Bulletin No. 32, South Coastal Basin

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | January 1st, 1930

Bulletin No. 52-B Salinas Basin Investigation Summary Report

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | December 13th, 1946

The Board of Supervisors and the Flood Control and Water Conservation Conmittee of the County of Monterey became concerned in April 1944 over the intrusion of saline wate

The Board of Supervisors and the Flood Control and Water Conservation Conmittee of the County of Monterey became concerned in April 1944 over the intrusion of saline water in the ground water supply utilized for irrigation, domestic and industrial purposes in the lower reaches of the Salinas Basin near Monterey Bay. The entire agricultural and urban development in the basin depends on an adequate supply of ground water of good quality. There had been some abandonment of wells in the Salinas Basin near the bay shore due to excessive salinity as early as 1938. Accelerated encroachment of the contamination occurred in 1943, and the matter was brought to public attention in 1944. The County of Monterey and the Department of Public Works, State of California, executed a contract on July 10, 1944, providing for maintenance in cooperation an investigation of the water resources of the Salinas Valley in Monterey County and conditions relative thereto which obtain in the valley or affect the water supplies available therefor. It further provides that the Department shall prepare a report based on the investigation setting forth the physical facts pertinent to water supply and to salt water Intrusion, and if possible, incorporate findings as to a method or methods of solving the problems involved.

Bulletin No. 58 Northeastern Counties Investigation

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | December 3rd, 1957

Bulletin No. 60, Report to the California State Legislature Pursuant to the Abshire-Kelly Salinity Control Act of 1952 on the Feasibility of Construction by the State of Barriers in the San Francisco Bay System

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | March 29th, 1957

Bulletin No. 76, Report to the California State Legislature on the Delta Water Facilities as an Integral Feature of the State Water Resources Development System

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | December 1st, 1960

Bulletin No. 81 Intrusion of Salt Water into Ground Water Basins of Southern Alameda County

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | December 31st, 1960

Cal-EPA: An Umbrella for the Environment

Little Hoover Commission | June 1st, 1991

Cal-EPA was created to consolidate environmental programs and concentrate on vigorous enforcement of environmental regulations. The report discusses risk assessment activ

Cal-EPA was created to consolidate environmental programs and concentrate on vigorous enforcement of environmental regulations. The report discusses risk assessment activities, uniform permit processes, public involvement, and the advantages and consequences of bringing all environmental entities into Cal-EPA. In addition, the Commission addresses the short- and long-term costs and savings. The Cal-EPA report has seven findings and seven recommendations.

CALFED Bay-Delta Program, Programmatic Record of Decision

California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) | August 28th, 2000

The CALFED Bay-Delta Program is an unprecedented effort to build a framework for managing California’s most precious natural resource: water. California and the Federal

The CALFED Bay-Delta Program is an unprecedented effort to build a framework for managing California’s most precious natural resource: water. California and the Federal government in partnership, are launching the largest, most comprehensive water management program in the world. This is the most complex and extensive ecosystem restoration project ever proposed. It is also one of the most intensive water conservation efforts ever attempted. It is the most far-reaching effort to improve the drinking water quality of millions of Californians as well as an unprecedented commitment to watershed restoration. And it is the most significant investment in storage and conveyance in decades. This document is the Record of Decision (ROD) for addressing these efforts through a sustained, long-term effort by the CALFED Agencies and stakeholder groups.

Calibration of the Multivariate AZTI Marine Biotic Index (M-AMBI) for Potential Inclusion into California Sediment Quality Objective Assessments in San Francisco Bay

San Francisco Estuary Institute (SFEI) | April 30th, 2019

Benthic infauna are the most common faunal assemblage used to assess habitat quality across the globe as they demonstrate relatively predictable community-scale changes i

Benthic infauna are the most common faunal assemblage used to assess habitat quality across the globe as they demonstrate relatively predictable community-scale changes in both structure and function when exposed to stress. Due to these characteristics, benthic infauna are used as one of three lines of evidence in California’s Sediment Quality Objectives (CASQO) to assess the impact of toxic chemicals to biotic resources in the State’s enclosed bays and estuaries. The changes in benthic community composition related to disturbance are quantified using benthic assessment indices. 

California Bay - Delta Authority Fish Mercury Project: The Relationship between Landscape Features and Sport Fish Mercury in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Watershed

San Francisco Estuary Institute (SFEI) | November 2nd, 2007

The goal of this study was to quantify the relationship between landscape features and mercury in sport fish. We hypothesized that spatial variation in sport fish mercury

The goal of this study was to quantify the relationship between landscape features and mercury in sport fish. We hypothesized that spatial variation in sport fish mercury would most strongly relate to major point sources associated with mining activity, habitat features (e.g., abundance of wetlands), and watershed-scale patterns in mercury deposition from the atmosphere. Geographic information system (GIS) techniques were used to evaluate the influence of these features on the bioaccumulation of mercury in sport fish. In addition, we attempted to determine the most appropriate spatial scale for analysis of these influences. Fish mercury data were selected from a state-wide historical bioaccumulation database, which also included data collected by the Fish Mercury Project (FMP) in 2005. Based on the geographic distribution of the sampling locations, three species common across the study area were chosen for analysis: largemouth bass, channel catfish, and white catfish. For the time interval examined (1990 – 2005), the mean wet weight concentration for each species at a given location was calculated. By superimposing hydrologic flow paths with watershed delineations, we were able to determine flow direction and pathways from upstream sources to downstream habitats. “Fish watersheds” (watershed areas upstream of fish sampling locations) were created for a subset of locations in the CalFed Ecosystem Restoration Program Geographic Scope. Regions heavily influenced by mining within each watershed were also delineated. We examined landscape features in fish watersheds and within close proximity (circular buffers) of fish locations. Using a GIS database, several statistics were derived for each fish watershed area and buffer, including the percent covered by habitat features (vegetated vs. non-vegetated wetlands, permanent vs. temporary inundation), number of gold and mercury mines, total land area (km2), and total length (km) of all streams and rivers. The work presented in this report is the first attempt the authors are aware of to relate landscape features to fish mercury concentrations using GIS on a large regional scale. Fish mercury concentrations appeared to be influenced by many complex and interacting factors that obscured any obvious correlations with atmospheric deposition, historic mining districts, and wetlands at the watershed scale. Some features seemed to have an influence at the proximal-scale (buffer) analyses, namely vegetated wetland and temporarily inundated aquatic habitat. Though these tentative conclusions were based on small sample sizes, they contradicted the prevailing notion that wetlands generally increase methylmercury accumulation in the food web. The lack of clear relationships in the dataset analyzed is probably due to shortcomings in the available data, rather than a true absence of influence of atmospheric deposition, mining, or wetlands on spatial patterns in mercury bioaccumulation. Future attempts to relate landscape features with mercury in the food web at the watershed scale should focus on watersheds with a stronger linkage between landscape features and mercury in fish and fewer confounding factors. Statewide monitoring of sport fish is currently being planned that should provide a better basis for conducting this type of analysis in the future.