Draft California 2024 Integrated Report (303(d) List/305(b) Report)

Supporting Information

Regional Board 3 - Central Coast Region

Water Body Name: Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)
Water Body ID: CAX3153201220021001203735
Water Body Type: Coastal & Bay Shoreline
 
DECISION ID
151411
Region 3     
Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)
 
Pollutant: Enterococcus
Final Listing Decision: Do Not List on 303(d) list (TMDL required list)
Last Listing Cycle's Final Listing Decision: Do Not List on 303(d) list (TMDL required list)(2018)
Revision Status Revised
Impairment from Pollutant or Pollution: Pollutant
 
Regional Board Conclusion: This decision was reassessed during the 2024 listing cycle to correct a waterbody mapping error from the 2020-2022 cycle. During the 2020-2022 cycle, “Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)” had two WBID nos. associated with it. This cycle, all LOEs are now associated with WBID no. CAX3153201220021001203735 and Decision no. 126879 (for WBID no. CAC3153200020190116044847) will be retired.

This pollutant is being considered for placement on the section 303(d) list under sections 3.2 of the Listing Policy. Under this section, a single line of evidence is necessary to assess listing status.

In accordance with section 6.1.5.3 of the Listing Policy, data should be representative of the critical timing that the pollutant is expected to impact the waterbody. Enterococcus populations may fluctuate substantially on a daily, seasonal, or yearly basis. Lacking constant inputs, indicator bacteria do not persist in the environment for a long period and effects are of relatively short duration. As a result, the historic levels of enterococcus in the waterbody may be a poor indicator of current risks to human health, particularly when more recent data are available to sufficiently assess the water quality standard. Additionally, water quality conditions in waterbodies may change as a result of management actions that have been implemented to address enterococcus. Unrepresentative data may result in incorrectly placing or not placing a water body segment on the CWA section 303(d) List, which could result in the unnecessary expenditure of public resources or missing a human health problem. Historic lines of evidence for data collected prior to 2010 were evaluated pursuant to these considerations and were not used to assess water quality standards attainment because they do not meet the temporal representation requirements of section 6.1.5.3 of the Listing Policy.

Focusing on only the most recent data (2011-2019), two lines of evidence are available in the administrative record to assess this pollutant. 31 of the 366 geomean samples exceed the REC-1 objective for enterococcus (LOE 306246). When sampling results are available for both geometric means and STVs, the decision will rely on the geometric mean. This beneficial use is fully supported.

Four older lines of evidence (data collected prior to 2010) are available in the administrative record to assess this pollutant. One of 158 samples exceeded the geometric mean standard for enterococcus and 15 of 286 samples exceeded the single sample maximum for enterococcus (Water Quality Control Plan: Ocean Waters of California, SWRCB, 2005) for the water contact recreation water quality standard.

Based on the readily available data and information, the weight of evidence indicates that there is sufficient justification against placing this water segment-pollutant combination on the section 303(d) list.

This conclusion is based on the staff findings that:
1. The data used satisfies the data quality requirements of section 6.1.4 of the Policy.
2. The data used satisfies the data quantity requirements of section 6.1.5 of the Policy.
3. Thirty-one of the 366 geometric means exceed the objective for the water contact recreation water quality objective, and this does not exceed the allowable frequency listed in Table 3.2 of the Listing Policy.
4. Pursuant to section 3.11 of the Listing Policy, no additional data and information are available indicating that standards are not met.
 
Regional Board Decision Recommendation: After review of the available data and information, RWQCB staff concludes that the water body-pollutant combination should not be placed on the section 303(d) list because applicable water quality standards are not being exceeded.
 
State Board Review of Regional Board Conclusion and Recommendation:
 
State Board Decision Recommendation: After review of this Regional Board decision, SWRCB staff recommend the decision be approved by the State Board.
 
