SGMA Best Management Practice: Groundwater Monitoring Protocols, Standards, and Sites

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | December 23rd, 2016

The objective of this Best Management Practice (BMP) is to assist in the development of Monitoring Protocols. The California Department of Water Resources (the Department

The objective of this Best Management Practice (BMP) is to assist in the development of Monitoring Protocols. The California Department of Water Resources (the Department or DWR) has developed this document as part of the obligation in the Technical Assistance chapter (Chapter 7) of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) to support the long-term sustainability of California’s groundwater basins. Information provided in this BMP provides technical assistance to Groundwater Sustainability Agencies (GSAs) and other stakeholders to aid in the establishment of consistent data collection processes and procedures. In addition, this BMP can be used by GSAs to adopt a set of sampling and measuring procedures that will yield similar data regardless of the monitoring personnel. Finally, this BMP identifies available resources to support the development of monitoring protocols. This BMP includes the following sections: Objective. A brief description of how and where monitoring protocols are required under SGMA and the overall objective of this BMP. Use and Limitations. A brief description of the use and limitations of this BMP. Monitoring Protocol Fundamentals. A description of the general approach and background of groundwater monitoring protocols. Relationship of Monitoring Protocols to other BMPs. A description of how this BMP is connected with other BMPS. Technical Assistance. Technical content providing guidance for regulatory sections. Key Definitions. Descriptions of definitions identified in the GSP Regulations or SGMA. Related Materials. References and other materials that provide supporting information related to the development of Groundwater Monitoring Protocols.

SGMA Best Management Practice: Monitoring Networks and Identification of Data Gaps

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | December 23rd, 2016

The objective of this Best Management Practice (BMP) is to assist in the development of Monitoring Networks and Identification of Data Gaps. The California Department of

The objective of this Best Management Practice (BMP) is to assist in the development of Monitoring Networks and Identification of Data Gaps. The California Department of Water Resources (the Department or DWR) has developed this document as part of the obligation in the Technical Assistance chapter (Chapter 7) of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) to support the long-term sustainability of California’s groundwater basins. Information provided in this BMP provides technical assistance to Groundwater Sustainability Agencies (GSAs) and other stakeholders to aid in the development of a monitoring network that is capable of providing sustainability indicator data of sufficient accuracy and quantity to demonstrate that the basin is being sustainably managed. In addition, this BMP is intended to provide information on how to identify and plan to resolve data gaps to reduce uncertainty that may be necessary to improve the ability of the GSP to achieve the sustainability goal for the basin. This BMP includes the following sections: 1. Objective. A brief description of how and where monitoring networks are required under Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) and the overall objective of this BMP. 2. Use and Limitations. A brief description of the use and limitations of this BMP. 3. Monitoring Network Fundamentals. A description of the general approach and background of groundwater monitoring networks. 4. Relationship of Monitoring Network to other BMPs. A description of how this BMP is connected with other BMPs. 5. Technical Assistance. Technical content of BMP providing guidance for regulatory sections. 6. Key Definitions. Descriptions of those definitions identified in the GSP Regulations, SGMA, or Basin Boundary Regulations. 7. Related Materials. References and other materials that provide supporting information related to the development of Groundwater Monitoring Networks.

Simulations of Ground-Water Flow and Particle Pathline Analysis in the Zone of Contribution of a Public-Supply Well in Modesto, Eastern San Joaquin Valley, California

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | July 1st, 2008

Small Tributaries Pollutants of Concern Reconnaissance Monitoring: Application of Storm-event Loads and Yields-Based and Congener-Based PCB Site Prioritization Methodologies

San Francisco Estuary Institute (SFEI) | January 12th, 2022

With RMP funding allocated in 2017 and 2018, a pilot study was completed using a subset of data from watersheds in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties to build new methods

With RMP funding allocated in 2017 and 2018, a pilot study was completed using a subset of data from watersheds in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties to build new methods for organizing and analyzing the existing stormwater reconnaissance data that will provide further evidence to support decisions about which watersheds may be of interest for prioritized management focus. The pilot study resulted in two new analysis methodologies outlined in two companion reports: Davis, J.A. and Gilbreath, A.N., 2019. Small Tributaries Pollutants of Concern Reconnaissance Monitoring: Pilot Evaluation of Source Areas Using PCB Congener Data. SFEI Contribution No. 956. San Francisco Estuary Institute, Richmond, California. McKee, L.J., Gilbreath, A.N., Hunt, J.A., Wu, J., Yee, D., and Davis, J.A., 2019. Small tributaries pollutants of concern reconnaissance monitoring: Loads and yields-based prioritization methodology pilot study. SFEI Contribution No. 817. San Francisco Estuary Institute, Richmond, California. In this final report, we describe a few enhancements to the storm-event loads and yields method and then apply both methods to a much larger data set and provide the resulting database to support stormwater management and decision making.

