Time series Of suspended-solids concentration, salinity, temperature, and total mercury concentration in San Francisco Bay during water year 1996

Many physical processes affect how constituents within San Francisco Bay vary. Processes and their associated time scales include turbulence (seconds), semidiurnal and diurnal tides (hours), the spring-neap tidal cycle (days), freshwater flow (weeks), seasonal winds (months), ecological and climatic changes (years), and geologic changes (thousands of years). The effect and relative importance of physical processes on the Bay can be determined from continuous time series of suspended-solids concentration (SSC), salinity, and water temperature. SSC time series and Regional Monitoring Program (RMP) waterquality data can be used to calculate time series of some trace-element concentrations (Schoellhamer, 1997). The purpose of this chapter is to qualitatively describe time series of SSC, salinity, water temperature, and mercury during water year 1996 (October 1995 through September 1996). In addition, a calculated time series of mercury will be used to evaluate the accuracy of using instantaneous water samples to evaluate a 4-day average water-quality objective.