Draft 2008 California 303(d)/305(b) Integrated Report

Supporting Information

Regional Board 2 - San Francisco Bay Region

Water Body Name: San Leandro Bay (part of SF Bay, Lower)
Water Body ID: CAB2042004020020930194957
Water Body Type: Bay & Harbor
 
DECISION ID
6404
 
Pollutant: Mercury
Final Listing Decision: List on 303(d) list (being addressed by USEPA approved TMDL)
Last Listing Cycle's Final Listing Decision: List on 303(d) list (TMDL required list)(2006)
Revision Status Revised
Sources: Atmospheric Deposition | Industrial Point Sources | Municipal Point Sources | Natural Sources | Nonpoint Source | Resource Extraction
TMDL Name: San Francisco Bay Mercury
TMDL Project Code: 6
Date TMDL Approved by USEPA: 02/12/2008
Impairment from Pollutant or Pollution: Pollutant
 
Weight of Evidence: 303(d) listing decisions made prior to 2006 were not held in an assessment database. The Regional Boards will update this decision when new data and information become available and are assessed.

A TMDL has been developed and approved by USEPA (2/12/2008) and an approved implementation plan is expected to result in attainment of the standard. This provides a sufficient justification in favor of placing this water segment-pollutant combination in the Water Quality Limited Segments Being Addressed portion of the section 303(d) list.
 
RWQCB Board Decision / Staff Recommendation: Water Board staff conclude that the water body should be placed in the Water Quality Limited Segments Being Addressed category of the section 303(d) list because a TMDL has been approved by USEPA and an approved implementation plan is in place.
 
SWRCB Board Decision / Staff Recommendation: N/A
 
USEPA Decision:
 
 
Lines of Evidence (LOEs) for Decision ID 6404
 
LOE ID: 3857
 
Pollutant: Mercury
LOE Subgroup: Pollutant-Tissue
Matrix: Tissue
Fraction: Not Recorded
 
Beneficial Use: Commercial or recreational collection of fish, shellfish, or organisms
 
Number of Samples: 0
Number of Exceedances: 0
 
Data and Information Type: Not Specified
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: Unspecified--This LOE is a placeholder to support a 303(d) listing decision made prior to 2006.
Data Reference: Placeholder reference pre-2006 303(d)
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion:
Objective/Criterion Reference:
 
Evaluation Guideline:
Guideline Reference:
 
Spatial Representation: Unspecified
Temporal Representation: Unspecified
Environmental Conditions: Unspecified
QAPP Information: Unspecified
QAPP Information Reference(s):
 
DECISION ID
5054
 
Pollutant: Mercury (sediment)
Final Listing Decision: List on 303(d) list (being addressed by USEPA approved TMDL)
Last Listing Cycle's Final Listing Decision: Do Not Delist from 303(d) list (TMDL required list)(2006)
Revision Status Revised
Sources: Source Unknown
TMDL Name: San Francisco Bay Mercury
TMDL Project Code: 6
Date TMDL Approved by USEPA: 02/12/2008
Impairment from Pollutant or Pollution: Pollutant
 
Weight of Evidence: A Bay-wide Hg TMDL has been developed and approved by USEPA (2/12/2008) and an approved implementation plan is expected to result in attainment of the standard. This provides a sufficient justification in favor of placing this water segment-pollutant combination in the Water Quality Limited Segments Being Addressed portion of the section 303(d) list.
 
RWQCB Board Decision / Staff Recommendation: Water Board staff conclude that the water body should be placed in the Water Quality Limited Segments Being Addressed category of the section 303(d) list because a TMDL has been approved by USEPA and an approved implementation plan is in place.
 
SWRCB Board Decision / Staff Recommendation: After review of the available data and information, SWRCB staff concludes that the water body-pollutant combination should not be removed from the section 303(d) list because it cannot be determined if applicable water quality standards are attained.
 
