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Don’t Blame the Penny: Copper Contamination at Los Angeles Beaches

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A study by the regional water board reveals the extent of copper contamination in waterways and seeks to reduce the pollution from various sources.

Before you continue: How much do you really want to know about copper contamination at Los Angeles beaches? Are you really sure you’re ready for this knowledge? Have you emotionally prepared yourself for this news? Then batten down the hatches and bust out your hurricane candles, cause it’s going to get ugly.

First things first: the Los Angeles Regional Quality Control Board is in charge of protecting water quality in L.A. It’s got seven members who are appointed by the State Senate, and if you know anything about California, you know their bureaucrats don’t mess around. If you don’t think LA city-level water politics are important or interesting, I recommend a little film called Chinatown.

Second, a variety of studies were done over the years (MANY studies over MANY years), and they all showed that Marina Del Rey’s pollution levels through the roof. Here’s just one example of the scintillating reading you can find on the subject: The back basins of the Marina are listed for a variety of toxic pollutants, including metals, organic compounds and sediment toxicity. These sections of MdRH were included on the 1996, 1998, and 2002 California 303(d) list of impaired water bodies (Regional Board 1996, 1998, 2002). (LINK TO PDF)

As a result of these unacceptable levels, the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board established a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for copper in the Marina del Rey Harbor, one of the most impaired water bodies in the region. This is the total amount of “load” that the water can have in it before it becomes unsafe.

The TMDL for copper in the Marina del Rey Harbor was adopted in 2005 and revised in 2014. The pollution it measures – in this case, copper pollution at Los Angeles Beaches – all comes from different sources, such as stormwater runoff (i.e. those red gutters that say “DRAINS TO OCEAN), wastewater discharge, boat hull paints, and atmospheric deposition.

So wait, how does copper get into the water?

Aside from pennies, pipes, and the occasional loose wire, most of us don’t encounter a lot of copper in our daily lives. The truth is, however, that copper is used in a plethora of ways, such as plumbing, antifouling paints, pesticides and fertilizers. What’s worse – copper can leach into the water from these sources and affect marine life. Currently, copper levels in the Marina del Rey Harbor exceed the water quality standards set by the regional board. So much so that the EPA currently considers Marina del Rey an “impaired” water body.

What does it mean if you’re an “impaired” body of water, you might ask? According to the Clean Water Act of 1972, being designated as “impaired” and placed on the 303(d) list means the water body is polluted or degraded by one or more contaminants, such as bacteria, nutrients, metals, pesticides, or sediment, and cannot support its intended use, such as drinking, fishing, swimming, or wildlife habitat.

Copper is not toxic to the touch (or else we would have a huge problem), but it can become toxic when too much of it builds in the body. And when this toxic build up occurrs, it can cause adverse effects on humans and wildlife, interfering with the function of enzymes, hormones, nerves and blood cells. Copper toxicity can cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach cramps, liver damage, kidney damage and anemia in humans, which violates the first two values of TKM Surf, respect yourself and others. Copper can also affect the growth, reproduction, behavior and survival of aquatic organisms, such as fish, crustaceans, mollusks and algae, which violates our third value, respect the ocean.

“Dissolved copper is a major issue in the Marina del Rey Harbor as well as other marinas along the coast. The leading cause of dissolved copper pollution in marinas is from copper-based antifouling paints.” 

– Los Angeles County Department of Beaches and Harbors

What steps are being taken to combat copper pollution at Los Angeles beaches?

You’re probably wondering what’s been done, and what’s being done, to correct this problem. Here are some of the basic steps that have been taken down at Marina Del Rey:

  1. Non-biocide hull paints: Since 2017, the County has been particularly focused on studying the effectiveness and economic feasibility of non-biocide hull paints and coatings. Non-biocide hull paints do not contain metals or other toxic chemicals that leach into the water. 
  2. In-Water Hull Cleaners: The County passed an ordinance that requires in-water hull cleaners to use best management practices (BMPs) for all in-water activities. Using BMPs during in-water hull cleaning has been shown to dramatically reduce contaminant loading of pollutants such as copper to the water column and sediment from boat hull paints.
  3. In-water dry docks: In-water dry docks are a promising new strategy to reduce copper pollution in marina waters and save boat owners money over the long term, since a boat docked in an in-water dry docking system does not need antifouling hull paint (which typically contains copper or other biocides) or regular hull cleaning.

But the boats at Marina Del Rey are really only responsible for a small portion of the copper pollution at Los Angeles beaches. The majority of this pollution comes from the city itself – ie all of us. This means the city has to implement:

  1. Better stormwater management practices to reduce runoff and capture pollutants
  2. Wastewater treatment upgrades to reduce copper discharge
  3. More public education and outreach to raise awareness and promote compliance

The TMDL for copper in the Marina del Rey Harbor aims to restore the beneficial uses of the harbor, such as recreation, fishing, wildlife habitat and aesthetics. The TMDL is enforced through regular monitoring and reporting requirements by the responsible parties. The TMDL also allows for adaptive management and revisions based on new data and information.

Conclusion regarding LARWQCB’s efforts to curb Copper Pollution at Los Angeles Beaches

The Marina del Rey Harbor TMDL level regulation is just one of many actions taken by the LARWQCB (Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board)*** to address the copper problem in the region. The LARWQCB has also established regulatory levels for copper in other water bodies, such as Ballona Creek, Dominguez Channel and San Gabriel River.

The discovery of the copper contamination has raised alarm and renewed scrutiny into the history of toxic dumping that occurred off the California coast for decades. It has also sparked calls for further investigation and action to address the potential impacts of the copper pollution on human and environmental health. The regional water board said it is committed to protecting and enhancing the quality of water resources in the region.

In the meantime, beachgoers and wildlife lovers should be aware of the risks posed by the copper pollution and take precautions to protect themselves and their pets. Avoid eating fish or shellfish from contaminated areas, wash your hands after touching sand or water, and keep your pets away from dead or dying animals on the beach.

For more information on copper pollution and its effects, visit these links:

Quick vocab check and links:

  1. TMDL – Total Maximum Daily Load
  2. California Water Boards
  3. Reports on the Copper Pollution Reduction Program

***(((LARWQCB (Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board) I just made this acronym up, but they should make t-shirts out of it) Actually, it wouldn’t technically be an acronym, but rather an initialism, which is pedantic, but there is a difference, and words have meaning) Perhaps most strange of all, the CDC has an entire page on this topic, breaking down initialism vs acronym vs abbreviation, which could possibly be because one of their employees just effing lost it one day.

I imagine him sitting at his desk, typing away angrily, after being informed for the fiftieth time that his “acronym was similar to so many other acronyms” such as “Center Display Console” “Child Development Center,” etc., and then he just went rogue, and said, “I have to clarify this! I have to right this wrong! I alone must bring order to the choas to the universe!” And of course, this is probably not far from the temperament of most CDC employees, given their exclusive access to truth, as witnessed over during the 2019-2022 period in American History, as seen here and here).