Conserving California’s Coastal Habitats: A Legacy and a Future with Sea Level Rise

Nature Conservancy | May 15th, 2018

The California coast that we know today will not be the coast of the future. Sea level rise and other climate change impacts will have profound effects on o

The California coast that we know today will not be the coast of the future. Sea level rise and other climate change impacts will have profound effects on our coastline and its natural resources. California harbors high numbers of native, rare, and imperiled species in an array of unique coastal habitats. A majority of California’s coastline exists as natural habitat, over one-third of which has been preserved by a legacy of conservation efforts. Yet, this conservation legacy is at risk and we must act now to conserve the unique values of California’s coast—for both people and nature—into the future. To inform current and future adaptation decisions and conservation actions we conducted the first statewide, comprehensive assessment of the vulnerability of California’s coastal habitats, imperiled species, and conservation lands to sea level rise. Coastal habitats exist in narrow bands at the land-sea interface and are therefore extremely susceptible to inundation by sea level rise. However, some habitats may be able to adapt vertically and possibly move inland, assuming local topography and the built environment do not constrain this movement. We assessed the vulnerability of 40 habitats to sea level rise by quantifying the sensitivity and spatial extent of projected exposure of each habitat patch to intertidal and subtidal waters, relative to its ability to move inland in response to rising sea levels.

Considerations for Management of the Mouth State of California’s Bar-built Estuaries

Southern California Wetlands Recovery Project | January 10th, 2019

Bar-built estuaries are the dominant estuary type in California, and many of these small estuaries are subject to closure with a sand barrier separating a lagoon

Bar-built estuaries are the dominant estuary type in California, and many of these small estuaries are subject to closure with a sand barrier separating a lagoon estuary from the ocean for days, months or even years. In the lagoon impounded behind the sand barrier, water levels may rise or fall depending on net water budget and water quality extremes may develop. These conditions and the obstruction of fish passage motivate managed breaching of the sand barrier in many systems statewide – an intervention that alleviates or preempts environmental problems, but which also can result in undesirable secondary impacts due to the acute effect of a single breach or the chronic effect of repeated breaching over years. Management decisions are based on an implicit trade-off between anticipated benefits and costs that depend on the values and priorities of stakeholders. This report was written to provide an overview of considerations for managed breaching in California. It presents a synthesis of processes and phenomena related to mouth closure and breaching in general and uses this to identify potential impacts of breaching, without intending any judgment of which impacts are more or less desirable. Three specific systems are reviewed in detail: Los Peñasquitos Lagoon in San Diego County, Scott Creek Estuary in San Mateo County and Russian River Estuary in Sonoma County. While there are fundamental similarities in the closure and breaching cycle across all bar-built estuaries statewide, there is also an immense diversity between these systems due to differences in size, in hydrology (wet north to dry south), and in development (rural, urban, agricultural, road/rail). The local community is likely to develop the best management strategy where there is significant effort and experience in local monitoring, science, and stakeholder consultation. However, where there is limited monitoring, science or consultation, the considerations outlined in this report provide preliminary guidance – and comparison with one of the study systems can provide more specific insight to the potential impacts of breaching management decisions. We synthesize current understanding related to how mouth state influences estuary functions and conditions, which in turn affect ecological services. While both natural and managed breaching affect many processes and phenomena in the estuary, breaching events and managed breaching regimes do not occur in isolation and many other factors affect the estuary functions and conditions, including freshwater inputs, the adjacent landscape, and stressors in the watershed. However, managed breaching is one of very few short-term management options and therefore a valuable adaptive management tool, specifically in systems that are already perturbed or impacted by human encroachment. Although emergency breaches may be required in rare occasions, our recommendation is to develop a breaching strategy for specific systems in which breaching has been used or in which it is likely to be used as a management tool. In this context, we recommend ways in which science can provide improved support for management decisions and identify a few systems in California in which there is already a well-developed, science-based management plan. Associated document: "Wetlands on the Edge: The Future of Southern California's Wetlands - Regional Strategy 2018"

Considering Water Use Efficiency for the Environmental Sector

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | April 29th, 2010

The goal of this report is to provide a starting point from which the water planning community can move toward improving the allocation of water within the environmental

