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 …

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 …

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, …