 
Line of Evidence (LOE) for Decision ID 151411, Enterococcus
Region 3     
Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)
 
LOE ID: 306247
 
Pollutant: Enterococcus
LOE Subgroup: Pollutant-Water
Matrix: Water
Fraction: None
 
Beneficial Use: Water Contact Recreation
 
Number of Samples: 99
Number of Exceedances: 21
 
Data and Information Type: PATHOGEN MONITORING
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: Water Board staff assessed data for Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County) to determine beneficial use support and the results are as follows: 21 of the 99 samples exceeded the Statistical Threshold Value (STV) water quality threshold for Enterococcus. The STV is based on a 10% exceedance rate that is calculated monthly.
Data Reference: Data file of Region 3 Beachwatch Data. Includes data from all coastal counties in Region 3 including: , Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, Ventura, and San Mateo counties.
 
SWAMP Data: Non-SWAMP
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion: California Ocean Plan (SWRCB 2019) states that the bacteria water quality objective to protect the REC-1 beneficial for all ocean waters for Enterococci is a statistical value threshold (STV) of 110 cfu/100 mL. The STV shall not be exceeded by more than 10 percent of the samples collected in a calendar month, calculated in a static manner.
Objective/Criterion Reference: SWRCB. 2005. Water Quality Control Plan, Ocean Waters of California (Ocean Plan). California Environmental Protection Agency, State Water Resources Control Board. February 2, 2019
 
Evaluation Guideline:
Guideline Reference:
 
Spatial Representation: The samples were collected at 1 monitoring site(s), station(s): WP0000023
Temporal Representation: The samples were collected between the days of 2010-09-07 and 2019-06-10 .
Environmental Conditions:
QAPP Information: QAPP for 2020 Santa Barbara County Beachwatch data.
QAPP Information Reference(s): QAPP for Santa Barbara County Beachwatch data for the 2020 Integrated Report.
 
Line of Evidence (LOE) for Decision ID 151411, Enterococcus
Region 3     
Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)
 
LOE ID: 306246
 
Pollutant: Enterococcus
LOE Subgroup: Pollutant-Water
Matrix: Water
Fraction: None
 
Beneficial Use: Water Contact Recreation
 
Number of Samples: 366
Number of Exceedances: 31
 
Data and Information Type: PATHOGEN MONITORING
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: Water Board staff assessed data for Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County) to determine beneficial use support and the results are as follows: 31 of the 366 samples exceeded the geomean water quality threshold for Enterococcus. This is a six week rolling geomean that is calculated weekly.
Data Reference: Data file of Region 3 Beachwatch Data. Includes data from all coastal counties in Region 3 including: , Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, Ventura, and San Mateo counties.
 
SWAMP Data: Non-SWAMP
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion: California Ocean Plan (SWRCB 2019) states that the bacteria water quality objective to protect the REC-1 beneficial for all ocean waters for Enterococci is a geometric mean (GM) of 30 cfu/100 mL. The waterbody GM shall not be greater that the GM magnitude in any six-week interval, calculated weekly.
Objective/Criterion Reference: SWRCB. 2005. Water Quality Control Plan, Ocean Waters of California (Ocean Plan). California Environmental Protection Agency, State Water Resources Control Board. February 2, 2019
 
Evaluation Guideline:
Guideline Reference:
 
Spatial Representation: The samples were collected at 1 monitoring site(s), station(s): WP0000023
Temporal Representation: The samples were collected between the days of 2010-09-07 and 2019-06-10 .
Environmental Conditions:
QAPP Information: QAPP for 2020 Santa Barbara County Beachwatch data.
QAPP Information Reference(s): QAPP for Santa Barbara County Beachwatch data for the 2020 Integrated Report.
 
Line of Evidence (LOE) for Decision ID 151411, Enterococcus
Region 3     
Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)
 
LOE ID: 19267
 
Pollutant: Enterococcus
LOE Subgroup: Pollutant-Water
Matrix: Water
Fraction: None
 
Beneficial Use: Water Contact Recreation
 
Number of Samples: 148
Number of Exceedances: 10
 
Data and Information Type: PATHOGEN MONITORING
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: Central Coast Regional Board Staff assessed data for Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County) to determine beneficial use support and results are as follows: 10 of 148 samples exceed the criterion for Enterococci.
Data Reference: AB 411 Data for 2004
  AB 411 Data for 2005
  AB 411 Data for 2006
 