The goal of this report is to provide a starting point from which the water planning community can move toward improving the allocation of water within the environmental sector. To facilitate that process, this report presents: 1.  A discussion that highlights the water community’s points of agreement on the concept of analyzing the application of water to the environment 2.  A term, Managed Environmental Water Use Efficiency (MEWUE), to reflect that concept, and a definition of that term 3.  A survey of existing methods that could be used to develop MEWUE 4.  Suggestions about how to proceed with implementing MEWUE Based on our analysis, we found that there was genuine interest in understanding and improving how water is allocated to the environment. The idea of maximizing environmental benefits for a given amount of allocated water is a unifying thread among stakeholder interests. We focus on this idea throughout the report as the central concept that MEWUE is intended to achieve. We propose a new term to reflect the stated concerns of stakeholders that other terms, Environmental Water Use Efficiency and Ecosystem Restoration Water Use Efficiency, did not fully address. We propose Managed to indicate that MEWUE does not evaluate the environment’s use of water per se but rather the effectiveness of water in controlled systems. We propose Environmental to reflect the range of “uses” of water in the ecosystem, including ecosystem maintenance, restoration, and water quality. Lastly, we support the use of the word Efficiency because efficiency communicates the intent of maximizing benefit for a given amount of water, providing a basis for comparison of the benefits obtainable from different uses of that water. MEWUE: a mechanism to analyze alternative uses of managed environmental water to determine which allocation of a given amount of water will maximize environmental benefits, and a means to improve decision-making over time. We address the issue of why having an explicit decision-making mechanism is essential. It is hard to allay the fears that some have of incorrectly measuring environmental benefits. However, it is even more difficult to claim that decisions based on implicit measures and beliefs are better for the environment than those based on some imperfect but explicit consideration of environmental benefits.

Contaminant Concentrations in Eggs of Double-crested Cormorants and Forster's Terns from San Francisco Bay: 2002-2012

San Francisco Estuary Institute (SFEI) | May 2nd, 2016

The Regional Monitoring Program for Water Quality in San Francisco Bay (RMP) conducted an Exposure and Effects Pilot Study (EEPS) to monitor contaminant exposure and ef

The Regional Monitoring Program for Water Quality in San Francisco Bay (RMP) conducted an Exposure and Effects Pilot Study (EEPS) to monitor contaminant exposure and effects in Bay wildlife. Avian egg monitoring is one tool that was piloted in the EEPS and retained as an element of RMP Status and Trends monitoring. Avian eggs from two species have been monitored: Double-crested Cormorants (Phalacrocorax auritus), a sentinel species for the open waters of the Bay, and Forster’s Terns (Sterna forsteri), a sentinel species for shallow-water habitats on the Bay margins, including managed ponds.

Contaminant Concentrations in San Francisco Bay Sportfish, Cruise Report Regional Monitoring Program (RMP) 2019

San Francisco Estuary Institute (SFEI) | July 1st, 2019

This report contains information on the spring and summer field sampling efforts conducted by the Marine Pollution Studies Laboratory at Moss Landing Marine Labs (MPSL-ML

This report contains information on the spring and summer field sampling efforts conducted by the Marine Pollution Studies Laboratory at Moss Landing Marine Labs (MPSL-MLML). The purpose of this field effort was to collect sportfish for an eighth season of data (in support of 1994, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2009, and 2014 surveys) in the ongoing study of Contamination in San Francisco Bay Sportfish. The work was contracted through the San Francisco Estuary Institute (SFEI) for the Regional Monitoring Program (RMP) for Water Quality.  The Regional Monitoring Program for Water Quality in San Francisco Bay (RMP) monitors concentrations of contaminants in fish tissue as indicators of bioaccumulation of contaminants in the Bay. In 2019, the RMP will conduct its eighth round of sport fish monitoring by collecting sport fish samples from various locations in the Bay as a part of routine Status and Trends Monitoring. Add-ons to the routine Status and Trends sport fish monitoring design will include archiving for microplastics and fipronil, as well as additional collections of shiner surfperch in Priority Margin Unit areas (PMUs).

Contaminant Concentrations in Sport Fish from San Francisco Bay, 2014

San Francisco Estuary Institute (SFEI) | June 1st, 2017

This summary report presents results from a 2014 survey of contaminants in San Francisco Bay sport fish, as well as an additional 2015 sampling of sport fish in Artesian

