1998 Annual Results

Beginning with the 1998 reporting year, the format and content of the Annual Report for the San Francisco Estuary Regional Monitoring Program for Trace Substances will be modified to reflect the evolution of the program over the last six years. In accordance with the five-year review recommendations, reporting will no longer rely primarily on descriptive data summaries but will put results in the context of management questions, thus making monitoring information more relevant to the management of the Estuary. As the RMP is adding components beyond pollutant characterization (RMP Objective No. 2: Compare contaminant concentrations to relevant guidelines...), the monitoring information will serve to evaluate progress toward goals embodied in the Basin Plan and help in identifying further pollution prevention and reduction steps. The RMP has become an integral part of the Regional Monitoring and Assessment Strategy--the guiding document of the Regional Board for adaptively managing beneficial uses of the Estuary and its surrounding watersheds.

The Annual Report now consists of three components that address different audiences.

1. 1998 Monitoring Results contain the findings from any given monitoring year in summarized, descriptive form, with a brief discussion of results worth highlighting. This component will be available on the Web and can be printed out by the user, as desired. Monitoring Results is addressed to a general audience.
2. The Pulse of the Estuary The Pulse of the Estuary is a concise summary of 1993-1998 monitoring results for managers and decision-makers.