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

Supporting Information

Regional Board 9 - San Diego Region

Water Body Name: Santa Ysabel Creek (below Sutherland Reservoir)
Water Body ID: CAR9052100020091030160355
Water Body Type: River & Stream
 
DECISION ID
17944
 
Pollutant: PAHs (Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons)
Final Listing Decision: Do Not List on 303(d) list (TMDL required list)
Last Listing Cycle's Final Listing Decision: New Decision
Revision Status Revised
Impairment from Pollutant or Pollution: Pollution
 
Weight of Evidence: This pollutant is being considered for placement on the section 303(d) list under section 3.1 and 3.9 of the Listing Policy. Under section 3.1 a single line of evidence is necessary to assess listing status.

Two lines of evidence are available in the administrative record to assess this pollutant. None of the 129 samples exceed the Basin Plan water quality objective for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.

Based on the readily available data and information, the weight of evidence indicates that there is sufficient justification against placing this water segment-pollutant combination on the section 303(d) list in the Water Quality Limited Segments category.

This conclusion is based on the staff findings that:
1. The data used satisfies the data quality requirements of section 6.1.4 of the Policy.
2. The data used satisfies the data quantity requirements of section 6.1.5 of the Policy.
3. None of the 129 samples exceed the Basin Plan water quality objective for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and this does not exceed the allowable frequency listed in Table 3.1 of the Listing Policy.
4. Pursuant to section 3.11 of the Listing Policy, no additional data and information are available indicating that standards are not met.
 
RWQCB Board Decision / Staff Recommendation: After review of the available data and information, RWQCB staff concludes that the water body-pollutant combination should not be placed on the section 303(d) list because applicable water quality standards are not being exceeded.
 
SWRCB Board Decision / Staff Recommendation:
 
USEPA Decision:
 
 
Lines of Evidence (LOEs) for Decision ID 17944
 
LOE ID: 30955
 
Pollutant: Benthic Community Effects
LOE Subgroup: Adverse Biological Responses
Matrix: Water
Fraction: None
 
Beneficial Use: Warm Freshwater Habitat
 
Number of Samples: 1
Number of Exceedances: 1
 
Data and Information Type: Benthic macroinvertebrate surveys
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: One sample of IBI data was taken from May 2001 at one sampling site. The sample exceeded the IBI impairment threshold.
Data Reference: Fish and Game IBI Data
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion: From the San Diego Basin Plan the objective is: All waters shall be maintained free of toxic substances in concentrations that are toxic to, or that produce detrimental physiological responses in human, plant, animal, or aquatic life. Compliance with this objective will be determined by use of indicator organisms, analyses of species diversity, population density, growth anomalies, bioassays of appropriate duration, or other appropriate methods as specified by the Regional Board. (SDRWQCB, 1995)
Objective/Criterion Reference: Water Quality Control Plan for the San Diego Basin (9).
 
Evaluation Guideline: The Index of Biological Integrity (IBI) is an analytical tool that can be used to assess the biological and physical condition of streams and rivers within a zero to one hundred scoring range: Very Poor 0-19, Poor 20-39, Fair 40-59, Good 60- 79, Very Good 80-100. The IBI score of 39 was set as an impairment threshold because it is a statistical criterion of two standard deviations below the mean reference site score which defines the boundary between 'fair' and 'poor' IBI creek conditions. (Ode, p. 9)
Guideline Reference: "A Quantitative Tool for Assessing the Integrity of Southern Coastal California Streams". Environmental Management. Volume 35, number 1 (2005): 1-13.
 
Spatial Representation: The sample was collected at one site: 905SYCNTx on Santa Ysabel Creek.
Temporal Representation: Sampling occurred on May 22, 2001.
Environmental Conditions:
QAPP Information: Quality Control for collection and identification was conducted in accordance with the Quality Assurance Project Plan for the California Stream Bioassessment Procedure and the State of California, California Monitoring an Assessment Program: "CMAP", Quality Assurance Project Plan.
QAPP Information Reference(s): State of California, California Monitoring and Assessment Program: "CMAP".
  Quality Assurance Project Plan for the California Stream Bioassessment Procedure
  The San Diego Stream Team Quality Assurance Project Plan

 
LOE ID: 30953
 
Pollutant: PAHs (Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons)
LOE Subgroup: Pollutant-Water
Matrix: Water
Fraction: Not Recorded
 
Beneficial Use: Municipal & Domestic Supply
 
Number of Samples: 129
Number of Exceedances: 0
 
Data and Information Type: Fixed station physical/chemical (conventional plus toxic pollutants)
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: 129 samples were collected at Santa Ysabel Creek station 901SJBEL2 during the months of January 2003, April 2003, and May 2003 for Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) analyses, none of the 129 samples exceeded evaluation concentrations (SWAMP, 2007).
Data Reference: Monitoring data for Region 9
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion: Water designated for use as domestic or municipal supply (MUN) shall not contain concentrations of chemical constituents in excess of the maximum contaminant levels (MCL 0.0002mg/l) specified in California Code of Regulations, Title 22, Table 64444-A of section 64444 (Organic Chemicals) which is incorporated by reference into this plan.
Objective/Criterion Reference: Water Quality Control Plan for the San Diego Basin (9).
 
Evaluation Guideline:
Guideline Reference:
 
Spatial Representation: Samples were collected at Santa Ysabel Creek station 901SJBEL2; (Latitude 33.0862, Longitude -116.9166). (Station name incorrect. Coordinates show 905YSA7.)
Temporal Representation: Samples were collected during the months of January 2003, April 2003, and May 2003.
Environmental Conditions:
QAPP Information: Quality controls for chemical analyses were conducted in accordance with the California Surface Water Ambient Monitoring Program.
QAPP Information Reference(s):