The
San Mateo County Resource Conservation District (RCD) is directing a
study to identify the sources of bacteria in Pillar Point Harbor and
develop a plan to address them.
Pillar Point Harbor
water quality chronically is so poor that the State Water Resources Control
Board listed the location as impaired by coliform bacteria on the
303(d) list submitted to the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Capistrano
Beach has been ranked for
several years by the Heal the Bay's Report Card as a “Beach Bummer,” meaning
that it is in the top ten most polluted beaches in California in dry weather conditions, and
is permanently posted by the San Mateo County Environmental Health Department
as a potential health hazard.
There are numerous opinions as to the sources of
fecal pollution impacting the harbor. Although much effort has been expended on
studying the locations of fecal pollution impacting the harbor, including water
sampling and fecal indicator enumeration studies, data on identification of
primary sources and their relative contributions to the overall magnitude of
the pollution problem are lacking. There has been no comprehensive
study of the possible sources of pollution and how
these sources interact in the confines of the enclosed harbor.
“Identification
of Sources of Fecal Pollution Impacting Pillar Point Harbor” is a
project to assess and identify sources of fecal pollution in Pillar Point
Harbor and recommend opportunities
for remediation. Water
will be sampled in select locations and tested for the presence and abundance
of bacteria that occur with fecal pollution, and bacteria samples will be
genetically tested to determine their original host source.
Based on this research and analysis, a plan will be
developed to improve water quality on the
beaches in Pillar
Point Harbor. This plan will include a
timeline for implementing the proposed methods to achieve water quality
objectives and the parties responsible, as well as a monitoring plan and
performance measures to track implementation of projects. The
overall vision of this project is to reduce the number of days that the beaches
are posted or closed, requiring implementation of proposed projects.
More information is available in the following documents:
