Environmental Monitoring Commons^™

Lake Whatcom Monitoring Project 2022/2023 Report, Angela Strecker, Joan Pickens, Carmen Archambault, Emily Flarry, Kathryn Queen, Robert Mitchell, Robin Matthews, Geoffrey B. Matthews

Lake Whatcom Annual Reports

This report describes the results from the 2022/2023 Lake Whatcom monitoring program conducted by the Institute for Watershed Studies at Western Washington University (https://diatom.cenv.wwu.edu/).

The major objectives of the 2022/2023 Lake Whatcom monitoring program were to continue long-term baseline water quality monitoring in Lake Whatcom and its major tributaries; collect storm runoff water quality data from representative streams in the watershed; and continue collection of hydrologic data from Austin and Smith Creeks.

Lake Whatcom Monitoring Project 2021/2022 Report, Angela Strecker, Michael Hilles, Joan Pickens, Kathryn Queen, Emily Flarry, Robert Mitchell, Robin A. Matthews, Geoffrey B. Matthews

Lake Whatcom Annual Reports

This report describes the results from the 2021/2022 Lake Whatcom monitoring program conducted by the Institute for Watershed Studies at Western Washington University (www.wwu.edu/iws).

The major objectives in 2021/2022 were to continue long-term baseline water quality monitoring in Lake Whatcom and its major tributaries; collect storm runoff water quality data from representative streams in the watershed; and continue collection of hydrologic data from Austin and Smith Creeks.

Freshwater Algae In Northwest Washington, Volume Iii. Desmids, Part A, Robin A. Matthews

A Collection of Open Access Books and Monographs

No abstract provided.

Lake Whatcom Monitoring Project 2020/2021 Report, Angela Strecker, Michael Hilles, Joan Pickens, Robert Mitchell, Robin Matthews, Geoffrey Matthews

Lake Whatcom Annual Reports

This report describes the results from the 2020/2021 Lake Whatcom monitoring program conducted by the Institute for Watershed Studies at Western Washington University (www.wwu.edu/iws).

The major objectives in 2020/2021 were to continue long-term baseline water quality monitoring in Lake Whatcom and its major tributaries; collect storm runoff water quality data from representative streams in the watershed; and continue collection of hydrologic data from Austin and Smith Creeks.

Summary Of Lake Whatcom Algal Research, 1987–2021, Robin A. Matthews

A Collection of Open Access Books and Monographs

The purpose of this report is to provide a brief description of the major algal taxonomy projects completed in Lake Whatcom and to create a digital image library of many of the taxa1 reported from the lake from 1987–2017. A simple taxonomic key is also included for students and citizen scientists who would like to develop their algal identification skills.

Eight taxonomy projects and hundreds of digital images were used to develop the Lake Whatcom algal species list and distribution summary. The eight projects were conducted between 1987 and 2017 and included identification of algal taxa to at least the …

Vignette 02: Lower Trophic Levels In The Salish Sea, Ian Perry

Institute Publications

Plankton form the base of the pelagic marine food web in the Salish Sea, and are eaten by fishes, marine mammals, and seabirds. Plankton include microscopic plants (phytoplankton) and very small animals (zooplankton). This vignette presents an overview of monitoring observations of phytoplankton and zooplankton distribution and biomass in the Strait of Georgia. Climate change may lead to unusual and unexpected patterns of phytoplankton and zooplankton in the future.

Vignette 06: Living Shorelines In Puget Sound, Jason Toft

Institute Publications

Nearly one third of Puget Sound’s shorelines are armored (e.g., seawall, bulkhead, riprap). Armoring has documented negative impacts on the flora and fauna that benefit from healthy intertidal beaches. Although shoreline armor may be necessary in some cases to protect people and property, there are often promising “living shoreline” options to restore natural features, also referred to as soft or green shorelines. These options can be applied to situations where complete restoration is either impractical or not feasible given human constraints. Living shoreline techniques often include a mix of design options, including armor removal, sediment nourishment of beaches, log placement, …

