What's Flowing Into Your Beach?

By Joanne Mohr
Published: June 2006

Sanctuary Volunteers.
Photo credit Jamie Hall

E. coli is a type of bacteria found in the feces of warm-blooded animals, including humans, and is often used as an indicator of fecal contamination in waterways.

Water testing at Bolinas dock.

In 2005 samples indicated that Alder Creek, below the confluence of a storm drain from the county beach parking lot, had measurable levels of copper (a typical urban pollutant) and elevated levels of nickel (higher than the daily maximum standards for sea water).  An ephemeral creek at Canyon Road also had similar levels of heavy metals, but Pine Gulch had very low metals levels.

Samples indicated that Alder Creek, below the confluence of a storm drain from the Agate Beach parking lot, also had elevated levels of polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are pollutants often associated with fossil fuels and automobile exhaust.  PAHs were not elevated at Canyon Road or Pine Gulch. The group focused its attention this year on Alder Creek and Agate Beach, but also extended its sampling activities to Bolinas Lagoon.

While the samples from 2006 are still being analyzed, field measurements indicated higher phosphate levels at the Agate Beach storm drain and at Duxbury Reef, than at Pine Gulch and Bolinas Lagoon.  “We can’t make an absolute determination that there is a definite and common water quality problem based on just single samples taken once annually.  However, it does warrant additional sampling, particularly at Alder Creek and Duxbury Reef, to gauge the persistence or extent of the problem. It will be interesting to see this year’s sample results,” said Dominic Gregorio, Senior Scientist for the State Water Resources Control Board.  Duxbury Reef has been designated as an Area of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) by the State Water Board, and in recent state legislation has been classified as a State Water Quality Protection Area.  Discharges of pollutants are now prohibited at Duxbury Reef.

During the monitoring period a gardener was observed dumping lawn waste into the Agate Beach parking lot storm drain.  In addition, lots of trash was picked out of Alder Creek.  According to State Board scientist, Kristen Smeltzer, “Sometimes people don’t even realize that their actions are affecting water quality.”

Despite the potentially troublesome results, the weather was beautiful and the volunteers got involved in learning about water quality and working with water quality scientists.  There are plans in the works to use the data from Bolinas in the State’s efforts to protect Duxbury Reef as an Area of Special Biological Significance.

Sanctuary Volunteers test Jack
Creek.

Snapshot monitoring is less than ten years old but has quickly caught on along California’s coastline.  The Southern California Marine Institute (SCMI) organized the first coastal snapshot monitoring event in 1998.  SCMI worked with environmental groups in coordinating volunteers who monitored San Pedro and Santa Monica Bays in southern California.  The idea next caught on in the Monterey Bay, where the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary (NMS) has fostered a successful snapshot monitoring program since 2000.  In 2001 annual snapshot monitoring took hold in the Lake Tahoe basin as well.

In 2004, for the first time, snapshot monitoring was extended to the entire California coast.  With funding from the U.S. EPA and the State Water Resources Control Board, over 575 sites were monitored by 679 volunteers along the entire coast of California.  Watershed groups and other volunteers tested several sites within the Gulf of the Farallones NMS.  In 2005 and 2006 the funding was drastically reduced for the water sampling due to agency budget cuts, forcing snapshot monitoring events to further rely on volunteers.  To find out more about State Water Resources Control Board Citizen Monitoring go to: http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/nps/volunteer.html?counter=106.

Water is a precious resource.  By participating in water monitoring projects you can not only learn about the health of our oceans but you can help pinpoint pollution sources or identify widespread problems.  You can provide the background information needed to develop restoration projects or pollution prevention measures.  Get involved!