Enterococcus Surface Protein as an Indicator of Human Fecal Pollution in the Lower Russian River Basin

Preliminary evaluation of water-quality data collected in the Lower Russian River Basin, Sonoma County, California during an on-going program by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with Sonoma County Water Agency (SCWA), indicated that there is considerable variability in bacterial concentrations from reach to reach and from year to year. Furthermore, tributaries that maintained continuous surface flow throughout the summer were characterized by lower specific conductance measurements and higher dissolved oxygen and bacteria concentrations typically, than the mainstem Russian River. These results suggest that additional sampling is required to identify discharges from the tributaries that might be a potential source of bacteria to the Russian River during late spring and early summer months and to better establish a baseline for the water quality parameters being tested in the mainstem and the tributaries.

The study is to better understand how tributary discharges influence the water quality of the Russian River during late spring to early summer and to identify the sources of bacteria concentrations in the Russian River.