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The San Diego Bay Watersheds Common Grounds Project was created to incorporate data from water quality monitoring programs and integrate this data on a watershed level using a web-based interactive application to serve as a broad communication, education and decision-making tool; and to further develop the region's capacity to understand and assess processes affecting our water resources.

Water Quality Objectives for San Diego Watersheds

Water quality objectives are used by the City of San Diego, water quality professionals, and San Diego Coastkeeper to determine if the analyte measured exceeds the Maximum Contamination Level (MCLs) of surface waters of the San Diego Watersheds.Water Quality Objectives (WQOs) are numerical or narrative limits on constituents or characteristics of water designed to protect designated beneficial uses of the water. California's WQOs are established by the State and Regional Water Boards.

The table below does not list all analytes and is not comprehensive. For more information on the Water Quality Objectives for any watershed in San Diego County, please see the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board, San Diego Basin Plan, http://www.swrcb.ca.gov/rwqcb9/programs/basinplan.html. These objectives are separated into dry weather flow and stormwater flow. Stormwater flow is measured following a storm event with at least a quarter inch of rain within twenty-four hours.

Stormwater Flow


Analyte Water Quality Objective Source
Ammonia as N (mg/L) none  
Diazinon (mg/L) 0.00008 CA Dept. of Fish and Game
Fecal Coliform (MPN/100mL) 20000  
Nitrate as N (mg/L) 10 Basin Plan
Oil and Grease (mg/L) 15 USEPA Multi-Sector General Permit
Surfactants/MBAs (mg/L) 0.5 Basin Plan
Total Coliform none  
Total Phosphorus (mg/L) 2 USEPA Multi-Sector General Permit


Dry Weather Flow


Analyte Water Quality Objective Source
Ammonia as N (mg/L) 1  
Diazinon (mg/L) 0.0005 CA Dept. of Fish and Game
Fecal Coliform (MPN/100mL) 400  
Nitrate as N (mg/L) 10 Basin Plan
Oil and Grease (mg/L) 15 USEPA Multi-Sector General Permit
Surfactants/MBAs (mg/L) 01 Basin Plan
Total Coliform 50000  
Total Phosphorus (mg/L) 2 USEPA Multi-Sector General Permit


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