From Sewers to Sanddabs: Orange County Sanitation District Ocean Monitoring Program Not just the Ocean Team All LMC division sections are involved (explain) Dr. Jeff Armstrong Environmental Supervisor June 12, 2019

Reclamation Plant 1 Treatment Plant 2

Program History Began in 1969 Expanded in 1973 with passage of CWA Rudimentary, mostly water quality Expanded in 1973 with passage of CWA Began quarterly sampling for fish trawls, sediment quality, water quality Intensified in 1985 with 301(h) waiver Program outsourced (“Fox watching the henhouse”) Added sediment quality stations, enlarged water quality sampling grid, fish tissue contaminant analysis, fish liver histopathology Insourced in 1999

Regulatory Basis/Mandate Clean Water Act – National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permit issued in five-year intervals Codifies the ocean monitoring program (Appendix E) California Ocean Plan Issued by State Water Resources Control Board Controls discharges into the ocean Anti-degradation mandate Triennial review (2018)

OCSD’s Ocean Monitoring Program Must Demonstrate: Water Quality – safe to swim Sediment Quality – healthy ecosystem Fish health – safe to eat fish We must demonstrate that these criteria are met with scientifically defensible data.

Program Elements Regional Monitoring Strategic Process Studies Compliance Monitoring

M/V Nerissa Custom built in 2004 58’ long, 69 tons R/V Yellowfin (SCMI) = $319.3/Hr sampling + 2 hrs for set-up and break-down + transit time from SCMI to sampling and back = $3,832 for a max of 6 hours sampling. $3,832 x 90 days = $344,844 Custom built in 2004 58’ long, 69 tons 97 days at sea in 2018-19

Water Quality

Physical Oceanography

Benthic (Sediment) Quality

Trawl Communities

Fish Health Trawl fish tissue contaminant Environmental health risk assessment Rig fish tissue contaminants Human health risk assessment Trawl fish liver histopathology Contractor

Toxicology Chronic Whole Effluent Toxicity – Monthly Acute Whole Effluent Toxicity – Quarterly Whole Sediment Toxicity – Annually at 10 stations

Data Analysis and Reporting Outfall vs. Reference comparisons Sediment Quality Triad Spatial and temporal trending Multivariate statistical analysis Geospatial mapping analysis Delineating outfall impacts from other sources Aerial deposition of contaminants Rivers, harbors, and storm channels Natural environmental variability El Nino/La Nina California Current / Decadal Oscillation Climate change

Marine Monitoring Annual Report Published on March 15th each year A compliance report Primary audience are our regulators Covers all permit-related ocean monitoring activities Includes SPS and Regional Monitoring Has changed significantly from 301(h) monitoring to full-secondary treatment monitoring

Regional Monitoring Mandated in NPDES permit Value to OCSD Allows us to put our monitoring results into a regional context Regional Monitoring Studies: Bight Studies: Bight’18 SCCOOS: Southern California Coastal Ocean Observation System CRKSC: Central Region Kelp Survey Consortium CBWQ: Central Bight Water Quality

Strategic Process Studies Mandated in NPDES Permit Studies and OCSD level of effort approved by regulators Two purposes: Answer questions raised by core monitoring Address issues of concern to OCSD and/or regulators e.g., CECs in wastewater/receiving environment, climate change, harmful algal blooms, nutrients, ocean acidification GWRS Expansion (changes in effluent quality, lower flow rate) Climate Change (sea level rise, changing ocean temperature, species composition changes) Mechanisms OCSD Team Collaborations Contractors

Future of the Ocean Program Core Monitoring Paradigm Shift Less static and more adaptive monitoring Some current monitoring requirements are either not relevant any longer or are overkill Goal is to free up agency resources to address more “meaningful” information needs e.g., GWRS expansion, climate change, ocean acidification, CECs Changes to monitoring program sought in NPDES Permit renewal

Questions?