Zanja de Cota Creek Watershed – Pollutant Exposure Assessment


Since 2008, the Santa Ynez Chumash Environmental Office (SYCEO) has conducted water quality monitoring on Zanja de Cota Creek. After water quality results indicated that the creek was temporarily impacted after storm events due to polluted stormwater runoff, SYCEO expressed concerns about the impacts of surrounding agricultural and urban lands uses on environmental and human health on the Reservation. Blue Tomorrow worked with SYCEO to develop a water and soil sampling plan, perform water and soil sampling, analyze water and soil sampling results, and present the findings to facilitate discussion and awareness. This project provided a better understanding of how the Santa Ynez Chumash Reservation and community members were being impacted by pesticides used on surrounding agricultural and urban land.