Public Comments Invited on Water Cleanup List: The
Washington Department of Ecology (ecology) wants your comments on
a list of priority waterbodies that we have tentatively chosen
for water cleanup planning during the next year. Ecology
organizes water cleanup efforts through geographic areas called
water quality management areas (WQMAs). Each WQMA is made up of
one or more water resource inventory areas (WRIAs) or watersheds.
We choose individual waterbodies or watersheds in each of our
four regions yearly. To help us select these waters we met with
local groups in communities within the WQMAs last fall.
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 2002.
Please address your comments on the above priority list by June 28, 2002, 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 2003. 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.
| Regional Office | WRIA | Primary Location | Waterbody(s) Name | Pollution Problems |
| CRO | 39 | Wilson/Cooke Creeks | Fecal Coliform (bacteria) | |
| ERO | 54-57 | Spokane County | Spokane River | Total dissolved gas; Temperature; PCB |
| NWRO | 15 | Kitsap County | Sinclair-Dyes Inlet tributaries | Fecal Coliform |
| SWRO | 13 | Thurston County | Budd Inlet-Capitol Lake-Deschutes River | Dissolved Oxygen; Phosphorus; pH; Fecal Coliform; Temperature; PCB |
| CRO/ERO | Numerous | Numerous | Columbia/Snake Rivers | Total Dissolved Gas |
| Regional Office | WRIA | Primary Location | Waterbody(s) Name | Pollution Problems | Remarks |
| CRO | 49 | Okanogan County | Okanogan River | Temperature | Contingent on BPA grant |
| SWRO | 27 | Clark/Skamania Counties | East Fork Lewis River | Temperature | Contingent on BPA grant |
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.
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.
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.
Total Dissolved Gas (TDG) - high levels of TDG, air bubbles entrained in water, can harm fish.