This summary report presents results from a 2014 survey of contaminants in San Francisco Bay sport fish, as well as an additional 2015 sampling of sport fish in Artesian Slough in Lower South Bay. This monitoring effort represents the seventh round of sport fish contaminant monitoring conducted by the Regional Monitoring Program for Water Quality in San Francisco Bay (RMP). This technical report is intended for agency staff charged with managing water quality issues related to bioaccumulation of contaminants in San Francisco Bay.  The RMP began sport fish monitoring in 1997, following a pilot study conducted by the Bay Protection and Toxic Cleanup Program in 1994. Data collected through this monitoring program provides updates on the status and long-term trends of contaminants in Bay sport fish, and are used to update human health consumption advisories and evaluate the effectiveness of regulatory and management efforts to reduce the impacts of contaminants of concern in the Bay. Key analyses in this report include comparisons of concentrations to human health and regulatory thresholds, spatial trend evaluation, and temporal trend evaluation.  Mercury, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dioxins, selenium, polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), and perfluoroalkylated substances (PFASs) were analyzed across sixteen fish species collected at eight locations in San Francisco Bay and Artesian Slough. Fish species were selected based on a number of criteria, including species that are popular for consumption, are sensitive indicators of problems (accumulating relatively high concentrations of contaminants), are widely distributed, represent different exposure pathways (benthic vs. pelagic), and have been monitored in the past. Concentrations were compared to numeric human health thresholds established by the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) for mercury, PCBs, selenium, and PBDEs. Results were also compared to regulatory thresholds for mercury, PCBs, and selenium, as well as non-regulatory screening value for dioxins, which have been established in Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) regulations by the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board (Water Board). 

Control of the Clear Lake Gnat in California

Entomological Society of America (ESA) | August 1st, 1951

Coordinated Long-Term Operation of the Central Valley Project and State Water Project, Final Environmental Impact Statement

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) | November 30th, 2015

Costs of Ecosystem Management Actions for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta

Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) | April 22nd, 2013

California is at a critical juncture on policy for the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta. This report summarizes the results of a wide-ranging study of cost-effective wa

California is at a critical juncture on policy for the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta. This report summarizes the results of a wide-ranging study of cost-effective ways to improve the health of the Delta ecosystem. It highlights the need for science-based, integrated management of the many sources of ecosystem stress. The report also recommends improvements to the highly fragmented system of oversight that now involves dozens of federal, state, and local agencies. Several companion reports contain related findings: Aquatic Ecosystem Stressors in the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta (Mount et al. 2012) summarizes the science of Delta ecosystem stressors for a policymaking audience. Integrated Management of Delta Stressors: Institutional and Legal Options (Gray et al. 2013) lays out proposals for institutional reform of science, management, and regulation. Scientist and Stakeholder Views on the Delta Ecosystem (Hanak et al. 2013) presents detailed results of the two surveys conducted by the report’s authors. Stress Relief: Prescriptions for a Healthier Delta Ecosystem (Hanak et al. 2013) summarizes the overall research project and the recommendations it generated. Where the Wild Things Aren’t: Making the Delta a Better Place for Native Species (Moyle et al. 2012) outlines a realistic long-term vision for achieving a healthier ecosystem.

Coupling a spatiotemporally distributed soil water budget with stream‐depletion functions to inform stakeholder‐driven management of groundwater‐dependent ecosystems

American Geophysical Union (AGU) | November 12th, 2013

Groundwater pumping, even if only seasonal, may significantly impact groundwater‐dependent ecosystems through increased streamflow depletion, particularly in semiarid a

Groundwater pumping, even if only seasonal, may significantly impact groundwater‐dependent ecosystems through increased streamflow depletion, particularly in semiarid and arid regions. The effects are exacerbated, under some conditions, by climate change. In social sciences, the management of groundwater‐dependent ecosystems is generally considered a “wicked” problem due to the complexity of affected stakeholder groups, disconnected legal frameworks, and a divergence of policies and science at the cross road between groundwater and surface water, and between ecosystems and water quality. A range of often simplified scientific tools plays an important role in addressing such problems. Here we develop a spatiotemporally distributed soil water budget model that we couple with an analytical model for stream depletion from groundwater pumping to rapidly assess seasonal impacts of groundwater pumping on streamflow during critical low flow periods. We demonstrate the applicability of the tool for the Scott Valley in Northern California, where protected salmon depend on summer streamflow fed by cool groundwater. In this example, simulations suggest that increased recharge in the period immediately preceding the critical low streamflow season, and transfer of groundwater pumping away from the stream are potentially promising tools to address ecosystem concerns, albeit raising difficult infrastructure and water trading issues. In contrast, additional winter recharge at the expense of later spring recharge, whether intentional or driven by climate may reduce summer streamflows. Comparison to existing detailed numerical groundwater model results suggests that the coupled soil water mass balance—stream depletion function approach provides a viable tool for scenario development among stakeholders, to constructively inform the search for potential solutions, and to direct more detailed, complex site‐specific feasibility studies. The tool also identifies important field monitoring efforts needed to improve the understanding and quantification of site‐specific groundwater‐stream interactions.