Central Coast Ambient Monitoring Program Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board Water Quality Issues in the Ambient Marine Environment of Central Coastal California

Regional Water Quality Control Board Central Coast Region RWQCB responsible for regulation of discharge to surface and groundwater Ocean discharges from point sources such as power plants or wastewater treatment plants, and more recently stormwater, are regulated through NPDES permits In our Region, nonpoint source pollutants may be the most significant impact to the marine environment

Typical pollutants found in surface runoff to the ocean Nutrients Pathogens Sediment Metals Pesticides and PCBs Petroleum hydrocarbons Other substances, such as phthalates, polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs)

Nutrients Nitrate, phosphate, silicate Large loads of some nutrients are discharged from agricultural river mouths Estuarine environments may show indications of eutrophication Influence of nutrients from land sources is not well understood

Nitrate averages (mg/l as N), north to south

Eutrophication is evident in many lagoon systems Algal blooms alter habitat, create nuisance, generate large swings in oxygen levels Fish kills result from depressed oxygen concentrations Nitrate can be present at levels that also cause toxicity to aquatic life

Studies have linked concentrations of some nutrients to toxic phytoplankton blooms. In lab culture, domoic acid concentrations in Pseudonitzchia increase in proportion to nitrate concentrations Intracellular DA concentrations increase when Silicate and phosphorus are limiting Iron availability is also a key factor in determining whether blooms become toxic – iron stress causes cells to discharge DA to environment

It is still unclear to what extent sources from the land play an impact in marine nutrient dynamics, given the enormous amount of nutrients made available by upwelling off our coast Long-term Ecological Research Program Plumes and Blooms Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute U.C. Santa Cruz Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve Central Coast Long-term Environmental Assessment Program (CCLEAN)

Pesticide Application and NO 3 Coastal Confluence Sites North to South DPR 1999 Pounds Applied Per Acre

Legacy Pesticides Bioaccumulate in higher trophic level species like marine mammals Pesticides may disrupt endocrine systems or cause immune system compromise Recent nesting failure in the Caspian tern has been attributed to DDT transported by a heavy rain event Funding currently being provided through Proposition 13 to study these chemicals in archived sea otter tissues

Mussel Watch Monitoring Data (Sandholdt Bridge, Moss Landing, for DDT and Dieldrin)

DDT (ug/kg) in sand crabs, northern Santa Cruz County south to Santa Barbara County

Currently applied pesticides Moving target Expensive or difficult to conduct analytical tests Many do not bioaccumulate Most effective testing includes multiple indicators (toxicity, chemistry, benthic communities) Multiple indicator testing has been conducted in the Salinas watershed, the Santa Maria watershed and several other locations and has shown toxic effects Unknown impacts to the nearshore marine environment

Metals Some elevated levels of metals in coastal lagoons appear to be geologic in origin Mercury is elevated in some watersheds, particularly Santa Rosa Creek Recent marine fish contamination sampling has not shown mercury levels of concern, but did not target long-lived benthic species

Nickel concentrations in sediment from coastal confluence sites, north to south (ERM is 51.6 mg/kg)

Mercury in sediment from coastal confluence sites, north to south ( ERM is 0.7 mg/kg)

Sediment Important pollutant of coastal steelhead streams, but also a natural part of a functioning watershed Important in transport of other pollutants Sedimentation of harbors is a continuing problem, particularly where elevated chemicals make disposal expensive Quantifying impacts in the marine environment challenging

Petroleum Hydrocarbons Several large cleanup sites from past oil activities Natural Sources Urban runoff Sand crab data from 2000 shows somewhat elevated levels in the vicinity of Guadalupe and Avila

Pathogens may enter the ocean through surface runoff or sewage discharges, and serve as a source of infection for humans and marine mammals

Beach Closures Based on county testing for traditional indicators including fecal coliform and Enterococcus Sampling mandated on beaches with greater than 50,000 visitations per year during dry season months Stormwater runoff, river and urban discharges, and failing sewer lines are common sources of problems San Luis Obispo County Environmental Health Department monitors 12 sites on a weekly basis year-round

San Luis Obispo County Beaches For 2002: 92% of monitored sites received “A”s for dry season scores Pismo Pier had a few dry season hits and scored a “B” Two wet season failing scores at Avila Beach Check for a state-wide report card of beach healthwww.healthebay.org

Sea Otters and Pathogens CDFG Marine Wildlife Veterinary Care and Research Center U.C. Davis School of Veterinary Medicine Sea otters are excellent sentinels of marine water quality health Recent mortality rates have been very high Recent research has shown the proportion of sea otters dying from infectious disease has increased in recent years to over 45% Several of the diseases of concern have implications for human health

Protozoal pathogens Toxoplasma is the primary or contributing cause of mortality for over 25% of dead sea otters examined at the CDFG facility Cats are the primary host of this disease Another protozoan carried by opposums contributes to another 12.4% of mortalities Other protozoans which have been detected in otters include Cryptosporidium and Giardia Protozoans form resistant spores, which may be uptaken by filter feeders as one possible mechanism of infection

Pacific Grove Study Screening sea otter feces for common gastrointestinal pathogens from humans or domestic animals Cryptosporidium 3.8% Giardia1.9% Enterotoxigenic E. coli 0% Vibrio cholera 0% Salmonella 2.5% Campylobacter jejuni-like 2.5% Pleisomonas shigelloides 17.5% Clostridium perfringens type A20.0%

New funding ($240 K) provided last week by our Board to further these investigations by the CDFG/U.C. Davis team Study will focus on two “hot spots” for Toxoplasma, which include Morro Bay and Elkhorn Slough We should learn more about mechanisms of infection, source areas, and other potential bacterial species of concern from these continuing studies