Vignette 03: Birds Of The Salish Sea, Rob Butler

Institute Publications

The significance of the Salish Sea comes into focus when we look at the diversity and abundance of its birds and mammals, some of which are globally, continentally, and nationally important. Of particular importance is the diversity and abundance of species on the Fraser River Delta. There are more species of birds on the delta than any comparable area in Canada, and nearly half of all 550 species of birds reported for British Columbia have been seen on the delta. Despite all that has been learned about marine birds and mammals, large areas of the Salish Sea in Canada have …

Vignette 15: Eelgrass Variations Ties To Sea Level Variations, Ronald Thom

Institute Publications

This vignette shares an overview of the process and results of a long-term eelgrass monitoring effort at the mouth of Sequim Bay. Coupling these local long-term findings with research and monitoring across the Salish Sea and the globe will help better understand the longer-term effects of global warming and perhaps other human and natural-derived pressures on coastal ecosystems, and provide clues on how to make these systems more resilient to pressures.

Vignette 07: Stormwater Effluent Exerts A Key Pressure On The Salish Sea, Emily Howe

Institute Publications

One of the primary terrestrial pressures on the Salish Sea estuarine and marine environment is urban stormwater runoff. When rainfall runs across hard, impervious surfaces, rather than soaking into the soil, it picks up and delivers toxic contaminants directly to nearby streams, rivers, and eventually the Salish Sea. In fact, for most toxic substances, surface runoff is the largest contributing source of loading to Puget Sound. Unfortunately, the Salish Sea’s relationship with stormwater effluent is no outlier; stormwater is the fastest growing cause of surface water impairment in the United States as urbanization transitions forested and other natural landscapes to …

Vignette 13: The Salish Sea Model, Tarang Khangaonkar P.E.

Institute Publications

Given numerous concerns related to the health of the ecosystem and the possibility of anthropogenic impacts—from population growth to climate impacts, such as sea level rise—scientists, engineers, and planners seek an improved basic understanding of the biophysical behavior of the Salish Sea. The Salish Sea Model (SSM) development was motivated by this urgent need for a comprehensive predictive model that could diagnose water quality issues and concerns and serve as a planning tool in support of Puget Sound restoration efforts. The SSM was developed by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in collaboration with the Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) …

Vignette 21: How Ecological Time-Series Inform Response To Stressors, Jackson W.F. Chu

Institute Publications

An important part of biodiversity monitoring includes assessing the differences in vulnerability across parts of an ecosystem. Hypoxia is one of the big three climate- related stressors causing biodiversity loss in the oceans. As the ocean warms, its capacity to hold oxygen becomes reduced. At the same time, concurrent shifts in circulation result in changes to how oxygen gets transported from the surface (where oxygen dissolves into the ocean) to the seafloor and from offshore to inshore areas. When a habitat experiences a substantial drop in oxygen, below the point needed to sustain everyday life, animals respond by migrating away, …

Vignette 19: Invasive European Green Crab, Jeff Adams, Emily Grason, P. Sean Mcdonald, Allen Pleus, Jude Apple, Roger Fuller, Lucas Hart, Alexandra Simpson

Institute Publications

European green crab pose documented threats to cultured and wild shellfish, eelgrass, and shoreline habitats and ecosystems. Because they can prey on juvenile crabs and shellfish, dense populations of EGC in the Salish Sea region could put fisheries and aquaculture resources in peril. After Fisheries and Oceans Canada researchers reported an established EGC population in Sooke Basin, BC in 2012, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) worked with Washington Sea Grant (WSG) to secure Puget Sound Marine and Nearshore Grant Program funding and establish a volunteer-based early detection and monitoring program. WSG launched Crab Team in 2015 with …

Vignette 14: Eelgrass Wasting Disease, Olivia Graham, Morgan Eisenlord, Drew Harvell

