All news related to Regional Monitoring
SCCWRP coordinates post-fire aquatic monitoring network
SCCWRP has helped bring together more than two dozen organizations to form a water-quality monitoring network that is tracking how pollution and debris from the Palisades and Eaton fires are ... More
Effort underway to coordinate SAV assessments along West Coast
SCCWRP has begun coordinating with a network of West Coast monitoring agencies to build their capacity to assess the health of eelgrass beds and other submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) – ... More
First Bight ’23 Sediment Quality assessment report published
The Southern California Bight 2023 Regional Monitoring Program has published the first of its Sediment Quality assessment reports summarizing the extent and magnitude of sediment toxicity across Southern California’s coastal ... More
Third sampling year completed for Regional BMP Monitoring Network
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition (SMC) has completed the third year of sampling for its Regional BMP Monitoring Network – a SCCWRP-facilitated effort that is enabling Southern California stormwater ... More
Bight ’23 launching field sampling for ocean acidification monitoring survey
The 2023 cycle of the Southern California Bight Regional Monitoring Program is launching field sampling for a two-year monitoring survey that will track ocean acidification’s trajectory in Southern California’s coastal ... More
SMC developing workplan for fourth cycle of regional stream monitoring program
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition (SMC) has begun planning for the fourth cycle of its Regional Watershed Monitoring Program – a five-year stream survey that is expected to focus ... More
Effort launched to expand, formalize HABs monitoring in coastal waters
SCCWRP and its partners are launching an effort to expand and formalize Southern California’s capacity to collect monitoring data on toxin-producing harmful algal blooms (HABs) in coastal waters – an ... More
Bight ’23 regional survey assessing ecological health of eelgrass beds for first time
The Southern California Bight 2023 Regional Monitoring Program has completed field sampling for a first-of-its-kind multiagency survey evaluating the health of the region’s eelgrass beds based on their ecological functioning ... More
Bight ’23 wraps up shellfish field sampling
The Southern California Bight 2023 Regional Monitoring Program has completed field sampling for an ongoing investigation into how multiple types of contaminants accumulate in shellfish – a highly leveraged effort ... More
Lab intercalibration completed to ensure high-quality, comparable data for Bight ’23 microplastics assessment
The Trash and Microplastics study element of the Southern California Bight 2023 Regional Monitoring Program has successfully completed a laboratory intercalibration exercise to ensure participating laboratories can generate high-quality, comparable ... More
Bight ’18 synthesis report for Sediment Quality studies updated with new SQO scores
The Southern California Bight 2018 Regional Monitoring Program has updated its final assessment report summarizing how sediment contamination in Southern California has impacted the overall health of coastal marine ecosystems ... More
Sentinel network completed to support planned wetlands monitoring program
SCCWRP and its partners have completed the first major component of a planned coastal wetland monitoring program for Southern California – a milestone that brings coastal managers one step closer ... More
Bight ’23 study assessing effects of ocean acidification on shell-forming organisms
The Ocean Acidification study element of the Southern California Bight 2023 Regional Monitoring Program has launched a two-year effort to track how ocean acidification is adversely affecting shell-forming organisms in ... More
Bight ’23 kicking off regional assessment of eelgrass bed health
The Southern California Bight Regional Monitoring Program is kicking off a first-of-its-kind regional monitoring survey this September to evaluate the health of the region’s eelgrass beds based on their ecological ... More
SCCWRP exploring how to integrate coastal estuary monitoring with California State Parks
SCCWRP has begun exploring how to integrate a suite of newly developed tools for monitoring the health of coastal estuaries into California State Parks’ estuarine monitoring and management programs. During ... More
Regional BMP monitoring program adds monitoring sites in second year of BMP performance monitoring
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition (SMC) has expanded the number of structural BMPs where field teams are collecting data on the performance of structural stormwater BMPs as the SMC ... More
Bight ’23 shellfish study to benefit 4 study elements
The 2023 cycle of the Southern California Bight Regional Monitoring Program has launched a year-long investigation to comprehensively track the accumulation of multiple different types of contaminants in shellfish – ... More
New SCCWRP data portal enhances access to most-requested data products
SCCWRP has publicly unveiled a web-based data portal that provides centralized access to millions of environmental data points and cutting-edge data analysis tools – the culmination of a years-long effort ... More
SMC planning to double size of Regional BMP Monitoring Network for Year 2 of BMP performance monitoring
