Bay Protection and Toxic Cleanup Program

  • Sediment Quality Objectives
  • Draft Functional Equivalent Document
    This document is the amended environmental document supporting the preparation of the amended Consolidated Toxic Hot Spots Cleanup Plan (Consolidated Cleanup Plan). This draft Functional Equivalent Document (FED) explores various alternatives, provides options and recommendations, and evaluates the environmental impacts of the Plan.

    Document Background: On October 11, 2001, the Sacramento County Superior Court issued a writ of mandate directing that the site-specific variances for three Central Valley pesticide toxic hot spots be vacated and set aside. The writ also directed the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board (Central Valley Water Board) and the State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) to undertake the necessary actions to prepare and submit to the Legislature an amended Cleanup Plan for the pesticide toxic hot spots. The State Water Board vacated and set aside the site-specific variances in the Cleanup Plan on November 15, 2001. On March 13, 2003, the Central Valley Water Board adopted draft cleanup plans for the three pesticide toxic hot spots. After adoption by the Central Valley Water Board, the State Water Board is required to amend the Consolidated Hotspots Cleanup Plan and Functional Equivalent Document.

    Comments: The State Water Board will accept both written and oral comments on the draft Cleanup Plan and FED at the hearing. Comments must be limited to the three draft pesticide cleanup plans and to the draft FED. In order for the State Water Board to adequately consider written comments prior to the hearing, all participants are requested to submit their comments to the State Water Board, no later than 5:00 p.m., October 28, 2003. Comments will be accepted via mail or facsimile; however, electronic submissions via email are preferred. Written comments should be submitted to: Chris Beegan, Environmental Scientist, Ocean Standards Unit, Division of Water Quality, State Water Resources Control Board, P.O. Box 100, Sacramento, CA 95812-0100, FAX: (916) 341-5584, cbeegan@waterboards.ca.gov.
  • Water Code Mandates
    The BPTCP has four goals: (1) provide protection of present and future beneficial uses of the bays and estuarine waters of California; (2) identify and characterize toxic hot spots; (3) plan for toxic hot spot cleanup or other remedial or mitigation actions; (4) develop prevention and control strategies for toxic pollutants
  • Program Description
    The BPTCP is a comprehensive effort by the State Water Board and the Regional Water Quality Control Boards to programmatically link environmental monitoring and remediation planning.
  • Enclosed Bay and Estuary Monitoring Data and Reports
    The BPTCP has pioneered the use of effects-based measurements of impacts in California's enclosed bays and estuaries. Additional studies were performed to address several important questions related to the evaluation of the toxicity testing data (e.g., the San Francisco Bay reference site study) or to evaluate bioaccumulation of contaminants (e.g., the San Francisco Bay fish study). The BPTCP monitoring program sampled nearly 1,100 stations between 1992 and 1997.

    The consolidated BPTCP database includes all data generated by the BPTCP. Before using the BPTCP data, please be sure to view the Quality Assurance Project Plan and the Database Description.
  • State Water Board Guidance Policy: Toxic Hot Spot Definition, Ranking Criteria, Remediation Strategies
    The State Water Board developed a Guidance Policy  to facilitate the consistent development of Regional Cleanup Plans. The State Water Board and the Regional Water Quality Control Boards used a three-step process  to develop the cleanup plans.
  • Regional Toxic Hot Spots Cleanup Plans
    Each Regional Water Quality Control Board (Regional Boards) developed proposed Regional Toxic Hot Spots Cleanup Plans in 1997. Subsequent to approval of the State Water Resources Control Board Guidance Policy, the Regional Boards redeveloped their Cleanup Plans. Each Regional Board completed a revised Regional Cleanup Plan.
  • Consolidated Toxic Hot Spot Cleanup Plan
    The Consolidated Cleanup Plan consists of the consolidated list of toxic hot spots and mandated findings (Volume I) and the Regional Cleanup Plans (Volume II) .  The Consolidated Plan includes: (1) a priority listing of all known toxic hot spots; (2) a description of each toxic hot spot including a characterization of the pollutants present at the site; (3) an assessment of the most likely source or sources of pollutants; (4) an estimate of the total costs to implement the plan; (5) an estimate of the costs that can be recovered from parties responsible for the discharge of pollutants; (6) a preliminary assessment of the actions required to remedy or restore the toxic hot spots; and (7) two-year expenditure schedules identifying funds needed to implement the plan. The development of the Consolidated Cleanup Plan was accompanied by a functional equivalent document.
  • Internal and External Review
    Three committees supported or reviewed the activities of the BPTCP: (1) the Monitoring and Surveillance Task Force, (2) the BPTCP Advisory Committee, and (3) the Scientific Planning and Review Committee.
  • More Information
    A variety of scientific reports, staff reports and other publications are available.
  • Staff