Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Judy Reservoir Monitoring Project 2013 Final Report, Robin A. Matthews, Joan Vandersypen

Judy Reservoir

The purpose of this study was to identify and count the phytoplankton and measure chlorophyll, total nitrogen, and total phosphorus levels in water samples collected from Judy Reservoir. Water quality and algal data have been collected on a weekly basis since October 2006; annual reports have been sent to the Skagit Public Utility District No. 1 in 2007, 2008, 2010 (January and December), 2011, and 2012. This project ended in 2013; the final chemistry sample was collected May 2, 2013 and the final algae sample was collected November 6, 2013.

Reed Lake 2013 Aquatic Plant Survey, Samantha Merrick, Robin A. Matthews, Joan Vandersypen

Reed Lake

The main objective of this project was to collect and identify aquatic plants in Reed Lake, a small, shallow lake in Whatcom County. The project was undertaken with the assistance of volunteers from the Glenhaven Lakes community (Figure 1). Residents of the Glenhaven community have expressed concerns about the effects that aquatic plants are having on recreation in the lake. This report included maps showing the types of plants that were collected in the lake Figures 2–10 and estimated plant densities (Figures 11–13), with a short discussion of methods that might be useful for reducing aquatic plant densities in the …

The Planet, 2013, Fall, Mikey Jane Moran, Huxley College Of The Environment, Western Washington University

The Planet

No abstract provided.

Birch Bay Village Lakes 2013 Final Report, Robin A. Matthews, Joan Vandersypen

Birch Bay/Village Lakes

The Institute for Watershed Studies was contracted by the Birch Bay Village Lakes Committee to continue water testing at two sites in Kwan Lake and two sites in Thunderbird Lake (Figure 1, page 4). The sampling effort began in August 2007, and samples have been collected approximately 2–4 times each year through August 2013. This report provides an update to earlier data reports submitted to the Birch Bay Village Lakes Committee.

Comparing Forest Measurements From Tree Rings And A Space-Based Index Of Vegetation Activity In Siberia, Andrew Godard Bunn, Malcolm Kenneth Hughes, Alexander V. Kirdyanov, Mark Losleben, Vladimir V. Shishov, Logan T. Berner, Alexander Oltchev, E. A. (Evgeniĭ Aleksandrovich) Vaganov

Environmental Sciences Faculty and Staff Publications

Different methods have been developed for measuring carbon stocks and fluxes in the northern high latitudes, ranging from intensively measured small plots to space-based methods that use reflectance data to drive production efficiency models. The field of dendroecology has used samples of tree growth from radial increments to quantify long-term variability in ecosystem productivity, but these have very limited spatial domains. Since the cambium material in tree cores is itself a product of photosynthesis in the canopy, it would be ideal to link these two approaches. We examine the associations between the normalized differenced vegetationindex (NDVI) and tree growth using …

Fish And Shellfish Consumption: Traditions, Regulations, And A Cleaner Environment In The Us Pacific Northwest, Jennifer Stiles, Ruth M. Sofield

Environmental Sciences Faculty and Staff Publications

When discussing the benefits of fish consumption, we typically focus on the health benefits such as Omega‐3 fatty acids and their implications for heart health. However, nonhealth related benefits of fish consumption are important to consider. With Washington State's broad coastline, fish consumption is abundant and plays an integral role in the traditions of the Native Americans in the state. Fish and shellfish are an important part of the daily diet. There is also spiritual significance with traditions that include the “First Salmon Ceremony,” where the first salmon of the year is honored to ensure that its spirit is released …

The Planet, 2013, Spring, James Rogers, Huxley College Of The Environment, Western Washington University

The Planet

No abstract provided.

Toxicity Of Herbicide Mixtures: Atrazine And Roundup® Toxicity To Daphnia Magna, Jennifer A. Stiles

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

Herbicide use in agricultural systems often causes runoff to contain chemical mixtures that may have greater deleterious effects on non-target organisms than the same chemicals would have when found alone. Little information is known about how some of these chemicals act in mixtures, though many of their individual effects have been described. It is important to understand what effects these chemical mixtures have to identify protective application levels. In this experiment, a 21-day chronic Daphnia magna toxicity test was conducted using an atrazine and Roundup® mixture. Five concentrations of atrazine were tested (0.4, 0.8, 1.2, 1.6, 2.0mg/L). The mixture treatments …

Lake Whatcom Monitoring Project 2011/2012 Report, Robin A. Matthews, Michael Hilles, Joan Vandersypen, Robert J. Mitchell, Geoffrey B. Matthews

Lake Whatcom Annual Reports

This report is part of an on-going series of annual reports and special project reports that document the Lake Whatcom monitoring program. This work is conducted by the Institute for Watershed Studies and other departments at Western Washington University.