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition (SMC) is planning to double the number of sites where field teams are collecting data on the performance of structural stormwater BMPs as the ... More
Field training, intercalibration completed to support two new estuarine monitoring programs
SCCWRP and its partners have completed field training and intercalibration exercises to support a pair of monitoring initiatives intended to collectively generate comprehensive insights about the ecological health of coastal ... More
Effort launched to build statewide program for monitoring estuary health
SCCWRP and its partners have begun working to establish a statewide monitoring program for coastal estuaries that is optimally responsive to the needs and priorities of managers. During a workshop ... More
Effort launched to build network of Southern California estuary monitoring sites
SCCWRP and its partners have begun working to build a network of estuary monitoring sites across Southern California that can serve as sentinel indicators for how the region’s coastal wetlands ... More
Field sampling completed for Bight ’23 Sediment Quality element
The Southern California Bight 2023 Regional Monitoring Program has completed field sampling for its signature Sediment Quality study element – a coordinated, three-month field effort that lays the foundation for ... More
Standardized monitoring protocols to enable eelgrass beds to be assessed based on ecological functioning
SCCWRP has completed development of a set of standardized assessment protocols for assessing the health of eelgrass beds based on their ecological functioning. Development of the eelgrass beds monitoring SOPs ... More
Bight ’23 field sampling underway to evaluate sediment quality
The 2023 cycle of the Southern California Bight Regional Monitoring Program has kicked off field sampling of coastal seafloor sediment to evaluate the chemical, toxicological and biological health of Southern ... More
Bight ’23 using newly standardized methods to analyze microplastics in sediment and shellfish
The Trash and Microplastics study element of the Southern California Bight 2023 Regional Monitoring Program is leveraging newly standardized methods for collecting and measuring microplastic particles to conduct a regional ... More
Study shows more than 77% of Southern California’s coastal stream kilometers contains trash
The Southern California Bight 2018 Regional Monitoring Program has published the findings of a regional survey of trash in aquatic environments that concluded that 77% of Southern California’s 4,600 miles ... More
Coastal managers chart path forward for promoting optimized restoration and assessment of eelgrass beds
The eelgrass habitat suitability model – described in a SCCWRP technical report published in July – will consist of a mechanistic model for predicting eelgrass growth along Southern California’s coast. ... More
Advisory panel completes independent review of S.F. Bay nutrient modeling tool
A science advisory panel led by SCCWRP’s Dr. Martha Sutula has completed an independent review of a San Francisco Bay computer model being developed to shed light on the ecological ... More
BMP performance data collected from 5 sites to support regional monitoring network
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition (SMC) has successfully collected monitoring data on the performance of structural stormwater BMPs (best management practices) at five sites – a key milestone in ... More
Bight ’23 to feature 7 study elements probing coastal ocean health
The Southern California Bight Regional Monitoring Program has solidified plans for seven study elements for its upcoming 2023 cycle – the largest number of elements to date – reflecting the ... More
Statewide monitoring framework published for assessing health of estuaries statewide
SCCWRP and its partners have finalized and published a statewide monitoring framework intended to bring consistency to how California assesses the health of its coastal estuaries. The framework, described in ... More
Study probes utility of virus method for fecal detection
The Southern California Bight 2018 Regional Monitoring Program has completed a study that found that an alternative, virus-based method for tracking fecal contamination can be used as an effective complement ... More
Estuarine monitoring framework piloted in Baja California, to be applied next year
SCCWRP and its partners have completed a pilot effort to assess the ecological health of two Baja California estuaries using a newly developed estuarine monitoring framework that is expected to ... More
Interactive, web-based stream causal assessment tool developed to ID likely causes of degradation
SCCWRP and its partners have developed a user-friendly, web-based tool to help managers rapidly evaluate the likely vs. unlikely causes of degraded biological condition in streams in the San Gabriel ... More
Study provides statewide picture of when, where HABs are occurring in lakes, reservoirs
SCCWRP and its partners have completed a year-long study that used satellite imaging data to build a comprehensive portrait of when and where ecologically disruptive harmful algal blooms (HABs) have ... More
Bight ’23 to be scoped out during September 22 kickoff meeting at SCCWRP
Participants of the Southern California Bight Regional Monitoring Program will begin making decisions about which study elements the program will tackle and which management questions the program will answer during ... More