USEPA Decision:
 
 
Lines of Evidence (LOEs) for Decision ID 5054
 
LOE ID: 40
 
Pollutant: Sediment Toxicity
LOE Subgroup: Toxicity
Matrix: Sediment
Fraction: None
 
Beneficial Use: Estuarine Habitat
 
Number of Samples: 7
Number of Exceedances: 4
 
Data and Information Type: Toxicity testing of sediments
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: Significant amphipod toxicity in 4 of 7 tests. Significant sea urchin toxicity in 3 of 7 tests (Hunt et al., 1998b).
Data Reference: Placeholder reference 2006 303(d)
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion: All waters shall be maintained free of toxic substances in concentrations that are lethal to or that produce other detrimental responses in aquatic organisms.

There shall be no chronic toxicity in ambient waters. Chronic toxicity is a detrimental biological effect on growth rate, reproduction, fertilization success, larval development, population abundance, community composition, or any other relevant measure of the health of an organism, population, or community.
Objective/Criterion Reference: Placeholder reference 2006 303(d)
 
Evaluation Guideline: BPTCP Reference envelope approach.
Guideline Reference: Placeholder reference 2006 303(d)
 
Spatial Representation: Data was synoptically collected with chemical and toxicity measurements at 7 sampling sites.
Temporal Representation: Samples were collected during April 1995 and April 1997.
Environmental Conditions:
QAPP Information: BPTCP Quality Assurance Project Plan.
QAPP Information Reference(s):
 
LOE ID: 42
 
Pollutant: Mercury (sediment)
LOE Subgroup: Pollutant-Sediment
Matrix: Sediment
Fraction: None
 
Beneficial Use: Estuarine Habitat
 
Number of Samples: 7
Number of Exceedances: 0
 
Data and Information Type: Chemical monitoring of sediments
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: None of 7 measurements exceeded the sediment quality guideline. In previous BPTCP analyses the guideline used was much lower than the guideline used in the current analysis (Hunt et al., 1998b).
Data Reference: Placeholder reference 2006 303(d)
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion: All waters shall be maintained free of toxic substances in concentrations that are lethal to or that produce other detrimental responses in aquatic organisms.

There shall be no chronic toxicity in ambient waters. Chronic toxicity is a detrimental biological effect on growth rate, reproduction, fertilization success, larval development, population abundance, community composition, or any other relevant measure of the health of an organism, population, or community.
Objective/Criterion Reference: Placeholder reference 2006 303(d)
 
Evaluation Guideline: Sediment quality guideline of 2.1 ug/g was used (PTI Environmental Services, 1991).
Guideline Reference: Placeholder reference 2006 303(d)
 
Spatial Representation: Data was synoptically collected with benthic community and toxicity measurements.
Temporal Representation: Samples were collected in April 1995 and April 1997.
Environmental Conditions:
QAPP Information: BPTCP Quality Assurance Project Plan.
QAPP Information Reference(s):
 
LOE ID: 41
 
Pollutant: Estuarine Bioassessments
LOE Subgroup: Population/Community Degradation
Matrix: Sediment
Fraction: None
 
Beneficial Use: Estuarine Habitat
 
Number of Samples: 5
Number of Exceedances: 0
 
Data and Information Type: Benthic macroinvertebrate surveys
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: BPTCP benthic index values were 0.60, 0.60, 0.67, 1.0, and 0.66 (Hunt et al, 1998b).
Data Reference: Placeholder reference 2006 303(d)
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion: All waters shall be maintained free of toxic substances in concentrations that are lethal to or that produce other detrimental responses in aquatic organisms.

There shall be no chronic toxicity in ambient waters. Chronic toxicity is a detrimental biological effect on growth rate, reproduction, fertilization success, larval development, population abundance, community composition, or any other relevant measure of the health of an organism, population, or community.
Objective/Criterion Reference: Placeholder reference 2006 303(d)
 
Evaluation Guideline: Evaluations of the benthic data were completed using the approaches developed by scientists associated with the BPTCP. The relative benthic index used is a calculated value considering the total fauna, total mollusk species, crustacean species and indicator species at a site. The index ranges from 0 to 1.0. An index value of less than or equal to 0.3 is an indication that pollutants or other factors are negatively impacting the benthic community.
Guideline Reference: Placeholder reference 2006 303(d)
 
Spatial Representation: Five stations. Data was synoptically collected with chemical and toxicity measurements.
Temporal Representation: Samples were collected in April 1995 and April 1997.
Environmental Conditions:
QAPP Information: BPTCP Quality Assurance Project Plan.
QAPP Information Reference(s):