachfield wells. Many of these
are not tracked through a
regulatory system. Until viable
disposal alternatives to these
older, historical practices
become available, it will be
difficult to implement closure
of these wells. Q
ti. n1tft*ntal Pt0, ArfW%te9t „ $tancise
1 J envrt0 ectiott °ft 9 • & '
ca
il
-------
Nonpoint Source Loadings to Surface Waters
Not Reported At This Time
-------
Marine Debris
~
O
Description
Marine debris includes trash
left behind by visitors to the
beach, discarded from boats,
carried by inland waterways to
the coast, or conveyed by
overflowing sewer or storm
systems. As an indicator,
marine debris can show (1)
early warning signs of possible
human health risk associated
with pollution, (2) biological
health risk such as entangle-
ment or ingestion by wildlife,
(3) limits on coastal recreation
and fishing, (4) the effective-
ness of programs designed to
control or prevent marine
debris, (5) the aesthetic value
of a coastal area and the
economy it supports, (6)
ambient condition, and (7)
human health risks through
entanglement, injury, or
exposure to medical waste.
Definition
The National Marine Debris
Monitoring Program is coordi-
nated by the Center for Marine
Conservation (CMC) and
supported by EPA, the National
Marine Fisheries Service, the
National Park Service, and the
U.S. Coast Guard. To address
the marine debris indicator in
>
H
o
Region 9 coastal areas, the
annual report of the results of
the International Coastal
Cleanup was referenced. That
one-day event depends upon
volunteer participation, and the
total miles of coast cleaned and
volume of debris collected vary
from year to year. Information
related to the baseline condition
of coastal areas cleaned prior to
the annual event (e.g., the
period of time since each area
was last cleaned) is not in-
cluded in the report. Therefore,
it would be inappropriate to use
the volume data in the report to
infer trends in marine debris
volume in Region 9. Although
other sources of data are
needed for valid tracking of
marine debris volume, the
International Coastal Cleanup's
data on the composition and
sources of the debris collected
in Region 9 during the annual
event are presented.
Interpretation
The International Coastal
Cleanup data presented for
Region 9 represent 784 sites
covering 567 miles of coastline.
Of the total area covered within
Region 9,480 miles were in
California; 82 miles were in
Hawaii; and 5 miles were in
Guam.
The composition of debris
from the 784 sites in Region 9
Figure 18.1 Composition of Debris from 1995
Beach Cleanup
Plastic 58.2*
Mited sut „^ntalP?o, %te9* ca* franc*sCo „
J envit°n *ection °n 9 • ' ca . p. ™
-------
M A R I N E DEBRIS
z
~
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H
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33
was as follows (Figure 18.1):
plastic items comprised 58.2
percent of the total; paper
comprised 16 percent; metal
comprised 9.6 percent; glass
comprised 9.2 percent; rubber
comprised 2.6 percent; and
cloth comprised 1.9 percent.
Types or sources of the
debris collected in Region 9
were (Figure 18.2): 63.2
percent from bottles, 12.9
percent from ship galleys, 10.7
percent from commercial
fishing, 5.7 percent from
operations, 2.1 percent from
sewage, and .5 percent from
medical.
Evaluation
Marine debris encompasses a
wide assortment of man-made
materials that float, are sus-
pended in the water, or are
deposited on beaches. Debris
enters the marine environment
through land- and ocean-based
sources. Typical land-based
sources include municipal
waste treatment facilities,
recreational activities (e.g.,
beach use), and improper solid
waste disposal. Ocean-based
sources include recreational and
commercial boaters and
fishermen, offshore mineral
exploration, and merchant and
military vessels.
Plastic continues to be the
most abundant type of debris in
Region 9 coastal areas. The
presence of bottles and associ-
ated goods is thought to be
Figure 18.2 TYpes or Sources of Debris from
1995 Beach Cleanup
Bottles
-
Commercial Fishing
'* >T! ; f
- . • ;i ps.
Recreational Fishing
I
Galley
Operations
¦
Sewage
¦
Medical
0 10
20
30
40
50
60
70
% Total Items Collected
primarily due to inadequate
management of solid waste,
especially recyclable materials.
Plastic, glass and metal bottles
and cans, plastic ring carriers,
and metal bottle caps and pull
tabs all represent consumables
for which recycling is prefer-
able to discarding as waste.
Linkages
Combined Sewer Overflows
(CSOs) and storm water
discharges may release debris
into waterways episodically
during periods of heavy rain or
routinely due to improper
system operation. In 1989,
EPA developed the National
Combined Sewer Overflow
Control Strategy, which
establishes a uniform, nation-
ally consistent approach to
developing and issuing National
Pollutant Discharge Elimination
System (NPDES) permits for
CSOs, and implements CWA
provisions regarding CSOs and
controls of CSO discharges.