SWAMP Data: Non-SWAMP
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion: California Ocean Plan (SWRCB 2005) states that the single sample maximum for Enterococcus shall not exceed 104 MPN/100 mL.
Objective/Criterion Reference: Water Quality Control Plan Ocean Waters of California. California Ocean Plan 2005. Sacramento, CA: State Water Resources Control Board, California Environmental Protection Agency
 
Evaluation Guideline:
Guideline Reference:
 
Spatial Representation: Data for this line of evidence for Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County) was collected at one AB411 monitoring site (Butterfly Beach)
Temporal Representation: Data was collected over the time period 1/5/2004 - 12/27/2006. This includes weekly AB411 monitoring between April 1 and October 31 of each year.
Environmental Conditions:
QAPP Information: QA information not available
QAPP Information Reference(s):
 
Line of Evidence (LOE) for Decision ID 151411, Enterococcus
Region 3     
Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)
 
LOE ID: 56053
 
Pollutant: Enterococcus
LOE Subgroup: Pollutant-Water
Matrix: Water
Fraction: None
 
Beneficial Use: Water Contact Recreation
 
Number of Samples: 138
Number of Exceedances: 5
 
Data and Information Type: PATHOGEN MONITORING
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: Water Board staff assessed Beach Watch Program data that is collected by each County's Environmental Health Department for Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County) to determine beneficial use support and results are as follows: 5 of 138 samples exceed the criterion for Enterococci.
Data Reference: Data for Region 3 Beach Watch.
 
SWAMP Data: Non-SWAMP
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion: California Ocean Plan (SWRCB 2005) single sample maximum for enterococcus density shall not exceed 104 per 100 mL.
Objective/Criterion Reference: Water Quality Control Plan Ocean Waters of California. California Ocean Plan 2005. Sacramento, CA: State Water Resources Control Board, California Environmental Protection Agency
 
Evaluation Guideline:
Guideline Reference:
 
Spatial Representation: Data for this line of evidence for Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County) was collected at 1 monitoring site [ Butterfly Beach]
Temporal Representation: Data was collected over the time period 1/2/2007-8/30/2010.
Environmental Conditions: Staff is not aware of any special conditions that might affect interpretation of the data.
QAPP Information: Water Board staff assessed Beach Watch Program data that is collected by each County's Environmental Health Department. There is no QA Project Plan but instead each County follows their own Quality Assurance Procedures
QAPP Information Reference(s):
 
 
DECISION ID
151411
Region 3     
Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)
 
Pollutant: Enterococcus
Final Listing Decision: Do Not List on 303(d) list (TMDL required list)
Last Listing Cycle's Final Listing Decision: Do Not List on 303(d) list (TMDL required list)(2018)
Revision Status Revised
Impairment from Pollutant or Pollution: Pollutant
 
Regional Board Conclusion: This decision was reassessed during the 2024 listing cycle to correct a waterbody mapping error from the 2020-2022 cycle. During the 2020-2022 cycle, “Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)” had two WBID nos. associated with it. This cycle, all LOEs are now associated with WBID no. CAX3153201220021001203735 and Decision no. 126879 (for WBID no. CAC3153200020190116044847) will be retired.

This pollutant is being considered for placement on the section 303(d) list under sections 3.2 of the Listing Policy. Under this section, a single line of evidence is necessary to assess listing status.

In accordance with section 6.1.5.3 of the Listing Policy, data should be representative of the critical timing that the pollutant is expected to impact the waterbody. Enterococcus populations may fluctuate substantially on a daily, seasonal, or yearly basis. Lacking constant inputs, indicator bacteria do not persist in the environment for a long period and effects are of relatively short duration. As a result, the historic levels of enterococcus in the waterbody may be a poor indicator of current risks to human health, particularly when more recent data are available to sufficiently assess the water quality standard. Additionally, water quality conditions in waterbodies may change as a result of management actions that have been implemented to address enterococcus. Unrepresentative data may result in incorrectly placing or not placing a water body segment on the CWA section 303(d) List, which could result in the unnecessary expenditure of public resources or missing a human health problem. Historic lines of evidence for data collected prior to 2010 were evaluated pursuant to these considerations and were not used to assess water quality standards attainment because they do not meet the temporal representation requirements of section 6.1.5.3 of the Listing Policy.