First regional survey underway to examine health of Southern California eelgrass beds
SCCWRP and its partners have launched a two-year pilot effort to assess the health of Southern California’s coastal eelgrass beds using a new, bioassessment-based monitoring approach that focuses on evaluating ... More
Bight ’18 study shows how bioanalytical screening can be used to monitor sediment contamination
SCCWRP and its partners have completed a three-year effort to demonstrate how bioanalytical screening technology can be incorporated into the Southern California Bight 2018 Regional Monitoring Program to help track ... More
SMC develops workplan for regional BMP performance monitoring network
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition (SMC) has developed a detailed workplan for how it will build a new regional monitoring network to investigate the performance of a wide variety ... More
Bight ’18 publishes synthesis report summarizing Sediment Quality studies
The Southern California Bight 2018 Regional Monitoring Program (Bight ’18) has published its final assessment report summarizing how sediment contamination in Southern California has impacted the overall health of coastal ... More
SMC completes intercalibration for stream monitoring program after 2-year hiatus
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition (SMC) has completed an in-person field intercalibration exercise for its Regional Watershed Monitoring Program that demonstrated that program participants have been able to maintain ... More
Sediment quality study examines how to protect coastal estuaries from eutrophication
SCCWRP and its partners have completed a two-year sediment quality study examining how to protect bottom-dwelling aquatic life in coastal estuaries from excess organic matter triggered by eutrophication. The study, ... More
SMC preparing to kick off pilot phase to build regional BMP performance monitoring network
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition (SMC) is preparing to kick off the initial pilot phase of a SCCWRP-led effort to build a regional network for monitoring the performance of ... More
First regional survey examining health of Southern California eelgrass beds to be launched
SCCWRP and its partners have developed plans to conduct the first regional monitoring survey examining the health of eelgrass beds across coastal Southern California. The two-year monitoring survey, which will ... More
Monitoring framework undergoing final testing to evaluate health of estuaries statewide
SCCWRP and its partners are initiating a final round of field testing this fall on a proposed statewide monitoring framework for assessing the health of California’s coastal estuaries, including two ... More
Bight partnerships to expand understanding of acidification
The Southern California Bight Regional Monitoring Program is partnering with three other West Coast marine monitoring groups this summer to produce the most comprehensive picture to date of how ocean ... More
Draft SOPs developed for monitoring estuaries statewide
SCCWRP and its partners have developed a set of standardized methods for collecting field data on the health of California’s coastal estuaries, part of an ongoing effort to develop a ... More
Bight ’18 study documents domoic acid across coastal ocean seafloor
The Southern California Bight 2018 Regional Monitoring Program has completed a study examining how a toxin produced by a certain ubiquitous type of marine algae can settle and stick to ... More
Workplan developed for third cycle of SMC’s regional stream monitoring program
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition (SMC) has finalized plans for the third cycle of its Regional Watershed Monitoring Program that kicks off this spring. The cyclical program’s workplan – ... More
Bight ’18 finds local sportfish within ‘safe to eat’ thresholds
Contamination levels in the tissues of commonly caught Southern California sportfish were found to be within “safe to eat” thresholds for consumption at least once a week during the Southern ... More
Two Bight ’18 Sediment Quality reports nearing completion
The Southern California Bight 2018 Regional Monitoring Program is preparing to publish the third volume of its Sediment Quality assessment reports by the end of the year, with a fourth ... More
Monitoring framework drafted for assessing health of estuaries statewide
SCCWRP and its partners have developed a proposed statewide monitoring framework for assessing the health of California’s coastal estuaries, including two dozen estuarine Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). The draft framework, ... More
Monitoring framework being developed to assess health of estuaries statewide
SCCWRP and its partners have begun working to develop a standardized, statewide monitoring framework for assessing the condition of California’s coastal estuaries, including the State’s 24 estuarine Marine Protected Areas ... More
Second Bight ’18 Sediment Quality assessment report published
The Southern California Bight 2018 Regional Monitoring Program has published the second of its Sediment Quality assessment reports, and two others are undergoing internal review later this summer. The Bight ... More
SMC study suggests not all strategies to protect health of erosion-prone streams created equal
