Water Quality Control Plan for the San Diego region

San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board (SDRWQCB) | July 26th, 2012

The San Diego Regional Board's Basin Plan is designed to preserve and enhance water quality and protect the beneficial uses of all regional waters. Specifically, the Basi

The San Diego Regional Board's Basin Plan is designed to preserve and enhance water quality and protect the beneficial uses of all regional waters. Specifically, the Basin Plan: (1) designates beneficial uses for surface and ground waters; (2) sets narrative and numerical objectives that must be attained or maintained to protect the designated beneficial uses and conform to the state's antidegradation policy; (3) describes implementation programs to protect the beneficial uses of all waters in the Region; and (4) describes surveillance and monitoring activities to evaluate the effectiveness of the Basin Plan [California Water Code sections 13240 thru 13244, and section 13050(j)]. Additionally, the Basin Plan incorporates by reference all applicable State and Regional Board plans and policies. The goal of the Regional Board is to achieve a balance between the competing needs of mankind for water of varying quality. Often times the constituents and quality of water needed to protect various beneficial uses will be different. The Basin Plan is the Regional Board's plan for achieving the balance between competing uses of surface and ground waters in the San Diego Region. Accordingly, this Basin Plan establishes or designates beneficial uses and water quality objectives for all the ground and surface waters of the Region. Beneficial uses are the uses of water necessary for the survival and well being of man, plants and wildlife. These uses of water serve to promote the tangible and intangible economic, social, and environmental goals of mankind. Water quality objectives are the levels of water quality constituents or characteristics which must be met to protect the beneficial uses. This Basin Plan also establishes an implementation program describing the actions by the Regional Board and others that are necessary to achieve and maintain the designated beneficial uses and water quality objectives of the Region's waters.

Water Quality Control Plan for the Santa Ana Region

Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board (SARWQCB) | February 11th, 2016

This document is the Basin Plan for the Santa Ana Region. The Santa Ana Regions includes the upper and lower Santa Ana River watersheds, the San Jacinto River watershed,

This document is the Basin Plan for the Santa Ana Region. The Santa Ana Regions includes the upper and lower Santa Ana River watersheds, the San Jacinto River watershed, and several other small drainage areas. The Santa Ana Region covers parts of southwestern San Bernardino County, western Riverside County, and northwestern Orange County. The Basin Plan for the Santa Ana Region is more than just a collection of water quality goals and policies, descriptions of conditions, and discussions of solutions. It is also the basis for the Regional Board’s regulatory programs. The Basin Plan establishes water quality standards for the ground and surface waters of the region. The term “water quality standards,” as used in the federal Clean Water Act, includes both the beneficial uses of specific waterbodies and the levels of quality which must be met and maintained to protect those uses. The Basin Plan includes an implementation plan describing the actions by the Regional Board and others that are necessary to achieve and maintain the water quality standards. The Regional Board regulates waste discharges to minimize and control their effects on the quality of the region’s ground and surface water. Permits are issued under a number of programs and authorities. The terms and conditions of these discharge permits are enforced through a variety of technical, administrative, and legal means. Water quality problems in the region are listed in the Basin Plan, along with the causes, where they are known. For waterbodies with quality below the levels necessary to allow all the beneficial uses of the water to be met, plans for improving water quality are included. In some cases, it has been necessary for the Regional Board to completely prohibit the discharge of certain materials. Some types of discharges are prohibited in specific areas. Details on these prohibitions also appear in the Basin Plan.

Water Quality Control Plan for the Tulare Lake Basin

Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board (CVRWQCB) | September 29th, 2016

The Central Valley Region includes about 40% of the land in California and stretches from the Oregon border to the Kern County/Los Angeles County line. It is bound by