Focusing on only the most recent data (2011-2019), two lines of evidence are available in the administrative record to assess this pollutant. 31 of the 366 geomean samples exceed the REC-1 objective for enterococcus (LOE 306246). When sampling results are available for both geometric means and STVs, the decision will rely on the geometric mean. This beneficial use is fully supported.

Four older lines of evidence (data collected prior to 2010) are available in the administrative record to assess this pollutant. One of 158 samples exceeded the geometric mean standard for enterococcus and 15 of 286 samples exceeded the single sample maximum for enterococcus (Water Quality Control Plan: Ocean Waters of California, SWRCB, 2005) for the water contact recreation water quality standard.

Based on the readily available data and information, the weight of evidence indicates that there is sufficient justification against placing this water segment-pollutant combination on the section 303(d) list.

This conclusion is based on the staff findings that:
1. The data used satisfies the data quality requirements of section 6.1.4 of the Policy.
2. The data used satisfies the data quantity requirements of section 6.1.5 of the Policy.
3. Thirty-one of the 366 geometric means exceed the objective for the water contact recreation water quality objective, and this does not exceed the allowable frequency listed in Table 3.2 of the Listing Policy.
4. Pursuant to section 3.11 of the Listing Policy, no additional data and information are available indicating that standards are not met.
 
Regional Board Decision Recommendation: After review of the available data and information, RWQCB staff concludes that the water body-pollutant combination should not be placed on the section 303(d) list because applicable water quality standards are not being exceeded.
 
State Board Review of Regional Board Conclusion and Recommendation:
 
State Board Decision Recommendation: After review of this Regional Board decision, SWRCB staff recommend the decision be approved by the State Board.
 
 
Line of Evidence (LOE) for Decision ID 151411, Enterococcus
Region 3     
Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)
 
LOE ID: 19242
 
Pollutant: Enterococcus
LOE Subgroup: Pollutant-Water
Matrix: Water
Fraction: None
 
Beneficial Use: Water Contact Recreation
 
Number of Samples: 32
Number of Exceedances: 1
 
Data and Information Type: PATHOGEN MONITORING
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: Central Coast Regional Board Staff assessed data for Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County) to determine beneficial use support and results are as follows: 1 of 32 samples exceed the criterion for Enterococci.
Data Reference: AB 411 Data for 2004
  AB 411 Data for 2005
  AB 411 Data for 2006
 
SWAMP Data: Non-SWAMP
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion: California Ocean Plan (SWRCB 2005) states that the geometric mean for Enterococcus shall not exceed 35 MPN/100 mL.
Objective/Criterion Reference: Water Quality Control Plan Ocean Waters of California. California Ocean Plan 2005. Sacramento, CA: State Water Resources Control Board, California Environmental Protection Agency
 
Evaluation Guideline:
Guideline Reference:
 
Spatial Representation: Data for this line of evidence for Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County) was collected at one AB411 monitoring site (Butterfly Beach)
Temporal Representation: Data was collected over the time period 1/5/2004 - 12/27/2006. This includes weekly AB411 monitoring between April 1 and October 31 of each year.
Environmental Conditions:
QAPP Information: QA information not available
QAPP Information Reference(s):
 
Line of Evidence (LOE) for Decision ID 151411, Enterococcus
Region 3     
Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)
 
LOE ID: 56054
 
Pollutant: Enterococcus
LOE Subgroup: Pollutant-Water
Matrix: Water
Fraction: None
 
Beneficial Use: Water Contact Recreation
 
Number of Samples: 126
Number of Exceedances: 0
 
Data and Information Type: Not Specified
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: Zero of the 126 geomeans exceeded the enterococcus objective.
Data Reference: Data for Region 3 Beach Watch.
 
