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Selenium and Nitrogen Work Plan for the San Diego Creek Watershed

Presentation to the
Newport Bay Watershed Management Committee
and
Newport Bay-San Diego Creek Watershed Feasibility Study Management Team
September 22, 2004

List of Topics

  • Overview of De Minimus Permit (Schneider)

  • Relationship of De Minimus Permit to Watershed-Wide Efforts (Crompton)

  • Comprehensive Selenium/Nitrogen Work Plan (Abu-Saba)

  • De Minimus Permit Connection (Brandt)

  • Questions and Discussion

Chris Crompton

Introduction

Chris Crompton

September 22, 2004

Newport Bay Watershed Committees

 

Executive Committee

Role

1. Strategic Decisions

2. Coordinate Project Implementation

3. Project Development

4. Project/Program advocacy

5. Communication Forum

 

Management Committee

Role

1. Monitor Direct Work Products

2. Inform & Advise Executive Committee

3. Coordinate with Indirect Work

4. Review and recommend on indirect work products of others

Direct

Section 208 Sediment Management Program

Special Studies to Influence Indirect Work

Corps Upper Newport Bay Feasibility Study

Corps Newport Bay/San Diego Creek Watershed Study

Indirect

SAMP

NCCP

TMDL

NPDES/WDR

 

SAMP = Special Area Management Plan

NCCP = Natural Communities Conservation Plan

TMDL = Total Maximum Daily Load

NPDES = National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System

WDR = Waste Discharge Requirements

De Minimus Permit History

  • First permit issued by Regional Board in 1993, amended in 1996

  • Second permit issued in 1998 - added nutrient monitoring for Newport Bay

  • Third permit issued in 2003, but excluded groundwater-related discharges in Newport Bay Watershed due to TMDL issues

    • Separate proposed permit for short-term excluded discharges is topic of today's discussion

What are Groundwater-Related Discharges?

  • Wastes associated with well installation, development, test pumping and purging

  • Aquifer testing wastes

  • Dewatering wastes from subterranean seepage

  • Groundwater dewatering wastes at construction sites

Example of Groundwater-Related Discharge at Construction Site

Water quality monitored upstream and downstream of dewatering site.

Water typically analyzed for TSS and nutrients

Why Do Short-Term Groundwater-Related Discharges Occur?

  • Construction projects in flood control channels to improve flood control and public safety

  • Construction of utility trenches and facilities

  • Well development and maintenance for water supply

  • Construction of structure foundations in areas of shallow groundwater

What Do Groundwater-Related Discharges Contain?

  • In the San Diego Creek/Newport Bay watershed the following have been identified as constituents of concern by the Santa Ana Regional Board:

    • Selenium

    • Nitrogen

What are the Sources of Selenium?

  • Elevated levels of selenium were measured dating back to 1970's (earliest data collection)

  • Historic "Swamp of the Frogs" is local source of selenium (Meixner, Hibbs, et al 2004)

  • Oxygen-enriched groundwater oxidizes reduced selenium from historic swamp deposits (Meixner, Hibbs, et al 2004)

What are the Sources of Nitrogen?

  • Current export of nitrate-nitrogen to groundwater related to historic citrus agriculture (Meixner, Hibbs, et al 2004)

Can Selenium be Removed from Groundwater-Related Discharges?

  • Selenium removal technologies are not currently available for short-term groundwater-related discharges to comply with proposed permit

Why Was a Working Group Formed?

  • Working Group was formed to develop a Work Plan to assess technologies within a framework provided by the permit

  • Working Group currently comprises of the State, municipalities, utilities and landowners who have groundwater-related discharges

Does the Work Plan Go Beyond Groundwater-Related Discharges?

  • Yes

    • The Work Plan embraces larger selenium and nitrogen issues in the watershed rather than just groundwater-related discharges

    • Completion of the Work Plan will significantly assist in development of the Selenium TMDL implementation plan

  • Next speakers will elaborate on this

Dr. Khalil Abu-Saba

Why are we here?

