Test seine haul shows bass and sunftsh growing rapidly in Puddingstone 



Reservoir, Los Angeles County, after reservoir had been chemically treated 



to remove overabundance of carp, then restocked with game fishes. 



(Fish and Game Photo) 



fornia. In many cases, reservoirs are completely emp- 

 tied each year— to the detriment of the fish population. 



Puddingstone Reservoir in Los Angeles County posed 

 a typical problem, but the County of Los Angeles 

 amended its Flood Control Act to permit retention of 

 a larger minimum pool and arranged to purchase 

 water to maintain the larger pool for recreational use. 



Following a chemical treatment to destroy rough 

 fish in October, 1954, the reservoir was stocked with 

 bass, bluegill, red-ear, channel catfish, and threadfin 

 shad. Excellent growth was made by all game fish and 

 it now appears that the threadfin are playing an im- 

 portant forage role. This concept of purchasing water 

 for recreational use is becoming more common in 

 California. 



POLLUTION ACTIVITIES 



The department has been concerned with the en- 

 forcement of pollution control laws for about 30 

 years, but, with the establishment of the regional water 

 pollution control boards in 1949, its program has 

 shifted from law enforcement to one with more 

 emphasis on the technical investigations of water pol- 

 lution. This shift has mainly occurred during the 

 biennium. 



During the same period most of the fresh water 

 problems have been solved, but salt water pollution 

 problems have become an increasingly important part 

 of the department's water pollution control program. 



Sewage disposal to the ocean poses extremely com- 

 plex problems. The effects of salt water pollution are 

 insidious— there is no wide-scale fish mortality to 

 attract attention. Rather, the environment slowly 

 changes so that the important food and game fishes 

 gradually decrease in numbers until they are no longer 

 able to survive. 



Ocean Studies 



The department began ocean pollution studies off 

 Southern California during the biennium as a basis for 

 future measure of changing fish populations around 

 sewage outfalls in the Southern California area. The 

 Marine Fisheries Branch, in the spring of 1956, took 

 steps to record conditions as they exist today. 



Sixty-nine survey stations were occupied, using otter 

 trawl gear at depths varying from 5 to 25 fathoms in 

 the area lying offshore from Redondo Beach to just 

 north of Point Dume. Each station covered approxi- 

 mately 30 minutes in time and two miles in space. 



All fishes and invertebrates taken in this work were 

 examined at the California State Fisheries Laboratory. 

 A record was kept for each species, listing drag nurn- 

 ber and date, length, weight and sex. Notations were 

 made regarding state of maturity and particularly any 

 abnormalities that were observed. 



When changing conditions around sewer outfalls 

 indicate fish life is endangered, the department will be 

 able to assess the amount of change and the degree 

 of danger by comparing these new conditions with 

 those which existed in the spring of 1956. 



Double Transplant 



To assess the effect of the White Point sewer out- 

 fall upon the abalones in the area, a double trans- 

 plant and tagging operation was carried out. Several 

 hundred black abalones were gathered at Bird Rock 

 and Catalina Harbor, Santa Catalina Island and trans- 

 ported to White Point where the\' were tagged, 

 weighed, measured and transplanted. A similar trans- 

 plant of White Point black abalones was made back 

 to Santa Catalina Island. 



Evidence from these transplants will determine 

 whether or not the "sick" White Point abalones can 

 survive if removed to an unpolluted area and will 

 demonstrate what effect the waste discharge will have 

 upon healthy individuals from an unpolluted area. 



Department studies have shown that a major portion 

 of San Diego Bay is seriously affected by sewage dis- 

 charges. Sludge deposits have covered a large portion 

 of the bay and aquatic life in these areas is missing. 

 In 1955, much of the bay was quarantined by the 

 State Health Department. Additional sewage treat- 

 ment is badly needed and the city is proceeding with 

 plans for new disposal facilities. 



BIOLOGICAL MONITORING PROGRAM 



In the case of the City of Los Angeles, the State 

 Water Pollution Control Board has established require- 

 ments to protect the beneficial uses of the waters of 

 Santa Monica Bay. They have imposed a biological 

 monitoring program to continually test the toxicity of 

 the sewage in order to provide the necessary advance 

 warning in order that further corrective measures can 

 be taken long before conditions in the receiving waters 

 become critical. 



New disposal facilities are now under construction. 

 They will be a stride forward in preventing damage 

 to the fishery resources of Santa Monica Bay in the 

 vicinity of the sewage disposal facilities. The depart- 

 ment has recommended that planning not stop since 

 it will soon be feasible to highly treat and reuse much 

 of the waste water in this area, thus helping solve the 

 water supply problem while giving more protection 

 to coastal waters. 



The department is extremely concerned about the 

 possible effects of other sewage and industrial waste 