SWAMP Data: Non-SWAMP
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion: The geometric mean for enterococcus shall not exceed 35 MPN/100 mL. Water Quality Control Plan for Ocean Waters 2006.
Objective/Criterion Reference: Water Quality Control Plan Ocean Waters of California. California Ocean Plan 2005. Sacramento, CA: State Water Resources Control Board, California Environmental Protection Agency
 
Evaluation Guideline:
Guideline Reference:
 
Spatial Representation: The samples were collected at Butterfly Beach.
Temporal Representation: The samples were collected approximately once a week from January 2007 to August 2010.
Environmental Conditions:
QAPP Information: The samples were collected for the Beach Watch progam by Santa Barbara County,Environmental Health Services.
QAPP Information Reference(s):
 
 
DECISION ID
151412
Region 3     
Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)
 
Pollutant: Fecal Coliform
Final Listing Decision: Do Not List on 303(d) list (TMDL required list)
Last Listing Cycle's Final Listing Decision: Do Not List on 303(d) list (TMDL required list)(2018)
Revision Status Revised
Impairment from Pollutant or Pollution: Pollutant
 
Regional Board Conclusion: This decision was reassessed during the 2024 listing cycle to correct waterbody mapping error from the 2020-2022 cycle. During the 2020-2022 cycle, “Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)” had two WBID nos. associated with it. This cycle, all LOEs are now associated with WBID no. CAX3153201220021001203735 and Decision no. 126880 (for WBID no. CAC3153200020190116044847) will be retired.

This pollutant is being considered for placement on the section 303(d) list under sections 3.2 and 3.3 of the Listing Policy. Under these sections, a single line of evidence is necessary to assess listing status.

In accordance with section 6.1.5.3 of the Listing Policy, data should be representative of the critical timing that the pollutant is expected to impact the waterbody. Fecal coliform populations may fluctuate substantially on a daily, seasonal, or yearly basis. Lacking constant inputs, indicator bacteria do not persist in the environment for a long period and effects are of relatively short duration. As a result, the historic levels of fecal coliform in the waterbody may be a poor indicator of current risks to human health, particularly when more recent data are available to sufficiently assess the water quality standard. Additionally, water quality conditions in waterbodies may change as a result of management actions that have been implemented to address fecal coliform. Unrepresentative data may result in incorrectly placing or not placing a water body segment on the CWA section 303(d) List, which could result in the unnecessary expenditure of public resources or missing a human health problem. Historic lines of evidence for data collected prior to 2010 were evaluated pursuant to these considerations and were not used to assess water quality standards attainment because they do not meet the temporal representation requirements of section 6.1.5.3 of the Listing Policy.

Focusing on only the most recent data, two lines of evidence are available in the administrative record to assess this pollutant. Zero of the 36 geomean samples (LOE 306249) exceed the REC-1 objective for fecal coliform.

Four lines of evidence are available in the administrative record to assess this pollutant. Zero of 158 samples exceeded the geometric mean standard for fecal coliform and 3 of 285 samples exceeded the single sample maximum for fecal coliform (Water Quality Control Plan: Ocean Waters of California, SWRCB, 2005) for the water contact recreation water quality standard.

Based on the readily available data and information, the weight of evidence indicates that there is sufficient justification for against placing this water segment-pollutant combination on the section 303(d) list.

This conclusion is based on the staff findings that:
1. The data used satisfies the data quality requirements of section 6.1.4 of the Policy.
2. The data used satisfies the data quantity requirements of section 6.1.5 of the Policy.
3. Zero of the 36 geomean samples exceed the REC-1 objective for fecal coliform and this does not exceed the allowable frequency listed in Table 4.2 of the Listing Policy.
4. Pursuant to section 4.11 of the Listing Policy, no additional data and information are available indicating that standards are not met.
 
Regional Board Decision Recommendation: After review of the available data and information, RWQCB staff concludes that the water body-pollutant combination should not be placed on the section 303(d) list because applicable water quality standards are not being exceeded.
 
State Board Review of Regional Board Conclusion and Recommendation:
 
State Board Decision Recommendation: After review of this Regional Board decision, SWRCB staff recommend the decision be approved by the State Board.
 
 
Line of Evidence (LOE) for Decision ID 151412, Fecal Coliform
Region 3     
Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)
 
LOE ID: 56056
 
Pollutant: Fecal Coliform
LOE Subgroup: Pollutant-Water
Matrix: Water
Fraction: None
 
Beneficial Use: Water Contact Recreation
 
Number of Samples: 126
Number of Exceedances: 0
 
Data and Information Type: PATHOGEN MONITORING
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: E. coli data results are assessed using the Ocean Plan objective for fecal coliform. A thirty day, rolling geomean was calculated for all data provided when four or more samples were collected within the 30 day period. 0 of the 126 geomeans exceeded the objective.
Data Reference: Data for Region 3 Beach Watch.
 
