This is another in a series of articles regarding this important matter.  Please watch for these articles. 

Shelter Island Yacht Basin Water Quality and You! (4th in a Series)
By Lynne Eddy

Boat testing of non-copper paints
The Port of San Diego completed the panel testing of bottom paints last fall.  Of the 48 coatings tested, 18 contained zinc, 4 contained organic biocides, and 24 contained no biocide.  Overall, data from this short-term stationary testing showed that zinc and organic biocides showed low fouling; however, some of the non-biocides showed substantial hard fouling.   From theses results, 21 coatings were identified based on their ability to minimize fouling and for ease of cleaning.  A subset of 10 coatings was selected for the boat testing that has recently started, including 5 non-biocides, 1 organic biocide, and 4 zinc-containing coatings, including 1 with zinc oxide and 3 with zinc pyrithione.  The10 boats used in the testing include both power and sail, 20-50 feet in length.  This study will last 2 years, through 2 summers, to collect sufficient information on durability of the coatings.

 
Secondary data on non-copper paints
A secondary database will be established for boats not in the study but which have been painted with a non-copper paint.  The Port would like to have information from our boat owners who would be willing to provide the data on their boats.  This information includes general boat information, such as type and size, type of paint and application date, boat use, including frequency, type of use, e.g., cruising, racing, etc, and method and frequency of cleaning.  If you are interested in participating in this secondary data collection please contact me at L-eddy@sbcglobal.net. 

SWYC and the TMDL requirements
SWYC’s TMDL group includes, Bob Macomber, Jim Lonergan, and Lynne Eddy.  Over the past couple of months we have been meeting with SDYC’s TMDL group, and both our groups have met with the Regional Water Quality Board and the Port of San Diego in order to initiate a dialogue on what exactly is expected from the marinas and boat owners.  This is critical since there has been no discussion of what will happen if the copper content of the SIYB is not reduced to the extent required by the TMDL in spite of a reduction in the use of copper bottom paints.  Of specific concern to our groups is the fact that there are no ongoing copper measurements being conducted so we don’t have any idea where we are in the required 10% reduction in copper concentration by the end of 2012.  The yacht club TMDL groups are proposing (hoping?) that we can show compliance by demonstrating a reduction in the use of copper bottom paints over the time period.  For this reason, we are continuing to collect data about the bottom paint on all boats in our marina, and will be updating the information in the survey that was started a couple of years ago. 

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Bottom Paint Questionnaire

You will find that along with your monthly statement, there is a letter from the Commodore asking you to answer some questions about the bottom paint on your boat. The information is needed to build a report for the state regulatory agency overseeing the Bay. If you have a boat at SWYC, please answer the questionnaire and return it to the Front Office either by email, person, or regular mail. If you have any questions, please contact the Front Office. Thank you!

Please click here for the bottom paint questionnaire (.pdf format)