Browse Our Stories
Mon, Sep 21 2015
SFEI featured in 5 major newspaper articles over two weeks
Articles featuring the Pulse of the Bay, the State of the Estuary Report, and SFEI's work on microplastics saturate the news media since Sept 9, 2015.
Recent weeks have demonstrated the tremendous value that SFEI brings not only to the domain of environmental science but also to resource management and the public landscape. The deluge of articles covers a wide breadth of subjects, each with great urgency and relevance to issues of public importance.
Mon, Sep 21 2015
Microplastics study led by Rebecca Sutton is featured in a news story
Rebecca Sutton, senior scientist at SFEI, describes the hazards presented by microplastics in the Bay's waters. "Plastic pollution: Billions of pieces of tiny plastic litter found in San Francisco Bay," a news article by Paul Rogers reports on findings in a recently published study for which Rebecca Sutton serves as lead author. What the researchers discovered, the high degree of plastic contamination, surprised them.
Wed, Sep 9 2015
The SF Chronicle features the release of the Pulse of the Bay
On September 9, the San Francisco Chronicle highlighted some of the environmental strides and challenges revealed in the latest Pulse of the
Wed, Aug 26 2015
2014 RMP Sediment and Bivalve Data Now Available on CD3!
In 2014, the Regional Monitoring Program for Water Quality in San Francisco Bay (RMP) collected sediment and bivalve samples from San Francisco Bay as part of its long-term monitoring program.
Wed, Jun 17 2015
New Developments in Emerging Contaminants and Green Chemistry
SFEI tracks contaminants of emerging concern (CECs), building the knowledge necessary to prevent tomorrow’s pollution problems. SFEI also aids pollution prevention efforts through our Green Chemistry focus area.
Tue, Jun 16 - Mon, Jun 22 2015
Carlos Street Rain Garden Interpretative Sign
An informative and beautifully designed interpretative sign educates the public on the effects of stormwater runoff, the impacts on water quality and aquatic life, the beneficial uses of "rain gardens" or natural stormwater treatment areas, and the role individuals can play in cleaning-up our wat
Thu, Jun 11 2015
Latest Estuary News takes a look “Beyond the Blubber”
Ariel Rubissow-Okamoto’s article “Beyond the Blubber,” based on interviews with SFEI Senior Scientist Rebecca Sutton and NIST Investigator John Kucklick, provides the scientists’ perspective on a just-completed RMP study that searched Bay biota for unknown contaminants.
Tue, Jun 2 2015
Storm Flows Key to Managing Pollution in Highly Urban Watersheds
Urban runoff is a large and potentially controllable source of pollutants for San Francisco Bay and urban centers around the world. SFEI scientists conducted intensive measurements for suspended sediments and a range of trace organic pollutants in dry weather and storm flow runoff from a fully urban watershed. More than 91% of the loads for every pollutant measured were transported during storm events, along with 87% of the total water discharge.
Mon, Jun 1 - Mon, Jun 22 2015
SF Bay Nutrients Visualization Tool
This visualization tool facilitates intuitive comparison of continuous data from around the Bay, and across a variety of analytes, to demonstrate the potential for collaborative monitoring across programs.
Mon, Jun 1 - Mon, Jun 22 2015
RMP Publication: Storm Flows Key to Managing Pollution in Highly Urban Watersheds
Urban runoff is a large and potentially controllable source of pollutants to San Francisco Bay and many other urban aquatic ecosystems around the world.
Wed, May 27 2015
Novato Creek Baylands Historical Ecology Study report now available
SFEI recently completed an historical ecology study of lower Novato Creek in Marin County.
Thu, May 21 2015
San Francisco Bay wildlife were tested for previously unmonitored contaminants using a non-targeted analysis that screens mainly for long-lived, fat-soluble, chlorine and bromine-rich chemicals. Bay mussel and harbor seal samples contained five contaminants not previously identified in Bay wildlife, and for which toxicity is largely unknown. Most of the Bay chemical contamination was from high priority contaminants that the RMP already monitors, or closely related compounds. Future non-targeted analysis could include techniques that examine water-soluble compounds.
Sun, May 17 2015
San Francisco Bay Data on Microplastic Pollution Featured in San Jose Mercury News
Preliminary measurements of microplastic pollution in San Francisco Bay are featured in a recent San Jose Mercury News article on AB 888, a bill to ban microbeads in personal care products.