SWAMP Data: Non-SWAMP
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion: The geometric mean for fecal coliform shall not exceed 200/100 mL. California Ocean Plan (SWRCB 2006)
Objective/Criterion Reference: Water Quality Control Plan Ocean Waters of California. California Ocean Plan 2005. Sacramento, CA: State Water Resources Control Board, California Environmental Protection Agency
 
Evaluation Guideline:
Guideline Reference:
 
Spatial Representation: The samples were collected at Butterfly Beach.
Temporal Representation: The samples were collected approximately once a week from January 2007 to August 2010.
Environmental Conditions:
QAPP Information: These samples were collected for the Beach Watch progam for Santa Barbara County,Environmental Health Services.
QAPP Information Reference(s):
 
Line of Evidence (LOE) for Decision ID 151412, Fecal Coliform
Region 3     
Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)
 
LOE ID: 19240
 
Pollutant: Fecal Coliform
LOE Subgroup: Pollutant-Water
Matrix: Water
Fraction: None
 
Beneficial Use: Water Contact Recreation
 
Number of Samples: 32
Number of Exceedances: 0
 
Data and Information Type: PATHOGEN MONITORING
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: Central Coast Regional Board Staff assessed data for Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County) to determine beneficial use support and results are as follows: 0 of 32 samples exceed the criterion for Coliform, Fecal.
Data Reference: AB 411 Data for 2004
  AB 411 Data for 2005
  AB 411 Data for 2006
 
SWAMP Data: Non-SWAMP
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion: California Ocean Plan (SWRCB 2005) states that the 30-day geometric mean for fecal coliform shall not exceed 200 MPN/100 mL.
Objective/Criterion Reference: Water Quality Control Plan Ocean Waters of California. California Ocean Plan 2005. Sacramento, CA: State Water Resources Control Board, California Environmental Protection Agency
 
Evaluation Guideline:
Guideline Reference:
 
Spatial Representation: Data for this line of evidence for Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County) was collected at one AB411 monitoring site (Butterfly Beach)
Temporal Representation: Data was collected over the time period 1/5/2004 - 12/27/2006. This includes weekly AB411 monitoring between April 1 and October 31 of each year.
Environmental Conditions:
QAPP Information: QA information not available
QAPP Information Reference(s):
 
Line of Evidence (LOE) for Decision ID 151412, Fecal Coliform
Region 3     
Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)
 
LOE ID: 19241
 
Pollutant: Fecal Coliform
LOE Subgroup: Pollutant-Water
Matrix: Water
Fraction: None
 
Beneficial Use: Water Contact Recreation
 
Number of Samples: 147
Number of Exceedances: 3
 
Data and Information Type: PATHOGEN MONITORING
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: Central Coast Regional Board Staff assessed data for Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County) to determine beneficial use support and results are as follows: 3 of 147 samples exceed the criterion for Coliform, Fecal.
Data Reference: AB 411 Data for 2004
  AB 411 Data for 2005
  AB 411 Data for 2006
 
SWAMP Data: Non-SWAMP
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion: California Ocean Plan (SWRCB 2005) states that the single sample maximum for fecal coliform shall not exceed 400 MPN/100 mL.
Objective/Criterion Reference: Water Quality Control Plan Ocean Waters of California. California Ocean Plan 2005. Sacramento, CA: State Water Resources Control Board, California Environmental Protection Agency
 
Evaluation Guideline:
Guideline Reference:
 
Spatial Representation: Data for this line of evidence for Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County) was collected at one AB411 monitoring site (Butterfly Beach)
Temporal Representation: Data was collected over the time period 1/5/2004 - 12/27/2006. This includes weekly AB411 monitoring between April 1 and October 31 of each year.
Environmental Conditions:
QAPP Information: QA information not available
QAPP Information Reference(s):
 
Line of Evidence (LOE) for Decision ID 151412, Fecal Coliform
Region 3     
Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)
 
LOE ID: 56055
 
Pollutant: Fecal Coliform
LOE Subgroup: Pollutant-Water
Matrix: Water
Fraction: None
 
Beneficial Use: Water Contact Recreation
 
Number of Samples: 138
Number of Exceedances: 0
 
Data and Information Type: PATHOGEN MONITORING
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: Water Board staff assessed Beach Watch Program data that is collected by each County's Environmental Health Department. E. coli data results are assessed using the Ocean Plan single sample maximum objective for fecal coliform to determine beneficial use support for the station named Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County) and results are as follows: 0 of 138 samples exceed the criterion for Coliform, Fecal.
Data Reference: Data for Region 3 Beach Watch.
 