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition (SMC) has completed an analysis shedding light on whether next-generation management strategies for reducing erosion risk in streams could be more effective at protecting ... More
Initial round of bioanalytical screening completed for Bight ’18 sediment, fish samples
SCCWRP and its partners have completed screening Southern California Bight sediment and fish tissue samples for chemical contaminants that activate the aryl hydrocarbon receptor – the first of three bioanalytical ... More
First Bight ’18 Sediment Quality assessment report published, three others nearing completion
The Southern California Bight 2018 Regional Monitoring Program has published the first of its Sediment Quality assessment reports, with three others expected to undergo internal review this summer. The Bight ... More
SMC develops roadmap to improve runoff water quality
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition (SMC) has unveiled a comprehensive, multi-faceted research agenda that lays out a vision and roadmap for how the region’s stormwater management community will collaborate ... More
Sites being identified for evaluating effectiveness of stormwater BMPs
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition (SMC) has begun identifying about a half-dozen sites that will serve as case studies for examining the effectiveness of stormwater BMPs (best management practices) ... More
Review of data underway for Bight ’18 Sediment Quality element
The Bight ’18 Sediment Quality element is on track to finalize and publish its final assessment reports by spring 2020. The Sediment Quality element of the Southern California Bight 2018 ... More
SMC’s renews Master Agreement through 2024
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition in July renewed its Master Agreement for another five years, continuing the SMC’s research and monitoring agenda through 2024. SMC member agencies include eight ... More
Bight ’18 Microbiology element preparing to kick off field sampling for coliphage method evaluation study
Participants of the Southern California Bight 2018 Regional Monitoring Program’s Microbiology element will initiate field sampling in August for a study evaluating the relevance and reliability of using coliphage viruses ... More
Bight ’18 sediment, fish samples to be screened using bioanalytical assays
SCCWRP and its partners in June will begin screening sediment and sportfish tissue samples collected from across the Southern California Bight for bioactive chemical contaminants using bioanalytical screening assays. More ... More
Bight ’18 HABs study preparing to track freshwater cyanotoxins in coastal zone
The Southern California Bight 2018 Regional Monitoring Program’s Harmful Algal Blooms element has tentatively greenlighted a study that will explore whether freshwater cyanotoxins are being transported in the coastal zone. ... More
Bight ’18 pilot study to assess how acidification is impacting marine calcifiers
The Ocean Acidification element of the Southern California Bight 2018 Regional Monitoring Program has launched a pilot study examining how ocean acidification is impacting sensitive marine calcifiers in Southern California’s ... More
SMC regional monitoring to include stormwater BMP effectiveness evaluation
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition has begun designing the next five-year cycle of its stream monitoring program to include a regional evaluation of the effectiveness of stormwater BMPs (best ... More
Field sampling completed for Bight ’18 Sediment Quality element
Participants of the Southern California Bight 2018 Regional Monitoring Program’s Sediment Quality element have finished collecting seafloor sediment samples from about 400 sites across the Southern California Bight. The field ... More
Bight ’18 HABs element developing method to track impacts of cyanotoxins in coastal waters
The Harmful Algal Blooms element of the Southern California Bight 2018 Regional Monitoring Program has begun working to develop an assessment method for tracking the ecological impacts of freshwater cyanotoxins ... More
Bight ’18 Microbiology element initiates lab training for coliphage-based water-quality monitoring method
Participants of the Southern California Bight 2018 Regional Monitoring Program’s Microbiology element have begun laboratory training for a study that will evaluate the relevance and reliability of using coliphage viruses ... More
SMC conducting trash surveys in watersheds to support Bight ’18
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition (SMC) has launched trash sampling surveys in wadeable streams across coastal Southern California to support the Southern California Bight 2018 Regional Monitoring Program’s efforts ... More
Bight ’18 field sampling underway to assess sediment quality
The sampling window for the Southern California Bight 2018 Regional Monitoring Program opened July 1, with participants starting to collect seafloor sediments to evaluate the chemical, toxicological and biological health ... More
Management impacts of stream biointegrity policies explored in new SMC report
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition (SMC) has released a comprehensive new report chronicling how the region’s stream management community will potentially be impacted by new and proposed changes to ... More
Bight ’18 keeps focus on key issues of management concern
More than 80 environmental agencies will examine new and emerging developments in water-quality science and management during the 2018 cycle of the Southern California Bight Regional Monitoring Program, which initiates ... More