Tue, May 5 2015
NOAA remote sensing tools and application for evaluating CyanoHABs in California lakes
There are thousands of lakes in the State of California. A number of these lakes are experiencing “harmful algal blooms” associated with cyanobacteria, or CyanoHABs.
Thu, Apr 16 2015
RMP Journal Publication on Contaminant Loads from the Delta to San Francisco Bay
Results of RMP monitoring of loads from the Delta to San Francisco Bay were recently published in the journal Water Environment Research.
Sun, Apr 5 2015
Daly City rain gardens provide cleaner water, reduce flooding
This study evaluated the efficiency of a bioretention system installed in Daly City, California, for a large suite of pollutants, including some that have been rarely evaluated in such systems.
Tue, Mar 31 2015
The overarching goal of the RMP is to collect data and communicate information about water quality in San Francisco Bay in support of management decisions. Dredging activities are affected by management decisions about disposal of contaminated sediments, dredged sediment volumes, and the impacts of dredging on aquatic life. The RMP teamed with the Bay Planning Coalition on a fact sheet describing how the RMP has studied these issues to ensure that management decisions are based on sound science.
Tue, Feb 24 2015
Nutrient Program Products Highlight Key Initiatives
SFEI is the science lead for the San Francisco Bay Nutrient Science and Management Strategy, which is developing the science needed for informed decisions about managing nutrient loads and maintaining beneficial uses within the Bay.
Sun, Jan 11 - Wed, Feb 18 2015
News of the decline in a flame-retardant chemical's impact on SF Bay continues to resonate
Chemistry World, Scientific American, KRCB North Bay Public Radio, Chemical and Engineering News, and others tackled the story featured on the front page of the San Francisco
Fri, Dec 26 2014
Ten Years After Toxic Chemical Phase-Out, Strong Signs of Recovery for San Francisco Bay
The attached fact sheet details the widespread and rapid declines in flame retardant pollution in many San Francisco Bay species, according to a new study released by the
Fri, Dec 19 2014 - Fri, Mar 27 2015
Fri, Dec 12 2014
CD3: New interface and Improved Functionality
CD3 or Contaminant Data Display and Download is a web-based visualization tool for accessing water quality data for the San Francisco Bay-Delta region, including the RMP’s long-term dataset.
Sat, Dec 6 - Wed, Dec 31 2014
SFEI's Regional Data Center contains over 2 million results!
With the recent upload of the Klamath Tribes water quality data (1990-2013) by Randy Turner and the Data Services Team, SFEI's Regional Data Center database now contains over 2 million results!
Thu, Dec 4 2014
City tries to eliminate toxic runoff with green infrastructure
SAN FRANCISCO (KTVU) - In the last few days, many Bay Area storm sewers got their biggest flush out, spewing all kinds of nasty materials out into the Bay.Most Bay Area cities have two sewer systems, one for human waste, the other for storm runoff.
Mon, Nov 17 2014
Regional Monitoring Program (RMP) Update, 2014 - Now an eBook
The Regional Monitoring Program (RMP), is a 23-year year running “annual check-up” on the health of San Francisco Bay. Led by an SFEI science team, the RMP Update provides a concise overview of what the RMP is finding about Bay pollution, sources and trends.
Tue, Oct 14 2014
RMP Annual Meeting on Tuesday, October 14th
The Annual Meeting of the Regional Monitoring Program for Water Quality in San Francisco Bay (RMP) was held on Tuesday, October 14, 2014 at the David Brower Center in Berkeley, CA from 9 AM to 4 PM.
Tue, Oct 14 2014
The RMP Update, An Annual Report of the Regional Monitoring Program
The RMP Update summarizes findings from 12 recent months of research by top scientists on the health and water quality trends in the San Francisco Bay Estuary. The report highlights the “RMP Top Ten”: a list of recent activities and accomplishments.
Mon, Sep 29 - Wed, Dec 31 2014
Retracing the History of Chinese Shrimp Fishing in San Francisco Bay
In September, SFEI participated in Chinese Whispers: Bay Chronicles, a project combining science, art, and community.
Mon, Sep 22 2014
PCB Synthesis Report and Estuary News Article
The RMP has produced a synthesis report on PCBs that summarizes recent advances in understanding and makes recommendations for future studies.
Wed, Jul 9 2014 - Sun, Feb 1 2015
RMP Documents Decline of PBDEs in the Bay
The Regional Monitoring Program for Water Quality in San Francisco Bay (RMP) recently published a technical report, authored by Dr.