SWAMP Data: Non-SWAMP
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion: California Ocean Plan (SWRCB 2005) single sample maximum for fecal coliform density shall not exceed 400 per 100ml
Objective/Criterion Reference: Water Quality Control Plan Ocean Waters of California. California Ocean Plan 2005. Sacramento, CA: State Water Resources Control Board, California Environmental Protection Agency
 
Evaluation Guideline:
Guideline Reference:
 
Spatial Representation: Data for this line of evidence for Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County) was collected at 1 monitoring site [ Butterfly Beach]
Temporal Representation: Data was collected over the time period 1/2/2007-8/30/2010.
Environmental Conditions: Staff is not aware of any special conditions that might affect interpretation of the data.
QAPP Information: Water Board staff assessed Beach Watch Program data that is collected by each County's Environmental Health Department. There is no QA Project Plan but instead each County follows their own Quality Assurance Procedures
QAPP Information Reference(s):
 
Line of Evidence (LOE) for Decision ID 151412, Fecal Coliform
Region 3     
Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)
 
LOE ID: 306248
 
Pollutant: Fecal Coliform
LOE Subgroup: Pollutant-Water
Matrix: Water
Fraction: None
 
Beneficial Use: Water Contact Recreation
 
Number of Samples: 180
Number of Exceedances: 1
 
Data and Information Type: PATHOGEN MONITORING
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: Water Board staff assessed data for Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County) to determine beneficial use support and the results are as follows: 1 of the 180 samples exceeded the water quality threshold for Coliform, Fecal. The water quality threshold is based on a Single Sample Maximum (SSM) value that is calculated daily.
Data Reference: Data file of Region 3 Beachwatch Data. Includes data from all coastal counties in Region 3 including: , Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, Ventura, and San Mateo counties.
 
SWAMP Data: Non-SWAMP
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion: California Ocean Plan (SWRCB 2019) states that the Single Sample Maximum fecal coliform density not exceed 400 per 100 mL.
Objective/Criterion Reference: SWRCB. 2005. Water Quality Control Plan, Ocean Waters of California (Ocean Plan). California Environmental Protection Agency, State Water Resources Control Board. February 2, 2019
 
Evaluation Guideline:
Guideline Reference:
 
Spatial Representation: The samples were collected at 1 monitoring site(s), station(s): WP0000023
Temporal Representation: The samples were collected between the days of 2015-09-14 and 2019-06-10 .
Environmental Conditions:
QAPP Information: QAPP for 2020 Santa Barbara County Beachwatch data.
QAPP Information Reference(s): QAPP for Santa Barbara County Beachwatch data for the 2020 Integrated Report.
 
Line of Evidence (LOE) for Decision ID 151412, Fecal Coliform
Region 3     
Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)
 
LOE ID: 306249
 
Pollutant: Fecal Coliform
LOE Subgroup: Pollutant-Water
Matrix: Water
Fraction: None
 
Beneficial Use: Water Contact Recreation
 
Number of Samples: 36
Number of Exceedances: 0
 
Data and Information Type: PATHOGEN MONITORING
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: Water Board staff assessed data for Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County) to determine beneficial use support and the results are as follows: 0 of the 36 samples exceeded the water quality threshold for Coliform, Fecal. The water quality threshold is based on a 30-Day rolling geomean.
Data Reference: Data file of Region 3 Beachwatch Data. Includes data from all coastal counties in Region 3 including: , Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, Ventura, and San Mateo counties.
 