NOAA has sponsored
research into methods for
permanently marking fishing
gear (e.g., nets, traps, and
monofilament line) to ensure
that gear lost or discarded by
commercial fishermen can be
tracked to its source. Many
public awareness and education
campaigns aimed at controlling
debris releases by beach users
and the general public in
coastal areas have also been
initiated. Q
r-
„. 1996-/Qr *rtrienla&t- , et ienl vitoti^ °es tefO1
-------
Water Recycling In Coastal Areas
Description
Particularly in water-short
areas such as EPA Region 9,
the efficient use of water
resources is becoming increas-
ingly important as demand
continues to rise for available
water supplies. Along with
other water conservation
measures, water recycling is a
sustainable solution for increas-
ing the availability of water for
environmental needs, as well as
for meeting the water supply
demands of urban areas and
agriculture.
Definition
The level of water recycling
in Region 9 is difficult to
quantify, as there are no
Federal regulatory or other
reporting requirements for
water recycling. In addition, in
many cases it is difficult to
distinguish between wastewater
disposal and water recycling,
particularly in inland areas. In
many inland areas, nearly all
wastewater discharged will
eventually be reused, either
directly or indirectly. In coastal
areas, wastewater is often
discharged to the ocean. Since
ocean disposal of wastewater is
clearly a waste of a potential
freshwater resource, the
following discussion focuses on
water reuse in coastal areas of
Region 9.
Interpretation/
Evaluation
Hawaii
The Hawaii Department of
Health (DOH) has set a goal
for the State of recycling 25
percent of the total domestic
wastewater treated. The DOH
collects data on the total
domestic wastewater treated
and total wastewater reused, by
project, on a yearly basis.
According to these data (Figure
19.1), 7.2 percent of Hawaii's
wastewater was recycled in
1995. In future years, DOH's
data should allow the determi-
nation of whether significant
progress toward increasing
water recycling in the State is
being made.
CALIFORNIA
In California, the State
Legislature set a goal for water
recycling with the passage of
the Water Recycling Act of
1991. The goal is to achieve
700,000 acre-feet per year
(AFY) of water recycling by
the year 2000 and to surpass
one million AFY by the year
2010. The most recent data
compiled to measure
California's progress is the
WateReuse Association of
California's 1993 survey,
entitled "Future Water Recy-
cling Potential." In future
surveys, the California Depart-
ment of Water Resources
(DWR) will work with the
WateReuse Association to
complete a survey every two
years for inclusion in the DWR
"California Water Plan Up-
date." In fact, the results of the
1995 survey are currently being
compiled and will be incorpo-
rated into the next "California
Water Plan Update."
The following data from the
1993 WateReuse Survey
(Figure 19.2) are for coastal
regions of the California
Regional Water Quality Control
Boards, which include the
North Coast Region (Region
1), the San Francisco Bay
Region (Region 2), the Central
Coast Region (Region 3), the
Los Angeles Region (Region
4), the Santa Ana Region
(Region 8), and the San Diego
Region (Region 9). In addition
to reporting current (1993)
water recycling, survey respon-
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7)
WATER RECYCLING IN COASTAL ARE A S
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Figure 19.1 Water Recycling in Hawaii Coastal
Areas
30
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13
*ent ^
.Mil inSic
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WATER RE CYCLING IN COASTAL AREAS
73
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Figure 19.2 Water Recycling in California 2
Coastal Areas v,
1.4 r
1993 "Ultimate"
73
^ e„,UC^nU"^eclion at""' 9 . * . f. »
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Acronyms and Abbreviations
ADEQ - Arizona Department of
Environmental Quality
BOD - Biochemical Oxygen
Demand
CMC - Center for Marine
Conservation
CSO - Combined Sewer
Overflow
ER-L - Effects Response - Low
ER-M - Effects Response -
Median
FDA ¦ Food and Drug
Administration
GIS ¦ Geographic Information
Systems
HIDOH - Hawaii Department of
Health
MCL - Maximum Contaminant
Level for Drinking Water
MG/L- milligram per liter
MGD - Million Gallons
per Day
MT/Y - Metric Tons per Year
NDEP - Nevada Division of
Environmental Protection
NOAA - National
Oceanographic and Atmospheric
Administration
NPDES - National Pollutant
Discharge Elimination System
NRCS - Natural Resources
Conservation Service
NSI ¦ National Sediment
Inventory
NS8cT -NOAA's National Status
and Trends program
ODES - EPA's Ocean Discharge
Evaluation System database
PPB - part per billion
PPM - part per million
PCS - EPA's Permit Compliance
System database
POTW - Publicly Owned
Treatment Works
RBP ¦ Rapid Bioassessment
Protocols
Region 9 ¦ U.S. EPA
Region 9
SCCWRP - Southern
California Coastal Water
Research Project
SDWIS - Safe Drinking Water
Information System
STORET-EPA's STOrage and
RETrieval database
SWRCB - California State
Water Resources Control Board
SWTR ¦ Surface Water
Treatment Rule
TCR- Total Coliform Rule
TSS - Total Suspended Solids
UIC - Underground Injection
Control
U.S. ACOE - United States
Army Corps of Engineers
U.S. EPA ¦ United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
U.S. FWS - United States Fish
and Wildlife Service
WQM - State of California's
Water Quality Monitoring
database for drinking water
WHPP - Wellhead Protection
Program
. l996-/0„ orient aat .tauality iiidi-
j}.^ ? marta$ e»ientrOfi enviton*% °?s tepo*
-------
References
Akazawa, E. Hawaii Department
of Health Services, personal
communication.
