Where is it?

Site 6 is on the lower portion of the Ventura River, near Foster Park, just below the town of Oak View. To get there from Ventura, take Highway 33 towards Ojai and exit Casitas Vista Rd. Turn right off the offramp, and then right again under the highway overpass to-wards Foster Park. Immediately after crossing the bridge over the river, turn left into a large pullout, and park on the right side. Walk towards the river and through the metal gate to the USGS and Ventura County gauging stations. Carefully climb down the long metal ladder to the sampling site.

What is unique about this site?

Site 6 is located on the main stem of the river, just above a sewage plant outfall. At this point, most major tributaries (except for Canada Larga) have entered the river, so we can get a good look at the overall water quality of the river before it passes the sewage treatment plant. After the sewage treatment plant, we see major changes in water quality at sites 3, 2, and 1. Therefore, site 6 is a very important reference point for observing the impacts of the sewage treatment plant.

Results at this site:

Water quality at site 6 is generally good; results nearly always fall within healthy ranges. The results are most meaningful when we compare them to other Stream Team sites. Because of its unique location, water quality here is often better than upstream and downstream sites. Rivers, wetlands and other water bodies have a special ability to filter out pollutants. Therefore, as water flows downstream, water quality often improves (assuming there are no other inputs to the river). For example, sites 9 and 10 in Ojai typically have high pollution levels from nearby ranches and golf courses. However as we follow these creeks downstream, pollutants are filtered out and the water quality actually improves. Therefore, by the time we get to site 6, water quality is much better than it was at 9 and 10. For this reason, water quality is often better at site 6 than it is at many upstream sites. As mentioned above, the sewage treatment plant below site 6 greatly affects water quality, primarily by increasing nutrient levels. Therefore, water quality is also often better at site 6 than it is downstream. Rock on site 6!!!