SMC open-data portal under development to streamline data management
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition (SMC) has begun developing a comprehensive data management system intended to streamline data submission, quality-control checks and data analysis. Built on the Esri ArcGIS ... More
Bight ’18 kicks off with five study elements
Participants of the Southern California Bight Regional Monitoring Program have developed five main study elements for the program’s 2018 cycle that will explore different facets of how human activities have ... More
Bioassays show promise for CEC screening in SMC study
SCCWRP and its partners have demonstrated in a proof-of-concept study that commercially available bioanalytical tools have the potential to cost-effectively screen Southern California waterways for the presence of bioactive contaminants ... More
New Bight ’18 tools to improve data management workflows
SCCWRP has developed a series of new tools and automations for the 2018 cycle of the Southern California Bight Regional Monitoring Program designed to streamline and enhance data management. Known ... More
Effort underway to clean up, standardize historical Bight monitoring data
SCCWRP and its member agencies have initiated a project to clean up and standardize decades of data they’ve collected from across the Southern California Bight during routine environmental monitoring. The ... More
SMC kicks off Year 3 field sampling for second cycle of stream monitoring program
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition in March kicked off Year 3 of field sampling for the second five-year cycle of its regional stream monitoring program. The SMC Regional Watershed ... More
Bight ’13 CIA element publishes integrated summary reports
The integrated findings of the Contaminant Impact Assessment (CIA) element of Bight ’13 have been published in a final assessment report and an accompanying, 12-page executive summary intended for a ... More
SMC kicks off Year 3 field sampling for second cycle of stream monitoring program
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition in March kicked off Year 3 of field sampling for the second five-year cycle of its regional stream monitoring program. The SMC Regional Watershed ... More
Bight ’13 CIA element publishes integrated summary reports
The integrated findings of the Contaminant Impact Assessment (CIA) element of Bight ’13 have been published in a final assessment report and an accompanying, 12-page executive summary intended for a ... More
ELAP one-year follow-up review finds accrediting body back on track
An expert advisory panel convened by SCCWRP in 2015 to evaluate the state’s accrediting body for environmental laboratories has completed a one-year follow-up review of the program, concluding that it ... More
SMC completes analysis of bioassessment scores for engineered channels
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition has completed a comprehensive analysis of the range of ecological condition scores obtained when engineered channels across coastal Southern California are scored using existing ... More
SMC kicks off second-year sampling with new program elements
The Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition kicked off second-year sampling in March for the second cycle of its Regional Watershed Monitoring Program. New program elements being incorporated into the second ... More
SMC samples advance to nontargeted analysis phase of CEC monitoring framework
SCCWRP and its collaborators have advanced some of the 31 water samples collected by the Southern California Stormwater Monitoring Coalition (SMC) to the nontargeted phase of chemical analysis, a recognition ... More
Bight ’13 regional monitoring wrapping up major elements
Three of the five elements of the Southern California Bight 2013 Regional Monitoring Program are winding down as a series of final assessment reports is published over the next few weeks. ... More
XPRIZE-developed pH sensors being tested as Bight profilers
SCCWRP and its four POTW member agencies have kicked off a year-long effort to evaluate whether ocean pH monitoring instruments developed through an international XPRIZE competition can be used effectively ... More
Massive 3-year sampling effort for San Diego Bay bioaccumulation study wraps up
Scientists have finished collecting and analyzing more than 260 animal samples from San Diego Bay in one of the most comprehensive Southern California investigations ever conducted into how contamination is transferred ... More
Bight ’13 toxicity data suggest sediment quality is improving
Sediment toxicity testing conducted as part of the 2013 Southern California Bight Regional Monitoring Program has revealed evidence of continuing improvement to sediment quality, according to the findings of the ... More
SCCWRP applies bioassessment index to streams statewide
A new scoring tool that was developed to assess the biological condition of California’s wadeable streams has been applied for the first time to all wadeable streams statewide, with the ... More
Stream survey tracks biological degradation across Southern California
A five-year monitoring study of Southern California’s perennial wadeable streams has found that 75% of the region’s 4,300 miles of streams are degraded, with no discernable improvements in the health ... More