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Keeping Watch for Clean Water

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Monitoring

Watershed Hero: Joy Downing Riley

February 1, 2021 by Santa Barbara Channelkeeper

Some people see a problem and wonder how others will solve it—but not Joy Downing Riley. When she noticed that litter was impacting marine life along one of her favorite coastal areas—the Rincon Parkway—she leaped into action, not only by picking up trash herself but by addressing the issue at its upstream source.

Joy believes in the power of individual action to create positive change and over the years she’s served the community in a variety of volunteer roles. Until last spring, she volunteered as a literacy coach. But when the pandemic made it too risky to meet in person, she looked for other ways to give back and joined Santa Barbara Channelkeeper’s Watershed Brigade to help remove trash from public places. In the past nine months, she’s become a star volunteer—and a true Watershed Hero.

The Rincon Parkway, the stretch of beach along the Pacific Coast Highway between Emma Wood State Beach and Mussel Shoals, is a special place to Joy. It’s a vantage point from which she enjoys watching wildlife while taking in the island views and the ever-changing light. She appreciates that the Parkway is accessible to all and loves seeing the happiness on people’s faces–from fishermen and surfers to families.

When stay-at-home orders went in to place in March of 2020 and people looked to outdoor areas for recreation, Joy noticed an increase in the use of this area and observed more trash along the road making its way to the beach. She felt it was important to be out there cleaning the area, educating the community, and doing something positive.

Her experience locating and assessing stranded California sea lions and seals as a volunteer for Channel Island Marine and Wildlife Institute has provided her with firsthand insight into the trash eco-system while also fostering a sense of personal responsibility for the marine life. She has observed the impact that our trash and human street waste have on sensitive areas along the coast as the flow of stormwater runoff carries litter to the ocean and notes the direct connection between the health of wildlife and humans.

“Sea lions are important to study. They are sentinel mammals, and their health can be indicative of a number of environmental concerns,” she explains. “The trash we tend drop on the ground or let blow from trash cans, ends up in our roadsides, culverts, barrancas, and eventually in the ocean. Our degrading debris is toxic to wildlife.”

During her time clearing trash and debris from the Parkway, she’s seen beer bottles strewn by visitors, she’s watched dump trucks unload heaps of dirt, people change their oil, discard Styrofoam to-go food containers, diapers, dog waste, tangled fishing line, and cigarette butts (she once collected 150 in a ¼ mile radius), but she believes that when people know better, they do better.

Beyond cleaning litter from the coastal roadway and beach areas, Joy has taken measures to address litter at the source by educating the public and connecting with companies and public agencies to ask for their help. She talks with people and shares her passion for keeping trash out of waterways and habitats clean.

“My sense is that if people had a better understanding of ecosystems—and the flow of trash to the sea—that they would be more cautious about litter.”

While doing clean-ups in the neighborhood near Telegraph Road and Ventura College, she regularly noticed 10-12 Starbucks cups in the storm drains on her mile and a half route. In Ventura and Santa Barbara open storm drains flow straight to the ocean. So, she made an appointment to talk with the Starbucks manager and together they outlined a strategy to keep cups out of the stormwater system. Their initiatives included new signs reminding customers to dispose of their trash responsibly. She was also able to voice her concerns to the regional Starbucks manager and open a dialogue with local city officials about more expansive litter-prevention actions they could take.

Joy’s enthusiasm is infectious and her presence along this special stretch of roadway has not only shown people that she cares deeply about the Rincon Parkway, it has inspired others to join in.

“It’s as if my presence there—seeing me in my gloves and mask picking up trash has given people permission to go out there and do something positive too. That feels good.”

Joy is living proof of the power of citizen action. By doing regular clean-ups, meeting with store managers and City agencies, and launching an educational campaign to increase public awareness of the path trash takes through storm drains and creeks to the ocean, she has contributed to a community-wide movement and has empowered others to take steps toward creating change.

We are profoundly grateful.

Filed Under: Education, Marine Conservation, Monitoring, News, Uncategorized Tagged With: California Coast, Channelkeeper, Environmental Stewardship, volunteer, Watershed Brigade

Science Supports Our Clean Water Work

December 28, 2020 by Santa Barbara Channelkeeper

Data can provide powerful insights to support environmental change. Channelkeeper regularly collects data related to the composition, quality, and availability of our water resources. Our team uses this data to measure critical threats facing our waters, to support decision-makers in their efforts to protect local waterways, and to raise community awareness and involvement in protecting our water resources. This science-based approach is one that helps us keep local waters clean and that also distinguishes us as a data-driven water quality organization.

