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There are three agencies within Orange County that provide monitoring information to Heal the Bay's Beach Report Card. The South Orange County Wastewater Authority monitored 33 locations once or twice a week. The County of Orange Environmental Health monitored 95 locations on a weekly basis, of which approximately 55 locations are covered in the Beach Report Card. The Orange County Sanitation District monitored 17 locations five times a week. Samples were collected throughout the
year along open coastal and bay beaches,
as well as near flowing storm drains,
creeks or rivers. For additional water quality information visit the Orange
County
Environmental Health Division website.
Orange County grades for both yearround dry weather and the AB411 time period improved to better than the statewide average this year. At least 90% of monitoring locations received an A or B (Figure 34 and 35). Stretches of Orange County beaches with very-good-to-excellent water quality during the summer dry weather time-period were: Seal Beach at 1st Street to Huntington State Beach at Brookhurst Street, Newport Beach at Orange Street all the way to Three Arch Bay in Laguna Beach, and from Avenida Pico to Las Palmeras at San Clemente City and State Beaches.
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| Baby Beach, Dana Point Harbor. Photo: Heal the Bay |
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| Doheny Beach, Dana Point.. Photo: Heal the Bay |
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10 Orange County locations received fair-to-poor year-round dry weather water quality grades. All of these locations were at Doheny Beach or in Dana Point Harbor except for north Monarch Beach (C). These monitoring locations that perennially have poor water quality are: North Beach through 4000 feet south of the SERRA ocean outfall (Doheny Beach) and Baby Beach’s west end in Dana Point Harbor.
Doheny Beach from North Beach to south of the San Juan Creek once again made Heal the Bay’s statewide Beach Bummer list as one of the most polluted beaches in California. Poche Beach (C) was the only location other than those mentioned above, to receive a fair-to-poor grade for the AB411 time period.
Wet weather quality dramatically improved this past year after a dismally wet and polluted season last year. 56% of monitoring locations received fair-to-poor grades compared to 88% in 2004-2005.
Figures 36 and 37 illustrate a small trends assessment of this year’s grade percentages at Orange County beaches compared to the two-year average. For all weather conditions, this year’s water quality saw marked improvement from the previous two years (all previous year’s grades were rerun with our new methodology).
Sewage
Spill Summary
Orange County beach closures due to sewage spills returned to 2003–2004 levels after a dramatic spike in both the volume and number of sewage spills in 2004–2005 due to the extremely high rainfall during that year’s winter season. There were 25 spills resulting in beach closures between April 2005 and March 2006. Six of these were of unknown volumes. The remaining 19 spills released approximately 100,000 gallons of sewage to local beaches.
There were two major spills (=10,000 gallons) that accounted for 92% of the known sewage spill volume. The first major spill resulted in closures from 1000ft upcoast of Aliso Creek downcoast to Camel Point in Laguna Beach. Approximately 12,000 gallons were released on October 24, 2005 due to a blockage in an El Toro Water District line. The second major spill of approximately 80,000 gallons occurred on December 5, 2005 due to a South Coast Water District main line breakage. Monarch Beach downcoast through Dana Strand Beach in Dana Point were closed for three days. The average known spill volume from April through October was 866 gallons; and the average known spill volume from November through March was 10,599 gallons.
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