Center for Marine Conserva-
tion. 1996. 1995 International
Coastal Cleanup. Center for
Marine Conservation. Washing-
ton, D.C. June 1996.
Curran, J. Nevada Department
of Wildlife, personal communi-
cation.
Dahlberg, M. Arizona Game and
Fish Department, personal
communication.
Finney, B.P. and Huh, C.A.
1989. History of metal pollu-
tion in the Southern California
Bight: An update. Environ. Sci.
Technol. 23:294-303.
Long, E.R. and L.G. Morgan.
1990. The potential for biologi-
cal effects of sediment-sorbed
contaminants tested in the
National Status and Trends
Program. NOAA tech. memo.
NOS OMA 52. National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration.
Mearns, A. 1993 Trends in the
Southern California Bight: The
Coast is Cleaner in Coastal Zone
*93 Proceedings, 8th Symposium
on Coastal and Ocean Manage-
ment. ASCE. New Orleans, LA.
July 19-23, 1993.
NOAA. 1997. The 1995 Na-
tional Shellfish Register of
Classified Estuarine Waters.
Draft. National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration,
National Ocean Service, Office
of Oceanography and Marine
Assessment.
NOAA. 1991. Contaminant
Trends in the Southern Califor-
nia Bight: Inventory and
Assessment. National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration.
Technical Memorandum NDS
ORCA 62. Seattle, Washington.
October 1991.
NOAA. 1991. The 1990
National Shellfish Register of
Classified Estuarine Waters.
National Oceanic and Atmo-
spheric Administration, National
Ocean Service, Office of
Oceanography and Marine
Assessment.
Phillips, C. and P. Hershelman.
1996. Recent trends in sediment
metal concentrations near a
large wastewater outfall off
Orange County, California.
Water Env. Res. 68:105-114.
SCCWRP. 1996. Southern
California Coastal Water
Research Project. Annual Report
1994-95.
See, T. State of Hawaii, Depart-
ment of Health, personal commu-
nication.
Storm, D. L. 1994. Chemical
Monitoring of California's
Public Drinking Water Sources:
Public Exposures and Health
Impacts In Wang, R.G.M., ed.
Water Contamination and
Health Integration of Exposure
Assessment, Toxicology and Risk
Assessment Marcel Decker,
Inc., N.Y.
U.S. EPA. 1995. National
Listing of Fish Consumption
Advisories. U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency. Office of
Science and Technology, Wash-
ington, D.C.
U.S. EPA. 1996. Environmental
Goals for America: With
Milestones for 2005. U.S.
Environmental Protection
Agency, Office of Policy,
Planning, and Evaluation. Wash-
ington, D.C. Government Review
Draft.
U.S. EPA. 1996. National
Sediment Quality Survey: A
report to congress on the extent
and severity of sediment
contamination in surface waters
of the United States. U.S.
Environmental Protection
Agency. Office of Science and
Technology Washington, D.C.
EPA-823-D-96-002.
U.S. EPA. 1996. Summary of
State Biological Assessment
Programs for Streams and
Rivers. U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, Office of
Planning and Evaluation. Wash-
ington, D.C.
WateReuse Association of
California. 1993. WateReuse
Association of California 1993
Survey: Future Water Recycling
Potential. July 1993.
.tited sta, P*o, ^ j)^nci^c0 ,.e,
1 J envi*0 ectiott °*t p • • j). &
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PREPARED BY THE U.S. EPA REGION 9, WATER DIVISION,
MONITORING AND ASSESSMENT OFFICE
Contributors
Judy Bloom, Patrick Chan, Allen Demorest,
Olof Hansen (Bureau of Reclamation), Carey Houk, Ed Liu,
George Pappas (1SSI, inc.), Mark Rathbun, George Robin,
Bill Robberson, Alisa Wong, Nancy Yoshikawa, Marvin Young
Cover Photos
EPA Journal, Summer 1994, Volume 20, Number 1-2
Steve Delaney, EPA
Mike Brisson
Production and Major Authors
Diana Woods, Project Manager
Terrence Fleming
Janet Hashimoto
Graphics and Layout
Jalayne McCune and Patte Loper
tet I™1"*,
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