Since 2001, Channelkeeper has leveraged citizen science to monitor water quality in local watersheds. Our flagship volunteer monitoring program, Stream Team, is one of the longest running and largest citizen water quality monitoring programs in the State. Stream Team collects baseline water quality data every month at up to 43 sites in our region. Over 1,400 community volunteers have participated in the Stream Team program, all trained to follow State approved quality control protocols. Stream Team data is uploaded to the State’s California Environmental Data Exchange Network. The data has been used as lines of evidence to support multiple listings on the State’s 303(d) Impaired Water Bodies List as well as to support development of Total Maximum Daily Load programs in several local watersheds. Regulatory agencies regularly utilize the data we collect to inform and prioritize their pollution prevention and restoration efforts.

Technological innovations in the field of water quality monitoring have enhanced Channelkeeper’s ability to monitor local watersheds. Specifically, we’ve integrated the use of deployable sensors and data loggers to collect continuous data for various applications. In the Ventura River watershed, Channelkeeper deploys dissolved oxygen data loggers each summer to monitor the water quality effects of algae growth and diminished stream flow. This data was recently used in an evaluation of minimum flow thresholds necessary to preserve water quality for endangered steelhead trout.

We also use deployable data logging devices, such as pressure transducers and conductivity sensors, to document and track illicit discharges emanating from the municipal storm drain system. In 2012, this technique helped us monitor the daily, illegal discharge of industrial brine waste into a local watershed in the City of Goleta. This discovery led to intervention of local and state authorities and the eventual elimination of the pollution source.

In the aftermath of the Plains All American oil spill in 2015, the existence of natural oil seeps that regularly oil beaches off the Santa Barbara coastline led to uncertainty regarding the source of oil on fouled beaches. We launched our Tar Ball Monitoring Program to establish a quantitative baseline dataset of natural oil seep fouling that resource agencies could utilize in the future when evaluating both whether to mobilize clean-up efforts and what appropriate clean-up endpoints should be. To develop this baseline, we conduct quarterly surveys of 14 local beaches along the coastline and document the extent, magnitude, and frequency of natural oiling.

Channelkeeper also helps other agencies gather data. Aboard the RV-Channelkeeper, our 31-foot research vessel, our team has assisted the Department of Public Health with biotoxin monitoring, the Department of Fish and Wildlife with Marine Protected Area compliance monitoring, and University of California Santa Barbara researchers with everything from ocean acidification monitoring, biological surveys, and e-DNA sampling of eelgrass beds.

Data collection and scientific research is integral to Channelkeeper’s efforts to protect and restore the Santa Barbara Channel and its watersheds. This has helped us successfully champion stronger policies that better protect our water resources, clean up pollution hot spots, educate our community, and stop illegal discharges into the Santa Barbara Channel and its tributaries. It’s allowed us to better serve our community by supporting our environmental advocacy with quantitative measurements and has informed every aspect of our clean water work.

Filed Under: Monitoring, News, Uncategorized

Meet the R/V Channelkeeper

February 18, 2020 by Santa Barbara Channelkeeper

Every mechanic needs a wrench; every chef needs a knife–these are essential tools that ensure that, as professionals, we’re able to do our jobs effectively. For Santa Barbara Channelkeeper, having a boat on the water is critical to our role as an environmental watchdog. Our boat, the Research Vessel (R/V) Channelkeeper, is a 31-foot JC former lobster boat that allows us to patrol and protect our waterways from pollution and habitat degradation.

Our team sets out several times each month to patrol the Channel for pollution, monitor water quality and the health of marine habitats, conduct scientific research, and educate local youth and other citizens about the extraordinary biodiversity of the Santa Barbara Channel. The R/V Channelkeeper is an integral tool that allows us to better serve our community.

The Boat Enables Scientific Collaboration
Channelkeeper partners with researchers to collect scientific data from our boat to further our collective understanding of human impacts on the marine environment. The valuable research done from the R/V Channelkeeper includes monitoring Marine Protected Areas; measuring ocean acidification; tracking toxic algal blooms; and collecting water and kelp samples to detect potential radiation from the Fukushima nuclear disaster. We’ve also partnered with other Waterkeepers and researchers to monitor and restore kelp and eelgrass habitats at the Channel Islands and along the Santa Barbara coast.