The Central Valley Region includes about 40% of the land in California and stretches from the Oregon border to the Kern County/Los Angeles County line. It is bound by the Sierra Nevada Mountains on the east and the Coast Range on the west. The Region is divided into three basins: the Sacramento River Basin, the San Joaquin River Basin, and the Tulare Lake Basin. This basin plan covers only the Tulare Lake Basin. The Sacramento River Basin and the San Joaquin River Basin are covered in a separate basin plan. The Tulare Lake Basin comprises the drainage area of the San Joaquin Valley south of the San Joaquin River. Note: In 1976, the U. S. Geologic Survey, the Department of Water Resources, and the State Water Resources Control Board agreed upon the hydrologic boundaries for basins within California. The agreed boundaries did not match the planning boundaries in certain cases such as between the San Joaquin River Basin and the Tulare Lake Basin. The planning boundary between the San Joaquin River Basin and the Tulare Lake Basin follows the southern watershed boundaries of the Little Panoche Creek, Moreno Gulch, and Capita Canyon to boundary of the Westlands Water District. From here, the boundary follows the northern edge of the Westlands Water District until its intersection with the Firebaugh Canal Company’s Main Lift Canal. The basin boundary then follows the Main Lift Canal to the Mendota Pool and continues eastward along the channel of the San Joaquin River to the southern boundary of the Little Dry Creek watershed (Hydrologic Subareas No. 540.70 and 545.30) and then follows along the southern boundary of the San Joaquin River drainage basin. Surface water from the Tulare Lake Basin only drains north into the San Joaquin River in years of extreme rainfall. This essentially closed basin is situated in the topographic horseshoe formed by the Diablo and Temblor Ranges on the west, by the San Emigdio and Tehachapi Mountains on the south, and by the Sierra Nevada Mountains on the east and southeast. The Basin encompasses approximately 10.5 million acres, of which approximately 3.25 million acres are in federal ownership. Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks and substantial portions of Sierra, Sequoia, Inyo, and Los Padres National Forests are included in the Basin. Valley floor lands (i.e., those having a land slope of less than 200 feet per mile) make up slightly less than one-half of the total basin land area. The maximum length and width of the Basin are about 170 miles and 140 miles, respectively. This plan contains all amendments up to July of 2016.  To check for the latest version or for any new amendments, click here.

Water Quality in Basin-Fill Aquifers of the Southwestern United States: Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah, 1993–2009

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | July 15th, 2014

Water quality measurements in San Francisco Bay by the U.S. Geological Survey, 1969–2015

Nature Portfolio (Springer Nature) | August 8th, 2017

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) maintains a place-based research program in San Francisco Bay (USA) that began in 1969 and continues, providing one of the longest reco

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) maintains a place-based research program in San Francisco Bay (USA) that began in 1969 and continues, providing one of the longest records of water-quality measurements in a North American estuary. Constituents include salinity, temperature, light extinction coefficient, and concentrations of chlorophyll-a, dissolved oxygen, suspended particulate matter, nitrate, nitrite, ammonium, silicate, and phosphate. We describe the sampling program, analytical methods, structure of the data record, and how to access all measurements made from 1969 through 2015. We provide a summary of how these data have been used by USGS and other researchers to deepen understanding of how estuaries are structured and function differently from the river and ocean ecosystems they bridge.

Water Quality of Groundwater Used for Public Supply in Principal Aquifers of the Western United States

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | September 8th, 2020

Water Quality Science in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta: Chemical Contaminants and Nutrients

Delta Stewardship Council (Delta Council) | July 26th, 2018

This review focuses on contaminants and nutrients in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (the Delta), and on how findings about them have been sometimes used and sometimes n

This review focuses on contaminants and nutrients in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (the Delta), and on how findings about them have been sometimes used and sometimes neglected in decisions related to ecosystem health in the Delta. The review considers water quality measurements made both in support of basic research and as part of routine monitoring studies in the Delta. However, the topic of monitoring per se is not comprehensively covered in this review because the Delta ISB is in the initial stages of reviewing the extensive monitoring enterprise in the Delta. This review of water quality is based on responses to a questionnaire sent to government agencies and science programs, interviews with water quality specialists and users of water quality data, relevant scientific publications, presentations observed in workshops and conferences, and public comments received on draft versions of the review. While we sought input from a broad range of stakeholders, we do not assume that we received a complete range of perceptions about this important issue. Additionally, water quality research and monitoring efforts are constantly evolving in the Delta, and several new programs and improvements were made as this review was being researched and prepared. This review should be considered to be part of an ongoing process by the Delta ISB.