The major objective of this program is to provide long-term baseline water quality monitoring in Lake Whatcom and selected tributaries. Each section contains brief explanations about the water quality data, along with discussions of patterns observed in Lake Whatcom.

American Chestnut's Role In The Ecological Restoration Of Coal-Mined Landscapes, Jenise Bauman, Caleb Cochran, Brian C. Murphy, Carolyn H. Keiffer

College of the Environment on the Peninsulas Publications

The American chestnut’s fast growth rate, early nut production, and quality of timber make it a valuable tree for use in coal mine restoration projects (Figure 1). This species tolerates a wide range of ecological conditions, including dry soils and low pH, which are typical of some sites previously mined for coal. Experimental planting methods are currently being studied to determine protocols most conducive for establishing chestnut trees on these sites. The Forestry Reclamation Approach (FRA) proposed by the Appalachian Regional Reforestation Initiative (ARRI) recommends the selection of proper soil substrate, a deep rooting zone, appropriate herbaceous vegetation, and the …

Survey For The Presence Of Phytophthora Cinnamomi On Reclaimed Mined Lands In Ohio Chosen For Restoration Of The American Chestnut, Shiv Hiremath, Kirsten J. Lehtoma, Jenise Bauman

College of the Environment on the Peninsulas Publications

We have been planting blight resistant American chestnut seedlings on reclaimed coal mined areas in Southeastern Ohio, which was once within the natural range of the American chestnut. Towards the goal of restoring the American chestnut, we are testing suitable sites that can aid survival, growth and establishment of planted seedlings pre-inoculated with ectomycorrhizal fungi. Prior to the arrival of the chestnut blight fungus, pathogens of the genus Phytophthora were introduced in the USA that were responsible for the “ink disease” or “root-rot” resulting in wide-spread death of chestnut trees in southern states. Although these pathogens were not observed elsewhere, …

Soil Preparation Methods Promoting Ectomycorrhizal Colonization And American Chestnut (Castanea Dentata) Establishment In Coal Mine Restoration, Jenise Bauman

Jenise M. Bauman

No abstract provided.

The Planet, 2013, Winter, James Rogerts, Huxley College Of The Environment, Western Washington University

The Planet

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Ocean Acidification On Dispersal Behavior In The Larval Stage Of The Dungeness Crab And The Pacific Green Shore Crab, Anna-Mai F. (Anna-Mai Florentine) Christmas

WWU Graduate School Collection

The influence of acidification of the world's oceans on marine populations and communities is a subject of growing concern. In the case of crustaceans, issues such as calcium dynamics of the molting process and direct effects on survival and development rates of larvae have received, at most, limited attention. My thesis research looked at phenomena that are important in the success of larval crustacean stages, but have received no attention; namely, the effects of ocean acidification on the swimming speeds, feeding rate, and gross growth efficiency of stage one larvae of the Dungeness crab, Metacarcinus (Cancer) magister, and the Pacific …

Assessment Of Riparian Conditions In The Nooksack River Basin With The Combination Of Lidar, Multi-Spectral Imagery And Gis, Erica M. Capuana

WWU Graduate School Collection

Riparian areas are a complex component of stream ecosystems and provide critical habitat for Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.). Comprehensive techniques are needed for assessing riparian areas that can be used on small and large regional scales. I examined the application of airborne LiDAR and high resolution multi-spectral imagery from the World View-2 (WV-2) satellite to analyze riparian landcover and riparian forest structure in the Nooksack River Watershed. I employed an object-oriented approach to segment the imagery into meaningful objects consisting of groups of pixels. I examined the advantages of the four additional spectral bands from the 8-Band World View-2 Image …

Relationship Between Lake Whatcom Algae Density, Water Quality And Filtration Rate At The Bellingham Water Treatment Plant, Wa, Bowei He

WWU Graduate School Collection

During the summer of 2009, the Bellingham drinking water treatment plant experienced severe reductions in filtration rates, resulting in mandatory water restrictions. Since then, summer water filtration rates continued to approach critical levels. In 2011, I conducted a study to investigate the phytoplankton and ambient water quality patterns in Lake Whatcom source water to see if any parameters could be used to predict low water filtration rates. In addition, I evaluated water quality and phytoplankton cell densities at different depths at the intake located in Lake Whatcom to see if drawing source water from different depths could help reduce water …

