*
Section 319
NONPOINT SOURCE PROGRAM SOCGESS STORY
National Park Service Reduces Bacteria Sources at Whiskeytown
Lake Beaches
\A/ K r\ I r\ VVhiskeytown Lake is a popular swimming spot in the Whiskeytown
VVat( DOdy I >rOVea Nationa| ReCreation Area in the Clear Creek watershed of Northern
California. Water sampling in the late 1980s showed fecal coliform bacteria levels above water qual-
ity standards at some of the more popular beaches, prompting California to add the lake to the Clean
Water Act (CWA) section 303(d) list of impaired waters in 1990. Potential sources of fecal contamina-
tion included large numbers of swimmers, animals (pets, bears and geese), and unsatisfactory waste
management. The National Park Service (Park Service) addressed those sources of contamination
by implementing a range of management practices that have improved water quality. As a result,
California removed Whiskeytown Lake from its list of impaired waters in 2010.
Problem
Whiskeytown Lake swimming beaches at Brandy
Creek and Oak Bottom are popular recreation
areas approximately 15 miles west of Redding,
California. In the summer months, Whiskeytown
Lake (Figure 1) provides 36 miles of shoreline and
3,200 surface acres for recreation. Beginning in the
late 1980s Central Valley Regional Water Quality
Control Board (Water Board) staff conducted
water quality sampling that showed elevated fecal
coliform numbers at those beaches during high
visitation weekends.
Three primary sources of fecal matter at the
beaches were identified: (1) many visitors and inad-
equate sanitation facilities composed of portable
restrooms that were used reluctantly and prone to
spills; (2) inadequate garbage facilities, which led to
scattering of waste (including disposable diapers)
by animals; and (3) problematic levels of animal
waste from pets and wildlife.
Because of the water sampling results and multiple
sources of fecal contamination, California placed
Whiskeytown Lake on the CWA section 303(d) list of
impaired waters for fecal contamination in 1990.
Project Highlights
To address the problem, the Park Service started
a long-term water quality monitoring program and
developed and implemented improved manage-
ment measures to address the many sources
of fecal contamination. Beginning in the 1990s,
Water Board staff worked collaboratively with Park
Figure 1. Whiskeytown Lake's Brandy Creek swimming beach
Service staff and provided input on monitoring and
techniques to reduce the nonpoint source pollution.
The partners implemented the following measures
at popular beaches:
Capped visitation at the affected beaches.
Added parking capacity limits and user fees to
reduce and disperse park visitors.
Improved sanitation facilities. Upgraded toilets
and wastewater facilities, including new pipe-
lines, new toilets, washing features and a new
wastewater treatment system with a 5-million-
gallon tank. Installed floating toilets for boaters.
Improved solid waste management. Installed
wildlife-proof garbage cans, which reduced
numbers of bears and raccoons at the beach and
reduced scattering of human waste by wildlife.
-------
Banned dogs
from main swim-
ming beaches
(Figure 2).
Modified con-
tours of the inner
beach at Brandy
Creek to enhance
water circulation.
Barred swimmers
from an area with
restricted water
circulation.
Figure 2. The Park Service
banned dogs from beach
areas to reduce potential
sources of bacteria.
Created and distributed public information flyers
regarding protection of water quality (use of
swim diapers for kids and admonition against
feeding geese).
Improved cleanup of waste on the beaches.
Results
coliform as the pathogen load indicator. However,
plans are under consideration to change the Basin
Plan to the more widely used Escherichia coli stan-
dard (235 most probable number [MPN] maximum
and 126 MPN mean). Because the Park Service had
an extensive collection of Whiskeytown Lake £ coli
monitoring data, project partners worked to ensure
that the £ coli and fecal coliform data were compara-
ble. They collected 15 fecal coliform samples in 2007
and compared them with £ coli results. The analysis
indicated that testing for£ coli is comparable or
more sensitive than fecal coliform analysis at low
levels. Analysis of 45 water samples collected from
2006 through 2007 shows no exceedances of the
single sample limit of 235 MPN of £ coli (Table 1).
On the basis of the management measures
implemented and the demonstrated reduction in
fecal coliform contamination, California proposed
removing Whiskeytown Lake from the CWA section
303d list of impaired waters in 2008. The lake was
delisted in 2010.
Water quality (fecal coliform) monitoring conducted
by Park Service staff, and confirmed by additional
Water Board staff sampling, show successful
reduction in bacterial contamination at the popular
Brandy Creek and Oak Bottom swimming beaches
after the nonpoint source pollution control mea-
sures were implemented.
The current Central Valley Water Quality Control Plan
(also known as a Basin Plan) standard uses fecal
Partners and Funding
This success story is a result of sustained efforts by
the Park Service to improve management and moni-
toring of the popular swimming beaches and effec-
tive collaboration between the Park Service and
the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control
Board. Partial funding for water quality monitor-
ing and Water Board technical participation was
provided through the CWA section 319 program.
Table 1. Whiskeytown Lake combined Park Service and Water Board data;
E. coli results summary (2005-2007)
Location
Year (May to Sept. period)
Total Number of samples
(sample size)
Number of intervals that
exceed geometric mean
(126 MPN Eco//)
Number of samples that
exceed single sample
limit (235 MPN E. coli)
Delisting criteria:
Number of exceedances
allowed for sample size*
Brandy Creek
Beach
£
o
CV]
93
0
2
15
to
§
(TM
90
0
3
14
s
<=J
CV]
51
0
0
8
East Beach
r-
<=>
e
evj
52
0
0
8
to
evj
52
0
0
8
£
»
evj
34
0
0
5
Oak Bottom
Beach
r
<=>
e
evi
38
0
0
6
§
»
evi
27
0
0
4
£
«
evi
17
0
0
N/A
Whiskey Creek
Beach
r
O
o
CV1
26
0
0
4
s
«
CV]
27
0
0
4
s
»
CV1
17
0
0
N/A
Water Quality Control Policy, Table 4.2, adopted September 2004
Ill
o
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Water
Washington, DC
EPA841-F-11-001MM
September 2011
For additional information contact:
Brian Rasmussen
Whiskeytown National Recreation Area
530-242-3444 brian_rasmussen@nps.gov
Guy Chetelat
Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board
530-224-4997 gchetelat@waterboards.ca.gov
------- |