This section contains links to reports and studies conducted by other organizations, academic institutions and government agencies pertaining to regional water quality.
San Diego Basin Plan
The Basin Plan is issued and updated every 5 years by the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board and outlines regional, state and federal water quality standards and guidelines for the San Diego region.
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305(b) Report
This report is published by the State of California Water Resources Control Board every five years and outlines the state of knowledge regarding the functional status of the region’s waterbodies. Previous 305(b) publications have shown that the status of some 80 to 90 percent of the waterbodies in our region is unknown because not enough data is available to assess the state of many rivers, bays, and beaches, underscoring the importance of monitoring data as a tool for effective management of our regions natural resources.
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303(d) Report
This publication by the State of California Water Resource Control Board includes detailed information on regional waterbodies listed as impaired under the Federal Clean Water Act requirements.
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NOAA San Diego BPTC Program Report
In 1998, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issued a report of a study that evaluated the level of pollutants in sediments their toxicity and the state of benthic communities in 18 bays across the nation. Based on the results of this study the San Diego Bay was ranked as the second most polluted bay in the nation, with Newark New Jersey coming in first.
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NRDC Testing the Waters Report
The National Resources Defense Council compiles data collected by government agencies across the nation to report on the number of beach advisories and closures. This yearly report shows pollution trends for beaches across the nation.
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SCCWRP Annual Report
This annual report is a collection of scientific papers published by the Southern California Coastal Water Research Project. The SCCWRP is a regional government agency that conducts scientific research in the Southern California Bight focusing on ecological impacts of anthropogenic inputs (e.g., wastewater discharges) on the coastal environment.
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SMBRP Report
This report discusses an epidemiological study conducted by in Santa Monica Bay in 1998 by the Santa Monica Bay Restoration Project. This study is commonly cited in many documents as a reference regarding the health impacts of swimming in waters impacted by stormdrain discharges.
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