SWAMP Data: Non-SWAMP
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion: California Ocean Plan (SWRCB 2019) states that the 30 day geometric mean of fecal coliform density not exceed 200 per 100 mL, calculated based on the five most recent samples from each site.
Objective/Criterion Reference: SWRCB. 2005. Water Quality Control Plan, Ocean Waters of California (Ocean Plan). California Environmental Protection Agency, State Water Resources Control Board. February 2, 2019
 
Evaluation Guideline:
Guideline Reference:
 
Spatial Representation: The samples were collected at 1 monitoring site(s), station(s): WP0000023
Temporal Representation: The samples were collected between the days of 2015-09-14 and 2019-06-10 .
Environmental Conditions:
QAPP Information: QAPP for 2020 Santa Barbara County Beachwatch data.
QAPP Information Reference(s): QAPP for Santa Barbara County Beachwatch data for the 2020 Integrated Report.
 
 
DECISION ID
71023
Region 3     
Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)
 
Pollutant: Total Coliform
Final Listing Decision: Do Not List on 303(d) list (TMDL required list)
Last Listing Cycle's Final Listing Decision: Do Not List on 303(d) list (TMDL required list)(2016)
Revision Status Original
Impairment from Pollutant or Pollution: Pollutant
 
Regional Board Conclusion: This pollutant is being considered for placement on the section 303(d) list under sections 3.2 and 3.3 of the Listing Policy. Under these sections, a single line of evidence is necessary to assess listing status.

Seven lines of evidence are available in the administrative record to assess this pollutant. Eleven of 138 samples exceeded the shellfish harvesting water quality objective (Water Quality Control Plan: Ocean Waters of California, SWRCB, 2009).

Based on the readily available data and information, the weight of evidence indicates that there is sufficient justification against placing this water segment-pollutant combination on the section 303(d) list in the Water Quality Limited Segments category.

This conclusion is based on the staff findings that:
1. The data used satisfies the data quality requirements of section 6.1.4 of the Policy.
2. The data used satisfies the data quantity requirements of section 6.1.5 of the Policy.
3. Eleven of 138 samples exceeded the shellfish harvesting water quality objective (Water Quality Control Plan: Ocean Waters of California, SWRCB, 2009) and this does not exceed the allowable frequency listed in Table 3.2 of the Listing Policy.
4. Pursuant to section 3.11 of the Listing Policy, no additional data and information are available indicating that standards are not met.
 
Regional Board Decision Recommendation: After review of the available data and information, RWQCB staff concludes that the water body-pollutant combination should not be placed on the section 303(d) list because applicable water quality standards are not being exceeded.
 
State Board Review of Regional Board Conclusion and Recommendation:
 
State Board Decision Recommendation: After review of this Regional Board decision, SWRCB staff recommend the decision be approved by the State Board.
 
 
Line of Evidence (LOE) for Decision ID 71023, Total Coliform
Region 3     
Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County)
 
LOE ID: 56057
 
Pollutant: Total Coliform
LOE Subgroup: Pollutant-Water
Matrix: Water
Fraction: None
 
Beneficial Use: Shellfish Harvesting
 
Number of Samples: 138
Number of Exceedances: 11
 
Data and Information Type: PATHOGEN MONITORING
Data Used to Assess Water Quality: Water Board staff assessed Beach Watch data for Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County) to determine beneficial use support and results are as follows: 11 of 138 samples exceed the criterion for Coliform, Total.
Data Reference: Data for Region 3 Beach Watch.
 
SWAMP Data: Non-SWAMP
 
Water Quality Objective/Criterion: The California Ocean Plan (2009) states the following: At all areas where shellfish may be harvested for human consumption, the following bacterial objectives shall be maintained throughout the water column: Ten percent of the samples collected during any 30-day period shall not exceed 230 MPN/100mL.
Objective/Criterion Reference: California Ocean Plan Water Quality Control Plan Ocean Waters of California 2009
 
Evaluation Guideline:
Guideline Reference:
 
Spatial Representation: Data for this line of evidence for Pacific Ocean at Butterfly Beach (Santa Barbara County) was collected at 1 monitoring site [ Butterfly Beach]
Temporal Representation: Data was collected over the time period 1/2/2007-8/30/2010.
Environmental Conditions: Staff is not aware of any special conditions that might affect interpretation of the data.
QAPP Information: The samples were collected for the Beach Watch program.
QAPP Information Reference(s):