Regulatory Update Carrie Austin, SF Bay Water Board Michelle Wood, CV Water Board

Regulatory Update

Carrie Austin, SF Bay Water Board

Michelle Wood, CV Water Board

Water Quality Management Process

Monitoring

Special Discharger Studies

CWA 303(d)

Planning

Assessment

Implementation

Evaluation

Basin Plan- Uses- Objectives- Impl. Program- TMDLs

WDRsWaiversProhibitions

Review- Monitoring Results- Mgmt. Plans

Water QualityImprovement

SF Bay Area Mercury TMDLs

Walker Creek Fish Tissue Mercury Water Quality Objectives

For smaller preyfish0.05 mg Hg/kg fish

For larger preyfish

0.1 mg Hg/kg fish

Mercury Mine Wastes

Gambonini Mine Site Soulajule Watershed Mines Downstream Depositional Areas

Allocation: Allocation: 5 mg/kg total mercury in sediment5 mg/kg total mercury in sediment

Management action: Management action: erosion controlerosion control

Remediation Reduced Gambonini Mine Mercury Loads by 90%

Mine Remediation Post-Remediation

Soulajule Watershed

Allocations: 0.04 ng/l methylmercury in reservoir0.5 mg/kg particulate mercury discharged

Implementation actions: Evaluate and resolve problem

Downstream Depositional Areas

Allocation: 0.5 mg/kg total mercury in sediment

Management question ‘C’: How will erosion

control & riparian restoration affect MeHg?

Tomales Bay Mercury,

Nutrients & Siltation TMDL

Guadalupe & SF Bay Hg

TMDLs

Guadalupe River

Watershed Hg TMDL

SF Bay Hg TMDL

Sources, Loads, and AllocationsSources, Loads, and Allocations

0

200

400

600

800

1,000

(kilograms per year)

Current Load Allocation

BE = Bed Erosion

CV = Central Valley

G = Guadalupe

G

BE

cv

G

cv

BE

113

1711

0

40

80

120

Municipal Wastewater

1970 Load (Estimated)

Current Load

Allocation

New Water Quality Objectives in SF Bay

0.2 ppm mercury in large predator fish

0.03 ppm mercuryin prey fish

California least tern

Next: Central Valley Hg TMDLs