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		Protecting Our Rivers Cooperative Action to Monitor River Water Quality In 1991, the Sacramento Regional County Sanitation District (SRCSD) formed a historic partnership with the City of Sacramento and Sacramento County's Water Resources Division to improve our understanding of water quality in the Sacramento and American rivers. Concerned about the lack of reliable scientific data about pollutants in our rivers, these agencies joined to establish the nationally-recognized Sacramento Coordinated Monitoring Program, or CMP. With SRCSD as the lead agency, this program has resulted in reliable data on a number of pollutants of concern for Sacramento-area water quality. How Much Do We Really Know About Our Rivers? California's largest river, the Sacramento, yields 35 percent of the state's developed water supply. Concern for water quality grew in 1990 when preliminary sampling found toxins such as mercury in the river. At the time, 18 Sacramento-area agencies were collecting water quality data for various purposes, using different methodologies, and with little coordination between agencies. Answers were lacking to basic water quality questions such as these: What is the background water quality in the Sacramento area? Does local water quality comply with federal and state regulations? What pollutants are contributed by different sources? How does water quality change in response to changes in river flows? The CMP Is Getting Answers About Water Quality To address these issues, the Coordinated Monitoring Program, or CMP, was born. CMP researchers collect water samples every other month at three locations on the Sacramento River and two locations on the American River. Samples are collected using “clean” sampling methods recommended by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). Combined with sophisticated analytical techniques, these methods prevent sample contamination and allow detection of minute concentrations of pollutants. What We Look For in Our Rivers The CMP has tracked 50 different parameters that are important to overall water quality, including: trace metals pesticides cyanide suspended solids organic carbon trace organics flow (amount of water in the river) temperature dissolved oxygen pH hardness pathogens - cryptosporidium giardia Sampling data is carefully validated before entry into a master database. Any correlation between changes in pollutant concentrations and river flows or other seasonal factors is examined. The CMP database forms a central repository of reliable water quality data that is shared with managers of other monitoring programs. A technical report of CMP sampling results published annually. The City of Sacramento and Sacramento County's Water Resources Division include this annual monitoring report in their annual report to the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board. The State of Our Rivers: Preliminary Findings Some of the preliminary findings of the CMP show that: During northern California's rainy season, when river flows are high, concentrations of particulate matter increase. Because many pollutants are associated with particulates, concentrations of pollutants are also higher when river levels are high. Levels of trace metals are generally low in both the Sacramento and the American rivers. Typical concentrations of most metals are less that 25 percent of USEPA limits. Mercury appears to be the most serious trace metal concern in the Sacramento River. Mercury is not a concern in the American River. For more information about the Sacramento Coordinated Monitoring Program, please contact: Steve Nebozuk Program Manager Telephone: (916) 876-6118 Email: nebozuks@sacsewer.com Or click on these PDFs for additional information: CMP Annual Report 2006-2007 (2,920K pdf*) CMP Annual Report 2005-2006 (3,120K pdf*) CMP Annual Report 2004-2005 (4,133K pdf*) CMP Annual Report 2003-2004 (2,969K pdf*) CMP Annual Report 2002-2003 (1,183K pdf*) CMP Brochure (802K pdf*) CMP Fact Sheet (564K pdf*) *Requires Adobe Acrobat's free reader, available here: If you have problems with PDF files on this site, please read this. HOME | SEARCH | CONTACT US About Us | Projects | Education | Sewer Problems | Rates & Fees Facts & Info | Financial Info | Wastewater Treatment | The Environment
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