San Francisco Bay Area Network Freshwater Quality Monitor Protocol: Version 2.11 October 2006

Cooprider, Mary; Carson, Rob

The National Park Service Inventory and Monitoring (I&M) Program measures long-term changes in the condition of natural resources throughout the National Park System. As part of this effort, the San Francisco Bay Area Network (SFAN), which encompasses Eugene O’Neil National Historic Site, Fort Point National Historic Site, Golden Gate National Recreation Area, John Muir National Historic Site, Muir Woods National Monument, Pinnacles National Monument, Point Reyes National Seashore, and the Presidio of San Francisco, has developed a detailed water quality monitoring plan. The plan consists of three sections: 1) a protocol narrative, 2) standard operating procedures (SOPs), and 3) supplementary materials. The protocol narrative summarizes the significance of aquatic resources in the SFAN with a focus on beneficial uses of freshwater streams. The narrative also discusses the SFAN waters listed as impaired under the Clean Water Act section 303d and describes associated Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) projects. The narrative defines the network’s water quality criteria and monitoring questions and discusses the use of a rotating basin design and a decision table for selecting streams and monitoring sites. The protocol narrative addresses all aspects of data management and storage and provides an overview of water quality data analysis. Finally, the narrative discusses the expected program budget and personnel qualifications. Specific SOPs prescribe personnel training procedures, methods of protocol revision, field equipment preparations, quality assurance/quality control, data analysis and reporting, and monitoring site establishment. Additional SOPs address procedures for sampling specific parameters including core water chemistry (temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, and conductivity), bacteria, nutrients, sediment, and stream flow. The protocol narrative and SOPs follow techniques outlined by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the State Water Resources Control Board Surface Water Ambient Monitoring Program, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Western Pilot Study Field Manual for Wadeable Streams. Supplementary materials include a preliminary water quality status report for the SFAN, the USGS National Field Manual (on CD), and a USGS tutorial (on CD) for taking flow measurements. The comprehensive collection of information in the protocol narrative, SOPs, and supplementary materials is intended to standardize water quality monitoring and ensure that methods and data are comparable and effective in the long-term.

San Francisco Bay Area Network Freshwater Quality Monitor Protocol: Version 2.11 October 2006

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