The criteria for making these selections included the severity of the pollution, potential harm to human and aquatic health, impaired beneficial uses, such as agriculture, drinking water and fish habitat, and the potential for local support for water cleanup activities. In addition, the presence of threatened and endangered fish species significantly influenced our choices.
The water cleanup list will be finalized in July. Ecology reviews and responds to your comments by August 2001.
Please address your comments on the above priority list by June 6, 2001, to Ron McBride, Ecology, P.O. Box 47600, Olympia, WA 98504-7600, rmcb461@ecy.wa.gov, phone (360) 407-6469, or fax (360) 407-6426.
The entire list of water bodies we chose from can be viewed on our website: http://www.wa.gov/ecology/wq/303d/
The following pages contain the proposed list of water bodies we plan to begin work on in 2002. The list shows each water body and the parameters of concern. The last page lists definitions of pollution problems.
*The projects shown below are the best estimate of our capacity at this time. Ecology's budget has yet to be set for the next biennium. Actual fiscal and staffing levels may result in fewer projects. In addition, as we are working in a geographic region (WRIA), projects may be expanded into additional waterbodies if we find they need work.
| WRIA | Primary Location |
Water Body | Pollution Problems (see page 3 for definitions) |
| 1 | Whatcom Co | Lake Whatcom | Dissolved Oxygen and Fecal Coliform |
| 1 | Whatcom Co | Whatcom Creek | Fecal Coliform,
Temperature, pH (Partnership with City of Bellingham) |
| 9 | King Co | Green River | Chromium, Fecal Coliform, Dissolved Oxygen, and Temperature – (Technical Assistance to King County-DNR) |
| 11 | Thurston Co | Nisqually/McAllister Creeks | Fecal Coliform and Dissolved Oxygen |
| 13 | Thurston Co | Henderson Inlet,
Woodland/ Woodard/ Dobbs/ Libby Creeks |
Fecal Coliform, pH, Dissolved Oxygen, Temperature |
| 15 | Kitsap Co | Sinclair and Dyes Inlets | Toxics, Fecal
Coliform, Zinc, PCBs (Partnership with US Navy) |
| 23 | Thurston-Lewis Co | Upper Chehalis River | Fecal Coliform |
| 24 | Pacific Co | Willapa River | Temperature |
| 32 | Garfield Co | Walla Walla & Touchet Rivers & Mill Creek | Temperature; DDT; DDE; Chlordane; Dieldrin; Heptachlor; Heptachlor Epoxide; Hexachlorobenzene; Fecal Coliform; pH |
| 45 | Chelan Co | Wenatchee River Basin | Dissolved Oxygen; Fecal Coliform; Temperature; pH |
| 45 | Chelan Co | Mission Creek | Pesticides; DDT; DDE; Guthion |
| 47 | Chelan Co | Lake Chelan/Roses Lake | PCB; 4,4 DDE; DDT |
| Many | Several | Columbia River | Total Dissolved Gas |
| Special Toxics | Listing Verifications | (re-sampling) | |
| 1 & 2 | Whatcom Co | Georgia Straight [Strait] | Metals, Organics, Bioassay |
| 7 | Snohomish Co | Snohomish River | Copper, Mercury |
| 7 | Snohomish Co | Skykomish River | Copper, Lead, Silver |
| 8 | King Co | Kelsey Creek | DDT, Dieldrin, Heptachlor, Epoxide |
| 8 | King Co | Chambers Creek | PCBs |
| 8 | King Co | Bear-Evans Creeks | Mercury |
| 8 | King Co | May Creek | Copper, Lead, Zinc |
| 9 | King Co | Springbrook (Mill) Creek | Cadmium, Chromium, Copper, Mercury, Zinc |
| 9 | King Co | Green River | Chromium |
| 9 | King Co | Springbrook (Mill) Creek | Cadmium, Chromium, Copper, Mercury, Zinc |
| 10 | Pierce Co | White (Stuck) River | Copper, Mercury |
| 10 | Pierce Co | Puyallup River | Arsenic |
| 15 | Kitsap Co | Eagle Harbor | Arsenic |
| 15 | Kitsap Co | Dyes/Sinclair Inlets and Port Washington Narrows | Metals, Organics, Arsenic |
| 15 | Kitsap Co | Port Orchard, Agate, and Rich Passages | Arsenic |
| 25 | Wahkiakum Co | Lower Columbia River | Bis (2-ethylhexyl) Phthalate, Arsenic |
| 26 | Cowlitz Co | Cowlitz River | Arsenic |
| 27/28 | Clark Co | Columbia River | Arsenic |
| 31 | Klickitat Co | Columbia River | Arsenic |
| 34 | Whitman Co | Palouse River | Chromium |
| 37 | Yakima Co | Lower Yakima River | Mercury, Silver, Arsenic |
| 38 | Yakima Co | Naches River | Silver |
| 54/57 | Spokane Co | Spokane River | Chromium, Arsenic |
| 61 | Stevens Co | FDR Lake | Arsenic |
| WRIA | Primary Location | Water Body | Pollution Problems (see page 3 for definitions) |
| 1 | Whatcom Co | Silver Creek | Dissolved Oxygen and Fecal Coliform |
| 1 | Whatcom Co | Drayton Harbor | Fecal Coliform and Dissolved Oxygen |
| 58 | Ferry Co | Sherman Creek | Temperature |
| 46 | Chelan Co | Entiat River | Temperature |
| WRIA (Water Resource Inventory Area) are large watersheds |
A certain minimum amount of dissolved oxygen must be present in water for aquatic life to survive.
Temperature is important because it governs the kinds of aquatic life that can live in a stream. For instance, streams must be cooler than 64 degrees Fahrenheit for salmon to successfully spawn.
pH is a term used to indicate the alkalinity or acidity of a substance as ranked on a scale from 1.0 to 14.0. Neutral pH is 7.0. Acidity increases as the pH gets lower.
PCB - Highly persistent organic chemicals used primarily in electrical equipment (e.g. transformers). Banned from production in mid-1970s. Accumulates in fish tissue.
DDT, DDE, Pesticides (Chlordane, Dieldrin, Heptachlor, Heptachlor Epoxide, Hexachlorobenzene) - Highly persistent organic chemicals. Harm aquatic organisms. Accumulate in fish tissue.
Toxics and Metals (zinc) - can persist in sediments and be present in water. Shown to have adverse effects on aquatic organisms.
Sediments - can smother fish eggs, change the aquatic organisms and habitat, and interfere with fish migration, feeding and spawning.
Phosphorus serves as a nutrient or "fertilizer" for algae and aquatic plants. Too much algae cause aesthetic problems and reduce oxygen levels in lakes and streams.