Water-Level and land-subsidence studies in the Mojave River and Morongo groundwater basins; 2007

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | June 25th, 2007

Since 1992, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Mojave Water Agency (MWA), has constructed a series of regional water-table maps for intermittent y

Since 1992, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Mojave Water Agency (MWA), has constructed a series of regional water-table maps for intermittent years in a continuing effort to monitor groundwater conditions in the Mojave River and Morongo groundwater basins. The previously published data, which were used to construct these maps, can be accessed on the interactive map. The associated reports describing the groundwater conditions for the Mojave River groundwater basin for 1992 (Stamos and Predmore, 1995), the Morongo groundwater basin for 1994 (Trayler and Koczot, 1995), and for both groundwater basins for 1996 (Mendez and Christensen, 1997); for 1998 (Smith and Pimentel, 2000), for 2000 (Smith, 2002), for 2002 (Smith and others, 2004), for 2004 (Stamos and others, 2004), and for 2006 (Stamos and others, 2007) can be accessed using this web site.

Watershed-scale Evaluation of Agricultural BMP Effectiveness in Protecting Critical Coastal Habitats: Final Report on the Status of Three Central California Estuaries

Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board (CCRWQCB) | April 30th, 2010

Along California's Central Coast, the Pajaro, Salinas, and Santa Maria Rivers drain to coastal estuaries that provide essential habitat for early life stages of commercia

Along California's Central Coast, the Pajaro, Salinas, and Santa Maria Rivers drain to coastal estuaries that provide essential habitat for early life stages of commercially and recreationally important marine fish species, threatened anadromous fish species, migratory birds, and other wildlife. These are the largest watersheds on the central coast and each contains year-round, intensively cultivated agricultural land that supports a $3.5 billion/year industry producing most of the nation's lettuce, artichokes, and crucifer crops. Runoff from irrigated agriculture constitutes a significant portion of river flow during most of the year, and a number of studies have documented pesticide occurrence and biological impacts in these watersheds. Evidence of pesticide impacts has encouraged diverse stakeholders to begin implementing farm management practices (MPs) to reduce pesticide concentrations and toxicity in agricultural runoff. This project is designed to complement ongoing evaluations of individual MPs with measurements of pesticide concentrations throughout the estuarine environments, including the water column, sediments, and in resident biota. Biological effects were measured at the organism and community levels. Chemical analyses emphasized pesticide impacts because previous research in these watersheds has indicated these are the primary chemicals of concern impacting beneficial uses. A broad suite of pesticides were measured, including legacy organochlorines, widely-used organophosphates, increasingly-used pyrethroids, herbicides and fungicides. Sampling in the three estuaries was conducted from January 2008 until October 2009. A total of fifteen sampling events were conducted in each estuary, and these were divided between eleven irrigation season events and four storm events. Storm and irrigation monitoring included water toxicity and chemistry analyses for pesticides. Samples were collected at multiple stations in the estuaries and in key tributaries flowing to the estuaries. In addition, sediment toxicity was assessed at eight estuary stations and the tributary stations during three irrigation season sampling events. Benthic community characterizations were also conducted in May and October 2008. All sediment samples were analyzed for pesticides, as well as grain size and total organic carbon. Pesticide analyses in resident fish and sand crab tissues were conducted once in each estuary. The goal of this project was to establish a baseline of estuary conditions with respect to pesticide impacts as MPs are beginning to be implemented.

Yolo Bypass Juvenile Salmon Utilization Study 2016— Summary of Acoustically Tagged Juvenile Salmon and Study Fish Releases, Sacramento River, California

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | September 12th, 2017

The Yolo Bypass is a flood control bypass in Sacramento Valley, California. Flood plain habitats may be used for juvenile salmon rearing, however, the potential value of

The Yolo Bypass is a flood control bypass in Sacramento Valley, California. Flood plain habitats may be used for juvenile salmon rearing, however, the potential value of such habitats can be difficult to evaluate because of the intermittent nature of inundation events. The Yolo Bypass Juvenile Salmon Utilization Study (YBUS) used acoustic telemetry to evaluate the movements and survival of juvenile salmon adjacent to and within the Yolo Bypass during the winter of 2016. This report presents numbers, size data, and release data (times, dates, and locations) for the 1,197 acoustically tagged juvenile salmon released for the YBUS from February 21 to March 18, 2016. Detailed descriptions of the surgical implantation of transmitters are also presented. These data are presented to support the collaborative, interagency analysis and reporting of the study findings.