Microplastic is everywhere.
The tiny particles that shed from clothing, food packaging and tires are in the air, the soil, the ocean and, almost certainly, your drinking water.
The city of San Diego Monday lifted a boil water notice for about 600 residential customers in a portion of the Tierrasanta neighborhood who were affected by fluctuating water pressure issues following a burst pipeline last week.
Multiple tests showed no quality issues with water coming from the tap. The California Division of Drinking Water reviewed the findings and approved the lifting of the notice.
Today we’ll unpack the science behind a brand-new technology to measure water quality. San Diego is first in the world to use it, and it’s already sparked controversy.
The more sensitive test shows there’s more poo plaguing San Diego’s southernmost beaches than we could ever tell before — especially in summer when coastal cities like Coronado virtually never failed water quality tests using the old tests. In the case of South Bay, there is an obvious source of human sewage that’s plagued the coastline for decades: Tijuana.
News about the environment rarely is good these days, but a string of grim developments locally, regionally and internationally cast a particular pall over the otherwise sunny arrival of summer.
Beaches from Imperial Beach north to Coronado were closed because of sewage discharges from Tijuana. The Colorado River’s reservoirs are so low that severe water cuts are on the horizon for much of the southwestern United States. And another climate conference, this one in Germany, pretty much went nowhere.
San Diego County has started using new ocean water-quality testing technology intended to produce faster results and earlier warnings when bacteria reach unhealthy levels.
During a rollout of the DNA-based technology last week, county Board of Supervisors Vice Chairwoman Nora Vargas said the county plans to expand its use of the testing technology, known as droplet digital polymerase chain reaction, or ddPCR, to more than 70 miles of shoreline that the county samples and tests to help protect the public.
San Diego County is using new, high-tech tests that will allow officials to test ocean water and find out if that water is safe for swimming, in just one day. County supervisor Nora Vargas said the county is the first local government to get U.S. Environmental Protection Agency approval to use the new, sophisticated tests. The switch is the culmination of years of testing.
County officials lifted a water contact closure for beaches from the south end of Seacoast Drive through Carnation Avenue in Imperial Beach, they said Saturday. Testing confirmed that water quality along the Imperial Beach shoreline meets state health standards following recent sewage contamination, according to the San Diego County Department of Environmental Health and Quality. The shoreline from the international border to the south end of Seacoast Drive, however, will remain closed. Sampling also must confirm that these areas are safe for water contact.
Chula Vista, Calif. – Earlier this month, Sweetwater Authority (Authority) received calls from customers in the City of National City regarding discoloration of their drinking water. Upon receiving these calls, staff from the Authority’s Water Quality department deployed staff into the field to perform site investigations at several homes and businesses. An in-depth investigation led staff to find a significant change in system pressure, which was the result of a new water main that was being installed and a zone valve being inadvertently opened. Once this valve was closed, the water discoloration ceased. The Authority is working on continued enhancements to its best management practices to mitigate these types of events from occurring in the future.
On Tuesday, Californians settled three lawsuits against the International Boundary and Water Commission or the IBWC, the binational agency that treats a portion of the sewage-laden water rolling into the U.S. from Tijuana under a treaty between the two countries.
At the crux of the many complaints by the city of Imperial Beach, Surfrider Foundation, and San Diego’s Regional Water Quality Control Board and others was general frustration that the IBWC, which runs an international wastewater treatment plant at the border, wasn’t doing enough to prevent and monitor Tijuana wastewater entering the Tijuana River and the valley on the U.S. side.
The State Water Resources Control Board has given an early forecast of fee increases for the next fiscal year based on current state budget projections.
While spending is expected to change little, staff are hoping to reach a 5% fund reserve for water quality programs, which could translate to a 5% increase in Irrigated Lands fees and more in other programs. Water board fees have already risen about 130% over the past decade for some programs.
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
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