Septic System Sanitary Survey for Santa Barbara County

Septic System Sanitary Survey for Santa Barbara County (Prepared for Santa Barbara County by Questa Engineering March 2003) Download PDF

California Ocean Wastewater Discharge Inventory (WDI)

A report accompanied by interactive mapping to tally all wastewater discharged into the Pacific Ocean by the State of California, from the Oregon border to San Diego/Tijuana. Includes permits, amounts, and types of discharge, and discussion of recycled water as a means of conserving water and preventing ocean pollution. An interactive website constructed by David Greenberg, PhD, of the Marine Science Institute, UCSB, shows latitude & longitude of outfalls, outfall relationship to 303(d) impaired beaches, areas of special biological significance, and marine sanctuaries.

Interactive Document

Google Fly to Map & Resources

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Shallow Ocean Wastewater Outfall Source Tracking (Montecito Sanitary District)

Funded by a $330,000 Proposition 50 State grant, this HTO study was conducted by oceanographers and microbiologists at the University of California, Santa Barbara. It features tracking and analysis of a treated effluent plume from a short, shallow wastewater outfall close to a popular beach in Montecito, Santa Barbara County. Features computer animation maps created by Institute for Computational Earth System Science oceanographers tracking the plume every week from November 2007 to November 2008, together with progress reports filed with the State. Final report, in December 2009, will evaluate potential risks to human and environmental health from a shallow ocean sewer outfall.

See The Drifters Download PDF

USGS Report Sources of Fecal Indicator Bacteria in Urban Streams and Ocean Beaches

J.A. Izbicki et al., contributory funding by Heal the Ocean. Performed in conjunction with the City of Santa Barbara, this study is one of the first serious examinations of the relationship between groundwater contamination and the ocean, the potential for sewer pipes to leak into groundwater and therefore the ocean, and the relationship of groundwater to Mission Creek, which runs through Santa Barbara’s urban area. The report, currently in proof form, has been accepted for publication in Annals of Environmental Science.

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HTO Synopsis of City of SB Water Planning Study

HTO synopsis of Corollo Report Download PDF

Heal the Ocean Speaks To The State Water Board on CECs!

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Marine Science Institute 303d Interactive Maps

Marine Science Institute 303d Interactive Maps. Download PDF

Safe Disposal of Household Medications

Use this document to help you safely dispose of your household medications. Download PDF

Heal the Ocean Virus Report

HTO periodically checks the ocean - popular swimming beaches - for evidence of human waste (Hepatitis A and enteric viruses), and we've found them. We've found them when creeks and storm drains are NOT running, which is why we continue to look at other sources - like groundwater. Download PDF

HTO’s OCEAN WASTEWATER DISCHARGE INVENTORY FOR STATE OF CA

From the Oregon border to San Diego/Baja, the state of California is putting an immense amount of sewage into the ocean - some of it in very shallow water, even the surf zone. Read HTO's preliminary tally of how the ocean is being used to dilute human waste, a practice we're committed to eliminating. Download PDF

Dangers of Swimming in Secondary Sewage (Kator Report)

Written by environmental microbiologist Howard Kator (U. of Virginia College of William & Mary), this report illustrates the dangers of swimming in ocean water where sewage is being dumped in shallow water. Sections of the report were included in NRDC report to Congress "Swimming in Sewage" in February 2004. Download PDF

Report on the Tajiguas Landfill

Read the shocking report that made front headlines when released by Heal the Ocean - about the Tajiguas Landfill in Santa Barbara County not only being unlined, but mixing with 80 to 100 ft. of groundwater. Download PDF

Cost of Tertiary Wastewater Treatment for Santa Barbara

To find out what it would cost ratepayers to upgrade sewage treatment to full tertiary levels - that's irrigation water quality - before dumping it in the ocean, HTO commissioned the engineering firm of Metcalf & Eddy, San Diego, to do a cost/feasibility study on all five wastewater treatment plants on the Santa Barbara south coast. Read what those costs are! Download PDF

Water Reclamation Research

During the spring of 2000, Heal the Ocean retained graduate students from the Bren School of Environmental Science and Management at UCSB to conduct a research project on the use of reclaimed water in Santa Barbara County. The purpose of the research was to study the feasibility of upgrading all secondary treatment of wastewater to tertiary treatment while expanding the uses of reclaimed water within the County (file is 33 megabytes). Download PDF

Lower Rincon Beach DNA

This is one of the first environmental DNA studies done in the U.S.! To put an end to speculation about the sources of pollution at the Rincon, a world-class surf spot, HTO commissioned a DNA lab to analyze what is really going on there. Download PDF

Santa Barbara Septic System Map

Septic system "clusters" in Santa Barbara County, (maps created by John Robinson). The red blotches indicate septic "clusters," or areas of heavy use. The big blotch in the middle of the county is Los Olivos/Santa Ynez area. The south coast map shows heavy concentrations along the coast and in creek areas, with the biggest cluster (at the left end of the coast) being Hope Ranch. These maps were made by GeoDigitalMapping, Santa Barbara, a business owned by former HTO Board Member John Robinson. Before these maps were made (in 1999) nobody knew who was on sewer and who was on septic systems. The digital mapping of wastewater treatment is now in common use around the state of California, if not across the country. John Robison gifted Santa Barbara County with the first quadrant map, when it was completed, during a Board of Supervisors hearing on October 1, 1999. 1st map: Septic systems of the Santa Barbara County South Coast (the largest cluster is Hope Ranch) 2nd map: Septic systems in Santa Barbara County (the largest cluster is Los Olivos/Santa Ynez) Download PDF