The Boat Hosts Educational Seafaris
The R/V Channelkeeper is a unique educational platform.  Our “Seafari” cruises allow local youth to experience the marine environment firsthand, to learn about the Channel’s habitats and inhabitants, and to embrace a lifetime of ocean stewardship. Passengers get to explore the wonders of the underwater world as our diver sends a live camera feed to our on-deck monitor. We’re working to implement live-streaming technology which will enable us to transmit “live dives” directly to classrooms and museums so we can reach an even broader audience beyond those we can physically accommodate on our boat.

The Boat Allows us to Respond to Spills
Immediately after the devastating Refugio Oil Spill in May 2015, our crew was aboard the R/V Channelkeeper bird-dogging the spill response and documenting impacts on the water, shoreline and wildlife. With our boat, we had the means to conduct underwater surveys, collaborate with other scientists to scout for oil on the seafloor, and quickly investigate a suspicious offshore sheen that appeared after the spill. Our boat and staff are now equipped with a spill response kit and plan, and we’re working to get our boat qualified as an official Vessel of Opportunity so we’re prepared to assist with spill response and monitoring in the event of a future spill.

The Boat Facilitates our Role as a Pollution Watchdog
With the recent explosion in the number of cruise ships visiting Santa Barbara, we implemented a strategic monitoring program to ensure that they don’t pollute the Santa Barbara Channel. The Channelkeeper crew sets sail before dawn to meet these floating cities when they cross into the no-discharge zone 12 miles from the Santa Barbara Harbor. With the R/V Channelkeeper, we are well-equipped to remind ships of their obligation to dump no waste and let them know that we are keeping watch. We believe our watchdog patrols provide an effective deterrent to cruise ship pollution.

The Boat Helps our Staff Protect Underwater Parks
The R/V Channelkeeper is invaluable in monitoring the performance of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in the Santa Barbara Channel. These underwater parks preserve marine ecosystems that provide extraordinary environmental and recreational value. The Channelkeeper crew conducts routine surveys of human activities in and adjacent to the MPAs along the Santa Barbara coast and at the Channel Islands from our boat, collecting useful data to inform MPA management and enforcement. These surveys, combined with our support for biological monitoring in MPAs, help support habitat protections for wildlife survival and human enjoyment.

We hope to welcome you aboard sometime!

Filed Under: Monitoring

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Santa Barbara, CA 93103
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  • About
    • Our Mission & Vision
    • Our Team
    • Our Boat
    • Our History
    • Our Impact
    • About the Santa Barbara Channel
    • About Local Watersheds
    • Strategic Framework
    • Financial Information
    • Careers
    • Contact Us
  • Our Work
    • Education
      • Student Art Show
    • Community Engagement
      • Cruise Ship Advocacy
      • Report Pollution
      • Volunteer
      • Water Conservation
      • Oil Spill Resource Guide
      • Film Plastic Recyling
      • Action Alerts
    • Field Work
      • Beach Water Quality
      • Stream Team
        • Water Quality Indicators
        • Stream Team Data Portal
        • Leydecker Archives
      • MPA Watch
      • Cruise Ship Monitoring
      • Ocean Acidification
    • Advocacy
      • Aquaculture Advocacy
      • Polluted Runoff
      • Agriculture
      • Oil & Gas
        • Protecting the Coast from Sable Offshore’s Pipeline Restart
        • Refugio Oil Spill
        • Oil Spill Resource Guide
        • Platform Decommissioning
        • Legacy Oil Wells
        • Offshore Fracking
      • Ventura River
      • Plastic
        • Film Plastic Recyling
      • Marine Protected Areas
        • MPA Watch
      • Water Supply
        • Desalination
        • Conservation
    • Enforcement
      • Ventura River
      • Offshore Fracking
      • Agriculture
      • Sewage
      • Ojai Quarry
      • Halaco
  • Media
    • Press Releases
    • Blog
    • Newsletter Archive
    • eNews Archive
    • Photo Gallery
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  • Take Action
    • Donate
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      • Watershed Brigade
      • MPA Watch
    • Report Pollution
    • Action Alerts
    • Subscribe to eNews
    • Shop
      • Buy Channelkeeper Gear
      • Shop & Support Channelkeeper
  • Donate