San Mateo County Bay Beaches Bacteria Advance Restoration Plan

To protect public health, beaches located on San Francisco Bay are monitored for Enterococcus, fecal indicator bacteria. Elevated levels of Enterococcus indicate the presence of pathogenic organisms associated with waste from warm-blooded animals (e.g., humans and dogs). These pathogens can pose health risks to people who swim or recreate in contaminated waters Potential health risks include gastrointestinal illnesses and ear, eyes, nose, and throat infections.

Six beaches located in San Mateo County: Oyster Point Beach, Coyote Point, Kiteboard Beach, Gull Park Beach, Erckenbrack Park Beach, and Marlin Park Beach are on the Clean Water Act 303(d) list of impaired water bodies because Enterococcus levels at these beaches exceed water quality objectives.

An ARP is being developed to identify significant sources of bacterial pollution in the watersheds draining to these beaches and to outline implementation actions to reduce bacteria levels below water quality objectives. The ARP builds on existing efforts already underway and relies on collaboration with local agencies and other partners . By leveraging voluntary actions and the Water Board’s existing regulatory authorities to require data collection and implementation measures, the ARP is expected to achieve water quality objectives more quickly than a traditional Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL).

The ARP summarizes current water quality conditions, proposes actions to pinpoint and reduce bacteria sources, and includes water quality monitoring to evaluate effectiveness of the corrective actions and attainment of water quality objectives. If the ARP is successful, it will lead to removing the bacteria impairment of these beaches from the Section 303(d) list. If the Plan is not successful, the next step would be development of a TMDL, which is a cleanup plan that is implemented through permits and orders the Water Board issues.