  • Selenium and nitrogen need to be managed in this watershed

  • Groundwater contains selenium and nitrogen

  • Groundwater discharges are regulated

  • Regulation leverages collective societal responsibility

Why do we care?

Selenium accumulates in the food chain, threatening migratory and resident birds

Nitrogen can stimulate nuisance algal growth, detracting from the aesthetic appeal of water

Winged Migration

The story of migrating birds is the story of a promise, a promise to return. They fly, often thousands of miles, beset with danger, for a single reason: to survive. Their migration is a fight for life.

Why don't we just fix it?

Selenium

  • It's not that easy

  • Next steps

    • Reduce loads with existing technology

    • Explore new technology to reduce loads

    • Consider site-specific water quality objectives

Nitrogen

  • We may have already

  • Next steps:

    • What's the load from groundwater?

    • Is more reduction needed?

    • If so, from where?

The Work Plan

  • Follow Clean Water Act and State Implementation Policy

  • Start by trying to meet existing objectives

  • Concurrently track loads and develop offset/trading process to meet watershed goals

  • Early tasks will support a selenium site specific objective, if needed to protect beneficial uses

  • Consideration of selenium site specific objective after two years of work on load reduction

Program Management

 

Steering Committee

Includes RWQCB staff

Approve schedule, budget, and cost sharing

 

Technical Committee

Membership public, not just work plan sponsors

Approve detailed scopes of work

Select contractors

Approve deliverables

 

Peer Reviewers

Objective, 3rd party review and comment on deliverables

 

Regulatory and Resource agencies

Use deliverables to make policy decisions

Baseline Monitoring

  • Determine existing loads

  • Gather data on selenium speciation and food chain concentrations

  • Fill data gaps with additional monitoring

  • Develop conceptual model

Treatment Technologies

  • Show what can we do right now to reduce selenium concentrations

  • Encourage manufacturers of new technologies by providing site access and high selenium water

BMPs

  • Show what can we do right now to reduce discharge volumes

  • Pilot test BMPs to reduce selenium concentrations

Treatment demonstrations

  • Select most promising treatment approaches

  • Provide seed funding for pilot scale testing and demonstration

Evaluate nitrogen TMDL implementation

  • Assess current loads from groundwater

  • Identify needs and opportunities for load reductions

  • Propose approaches to implement load reductions, if needed

Develop offset / trading framework

  • Learn from existing selenium and nutrient offset programs

  • Propose nitrogen watershed offset / trading project

  • Propose selenium offset / trading / mitigation project

Selenium site specific objective

  • Consolidate all work done to date

  • Define critical food chain components

  • Propose numeric targets in food chain

  • Link food chain targets to chemical forms of selenium in water and sediments

  • Amend Basin Plan and California Toxics Rule

  • Coordinate with current statewide selenium standard setting process

Related Projects and Processes

Norris Brandt

Selenium Status

  • Selenium is a natural, ubiquitous element in the watershed

  • Selenium has an unlimited source

  • No current baseline for groundwater pumping or seepage

  • Technology not yet ready; compliance not assured

  • No existing trading/offset program

Selenium Status (continued)

  • No current selenium management plan; the reason for the Work Plan proposal

  • Recognition that de minimis discharges are only part of the picture

Nutrient Status

  • Nutrient TMDL's currently being met

  • Nitrogen TMDL compliance apparently tied to operation of San Joaquin Marsh system

  • No current baseline for groundwater pumping or seepage

  • No existing trading/offset program

  • Recognition that de minimis discharges are only part of the picture

Proposed Permit Concepts

  • Comprehensive Work Plan -- beyond the De Minimus Plan alone

  • Performance Based Limits/Compliance Schedules

  • Working Group considerations

  • Individual dischargers conduct monitoring of individual discharges

  • IRWD commitment to operate San Joaquin Marsh for the permit period

Proposed Permit Concepts
(continued)

  • Minimum threshold

  • Public participation in Work Plan--input/advice from environmental/scientific community

Questions/Discussion
 
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