San Vicente Creek and Fitzgerald Marine Reserve Fecal Indicator Bacteria Project


Background:

San Vicente Creek and Fitzgerald Marine Reserve are listed on the Clean Water Act 303(d) list of impaired water bodies due to high fecal indicator bacteria (FIB) levels (e.g., total coliform, fecal coliform, enterococcus, and E. coli). High FIB levels indicate presence of pathogenic organisms that are found in warm-blooded animal (e.g., horse, dog, human) waste. Pathogens pose potential health risks to people who recreate (e.g., swim, surf, bathe, beach comb) in contaminated waters. The San Vicente Creek and Fitzgerald Marine Reserve FIB remediation project was initiated to address the impairment of recreational beneficial uses in these water bodies. After the project was initiated, further data analysis found that Fitzgerald Marine Reserve was no longer impaired by FIB. As such, the project scope has been changed to: (1) approve a revision to the Clean Water Act 303(d) list of impaired waters in the Region to remove (delist) Fitzgerald Marine Reserve from it, and (2) develop a Water Quality Improvement Plan for resolving FIB impairment and achieving water quality standards in San Vicente Creek. We are pursuing a non-TMDL alternative approach to resolve FIB impairment in San Vicente Creek because some parties have already begun voluntary implementation efforts and the Water Board has the existing regulatory authorities to require data collection and implantation actions included in the Water Quality Improvement Plan.

 

 

People recreating on Fitzgerald Marine Reserve BeachSan Vicente Creek flowing into Fitzgerald Marine Reserve

 
Fitzgerald Marine Reserve San Vicente Creek flowing into Fitzgerald Marine Reserve  

Regional Water Board Adoption Process

The San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board, at its May 11, 2016 hearing, adopted a Resolution to (1) support the Water Quality Improvement Plan for bacteria in San Vicente Creek, and (2) approve a proposed revision to the Clean Water Act 303(d) list of impaired water bodies to remove (delist) Fitzgerald Marine Reserve. Electronic versions of the following documents are available upon request. However, in accordance with Section 11546.7 of the California Government Code, electronic versions cannot be posted online as they do not meet specified accessibility standards. For an electronic copy of the order, please contact the staff person listed at the bottom of this web page. 

Please Join Our Mailing List

The Water Board maintains an email notification list for this project. Please visit our subscriptions page to sign up for our mailing list. Look for the section entitled "All Basin Planning/TMDL Projects by Area" and check the box for "San Mateo County (Coastal)". You can sign up for other lists at the same time if you wish.






For more information contact:
Farhad Ghodrati
Environmental Scientist
San Francisco Bay Region
1515 Clay Street, Suite 1400
Oakland, CA 94612
Phone: 510-622-2331
Fax: 510-622-2460
E-mail: FGhodrati@waterboards.ca.gov