Small Tributaries Pollutants of Concern Reconnaissance Monitoring: Pilot Evaluation of Source Areas Using PCB Congener Data

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

PCB congener profiles can be used to help identify source areas that contribute most to the PCB mass exported from the watershed via stormwater and to illustrate variabi

PCB congener profiles can be used to help identify source areas that contribute most to the PCB mass exported from the watershed via stormwater and to illustrate variability in PCB mobilization from source areas over time. A method is presented for estimating the contributions of different Aroclor mixtures to the congener profiles of samples of stormwater and sediment. The method is based on the use of indicator congeners that are representative of each of the four most commonly used Aroclors. In this report, the method was applied in three watersheds. In the Pulgas Pump Station watershed, stormwater and sediment had high concentrations with a unique congener profile, dominated by congeners indicative of a combination of Aroclors 1242 and 1260. The concentrations and congener profiles in sediment suggest that there are two distinct source areas in the watershed that combine to create the mix of 1242 and 1260 that is dominant in stormwater at the Pump Station. The data indicate that if PCB flux from one of these areas could be eliminated, loads from the watershed would be reduced by 50% or more. For the Coyote Creek watershed, the similarity in congener profiles for the highest concentration sediment samples and the stormwater samples suggest that the important source areas in the watershed have been identified, and that reduction of loading from an area at the south end of the Charcot Avenue Storm Drain watershed would yield the greatest reduction in export at the Coyote Creek station. The concentrations and congener profiles in stormwater and sediment from the Guadalupe River watershed indicate the presence of one source area that is likely a substantial contributor to PCB export from the watershed, but that all of the significant sources areas may not yet have been identified.

Spectral characterization of dissolved organic matter in groundwater to assess mixing with oil-field water near selected oil fields, southern California

Science of The Total Environment (Elsevier) | September 16th, 2023

Status and Understanding of Groundwater Quality in the Klamath Mountains Study Unit, 2010: California GAMA Priority Basin Project

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | August 6th, 2014

Groundwater quality in the Klamath Mountains (KLAM) study unit was investigated as part of the Priority Basin Project of the California Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and

Groundwater quality in the Klamath Mountains (KLAM) study unit was investigated as part of the Priority Basin Project of the California Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment (GAMA) Program. The study unit is located in Del Norte, Humboldt, Shasta, Siskiyou, Tehama, and Trinity Counties. The GAMA Priority Basin Project is being conducted by the California State Water Resources Control Board in collaboration with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. The GAMA Priority Basin Project was designed to provide a spatially unbiased, statistically robust assessment of the quality of untreated (raw) groundwater in the primary aquifer system. The assessment is based on water-quality data and explanatory factors for groundwater samples collected in 2010 by the USGS from 39 sites and on water-quality data from the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) water-quality database. The primary aquifer system was defined by the depth intervals of the wells listed in the CDPH water-quality database for the KLAM study unit. The quality of groundwater in the primary aquifer system may be different from that in the shallower or deeper water-bearing zones; shallow groundwater may be more vulnerable to surficial contamination. This study included two types of assessments: (1) a status assessment, which characterized the status of the current quality of the groundwater resource by using data from samples analyzed for volatile organic compounds, pesticides, and naturally occurring inorganic constituents, such as major ions and trace elements, and (2) an understanding assessment, which evaluated the natural and human factors potentially affecting the groundwater quality. The assessments were intended to characterize the quality of groundwater resources in the primary aquifer system of the KLAM study unit, not the quality of treated drinking water delivered to consumers by water purveyors.

Status and understanding of groundwater quality in the Sacramento Metropolitan Domestic-Supply Aquifer study unit, 2017—California GAMA Priority Basin Project

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | May 26th, 2022

Groundwater quality in the Sacramento Metropolitan Domestic-Supply Aquifer study unit (SacMetro-DSA) was studied from August to November 2017 as part of the second phase

Groundwater quality in the Sacramento Metropolitan Domestic-Supply Aquifer study unit (SacMetro-DSA) was studied from August to November 2017 as part of the second phase of the Priority Basin Project of the California Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment (GAMA) Program. The study unit is in parts of Amador, Placer, Sacramento, and Sutter Counties, and the extent of the study unit was defined by the location of three California Department of Water Resources groundwater subbasins: the North American, the South American, and the Cosumnes. The SacMetro-DSA focused on groundwater resources used for domestic drinking-water supply, which generally correspond to shallower parts of aquifer systems than those of groundwater resources used for public drinking water supply in the same area. The assessments characterized the quality of untreated groundwater, not the quality of drinking water.

Status of California's Wadeable Perennial Streams (2000-2007)

California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) | October 1st, 2011

The Surface Water Ambient Monitoring Program’s (SWAMP) Perennial Streams Assessment (PSA) surveys measure the ability of California’s perennial wadeable str

The Surface Water Ambient Monitoring Program’s (SWAMP) Perennial Streams Assessment (PSA) surveys measure the ability of California’s perennial wadeable streams (some 85,000 km) to support aquatic life. PSA surveys found half (50%) of the wadeable perennial stream length in California to be in relatively good biological condition, while about 22% is in very degraded biological condition. The statewide distribution of good, degraded and very degraded sites shows that most high quality streams in good biological condition are located in the mountainous regions of the state. Streams with the most degraded biology tend to be found in low-lying agricultural and urban areas in the central valley and parts of the coast.

Strategic stream gauging network design for sustainable water management

Nature Portfolio (Springer Nature) | June 3rd, 2024

Stream gauging stations that monitor the flow of water in rivers and streams provide critical information to water managers, but biases and gaps in gauge placement, compo

Stream gauging stations that monitor the flow of water in rivers and streams provide critical information to water managers, but biases and gaps in gauge placement, compounded by gauge deactivations, limit our ability to track river flows and address global water challenges. Here we introduce an approach for identifying gauging sites to efficiently fill gaps in monitoring coverage within river networks while also addressing water management priorities, including reservoir operations, biodiversity conservation and hydroclimatic monitoring. Applying this approach to gauges in California, United States, we found substantial gaps in the stream monitoring network. Hypothetically reconfiguring gauges to locations that maximize coverage and representation of management objectives highlights the current network’s biases. Through the strategic reactivation and placement of additional gauges, we demonstrate how stream gauging networks can be designed to support sustainable water management.