Regional Risk Assessment Of The Puyallup River Watershed And The Evaluation Of Low Impact Development In Meeting Management Goals, Eleanor Hines

WWU Graduate School Collection

The Relative Risk Model (RRM) is a tool used to calculate and assess the likelihood of effects to endpoints when multiple stressors occur in complex ecological systems. In this study a Bayesian network was used to calculate relative risk and uncertainty (BN-RRM) in the Puyallup River Watershed. First, I calculated the risk of prespawn mortality of coho salmon. Second, I evaluated the effect of low impact development (LID) as a means to reduce risk. Prespawner mortality in coho salmon within the Puyallup watershed was the endpoint selected for this study. A conceptual model showing causal pathways between stressors and endpoints …

Mountain Goat Genetic Diversity And Population Connectivity In Washington And Southern British Columbia, Leslie C. (Leslie Claire) Parks

WWU Graduate School Collection

Anthropogenic alterations to natural landscapes and the associated habitat fragmentation, habitat degradation, and climatic shifts threaten biodiversity from the local to the global scale. These perturbations disrupt historical patterns of gene flow causing reduced population connectivity, loss of genetic diversity, and increased risk of extinction. A landscape that is permeable to animal movement counteracts local population fluctuations, increases genetic diversity, increases adaptive potential, and provides corridors for range shifts in response to climate change. Maintaining population connectivity is critical for the conservation of small populations isolated by fragmented landscapes. This strategy requires an accurate understanding of the landscape's effect on …

Factors Affecting The Distribution And Abundance Of The Salish Sucker (Catostomus Sp.): An Endemic And Endangered Transboundary Fish Population, Nathaniel S. (Nathaniel Stuart) Lundgren

WWU Graduate School Collection

The Salish sucker (Catostomus sp.) is a recently described endemic fish species with a patchy distribution and a narrow geographic range in western Washington and southwestern British Columbia. In this study I examined populations within the Nooksack River watershed, attempting to elucidate the environmental factors contributing to observed patterns of distribution and abundance. I hypothesized that hypoxic and hyperthermic conditions during the summer months would restrict Salish sucker distribution. I tested this hypothesis by measuring dissolved oxygen concentrations, temperature, and Salish sucker abundance and movement at eight sites in the Bertrand Creek and Fishtrap Creek sub-basins. The results of this …

Cougar Genetic Variation And Gene Flow In A Heterogeneous Landscape, Matthew J. (Matthew James) Warren

WWU Graduate School Collection

Management of game species requires an understanding not just of population abundance, but also the structure of and connections between populations. Like other large-bodied carnivores, the cougar (Puma concolor) exhibits density -dependent dispersal and is capable of long-distance movement; in the absence of barriers to movement, these traits should lead to high connectivity between individuals and a lack of genetic differentiation across areas of continuous habitat. Previous research has suggested that cougar movement may be influenced by landscape variables such as forest cover, elevation, human population density, and highways. I assessed the population structure of cougars (Puma concolor) in Washington …

Phytoplankton Ecology In Four High-Elevation Lakes Of The North Cascades, Wa, Siana Wong

WWU Graduate School Collection

The objective of my project was to describe phytoplankton ecology in high-elevation lakes of the North Cascades, WA. I conducted my field study using a small-scale ecosystem approach encompassing four lakes in the same watershed near Mt. Baker. I used exploratory data analyses to identify spatial and seasonal patterns in phytoplankton and water chemistry. Chlorophyll-a levels were less than 2.5 μg/L, and total nitrogen and phosphorus levels were below 198 and 15.9 μg/L, respectively, indicating the low-production and nutrient-poor nature of these lakes. Chlorophyll-a was weakly correlated with total nitrogen (Kendall's tau = 0.25, p < 0.05) but was not correlated with most other water chemistry variables (p > 0.05). In the phytoplankton dataset, …

Summer Phytoplankton Diversity In Small Lakes Of Northwest Washington, Rachael D. (Rachael Dawn) Gravon

WWU Graduate School Collection

I sampled forty lakes in the Puget Sound region of northwest Washington to investigate the relationship between water quality, site characteristics, and algal composition. Water samples were collected during the summer of 2008 to measure nutrients, alkalinity, chlorophyll-a, dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, and temperature. Watershed characteristics were recorded to assess shoreline composition and dominant land use. Phytoplankton samples were collected, preserved, and concentrated in settling chambers to determine taxonomic composition and algal biovolume. Unpreserved phytoplankton samples were also collected and used to generate a species list for each lake. The data were examined using correlation analysis and hierarchical clustering to …