The City of Alturas currently operates a wastewater treatment facility that discharges effluent to the Pit River. Translator studies determine what percentage of a metal in an effluent will be dissolved after mixing and incorporating into a receiving water and measure the amount of dissolved versus particulate forms of a metal.

Site specific translators may be used to develop site-specific objectives, waste load allocations, TMDLs, and permit limits for effluent discharge. VESTRA designed the sampling protocol for the City of Alturas and designed flow-measurement methodologies for a remote section of the Pit River where gauging stations are not available. Data from the translator have been examined statistically for evidence of colinearity (correlation matrixes and analyses), and a preliminary translator has been applied to copper and zinc concentrations in the downstream receiving water.

Currently, the translator value is being integrated into the new wastewater treatment facility permit requirements.