Institute Publications

Rising seawater temperatures can increase the risk of disease outbreaks in many taxa. Pathogens are potentially the ultimate keystone species in that their small biomass can have massive impacts that ripple through ecosystems. Disease outbreaks can be particularly damaging when they affect ecosystem engineers, such as seagrasses. Outbreaks of wasting disease in seagrasses are one of a myriad of stressors associated with declining temperate and tropical seagrass meadows around the globe. Levels of eelgrass wasting disease are high in the San Juan Islands and Puget Sound. These increasing levels of disease are a threat to sustainability of eelgrass meadows, our …

Vignette 17: Salish Sea Jellyfish, Correigh Greene

Institute Publications

The Salish Sea is home to a diverse community of gelatinous zooplankton (or "jellies"). In their adult forms, jellies comprise a relatively large proportion of biomass in the Salish Sea. Questions regarding jellyfish abundance and climate variation in the Salish Sea have been difficult to address, in part because of a lack of consistent monitoring. Research presented in this vignette suggests that jellyfish are sensitive to climate signals like marine water temperatures, but do not appear to be systematically increasing in abundance over time. Due to advances in modeling, we may gain a better perspective on the roles jellies play …

Section 5: Cumulative Ecosystem Effects, Kathryn L. Sobocinski, Jennifer Boldt, Todd Sandell, Jaclyn Cleary, Michael Schmidt, Isobel Pearsall, Iris Kemp, Brian Riddell, Lynda V. Mapes

Institute Publications

Section 5 introduces cumulative effects and brings in brief case discussions focused on herring, salmon, and orcas. Understanding the layers of stressors the ecosystem faces is integral to gaining a full picture of declines in ecosystem function.

Vignette 08: Connection To Place: Indigenous Leadership In Səlilwət (Burrard Inlet), Tsleil-Waututh Nation’S Treaty Lands And Resources Department

Institute Publications

Since time out of mind, Tsleil-Waututh have used and occupied Burrard Inlet and surrounding watersheds. Generations of Tsleil-Waututh people were brought up with the teaching, “When the tide went out, the table was set.” About 90% of our diet was once derived from Burrard Inlet and the Fraser River, but today the Inlet is unable to support our needs. Cumulative effects of colonial settlement and development have eroded the ecological health, integrity, and diversity of the Inlet. Tsleil-Waututh Nation (TWN) has a goal to restore the health of the Inlet so that we, and future generations of Tsleil-Waututh People, can …

Section 6: Opportunities For Improving Assessment And Understanding Of The Salish Sea, Kathryn L. Sobocinski

Institute Publications

Section 6 offers a list of science-based needs and opportunities brought to light by the report and various existing efforts within the Salish Sea science community, representing opportunities for greater collaboration across geographic and jurisdictional boundaries.

Whose Water Is It Anyway?: The Adjudication Of Water Rights In The Nooksack Watershed, Emma Ledsham

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

This paper examines the current state of water rights in the Nooksack watershed, specifically looking at stakeholders such as the Lummi Nation, Nooksack Indian Tribe, and local farmers. I then go on to explore what an adjudication of water rights is, its process, and how it will be used in the Nooksack watershed to create an inventory of water users in the area. Finally, I explore the possible effects that adjudication might have on the different stakeholder groups and how they might respond to it.

Lake Whatcom Monitoring Project 2019/2020 Report, Angela Strecker, Michael Hilles, Joan Pickens, Robert Mitchell, Robin Matthews, Geoffrey Matthews

Lake Whatcom Annual Reports

This report describes the results from the 2019/2020 Lake Whatcom monitoring program conducted by the Institute for Watershed Studies at Western Washington University (www.wwu.edu/iws).

The major objectives in 2019/2020 were to continue long-term baseline water quality monitoring in Lake Whatcom and its major tributaries; collect storm runoff water quality data from representative streams in the watershed; and continue collection of hydrologic data from Austin and Smith Creeks.

Microplastic Monitoring In Richardsonius Balteatus From Ross Lake, Wa, Sarah Vanlandingham, Anne Fuenzalida

Scholars Week

Recent work has shown that microplastics are present in glaciers. This is a concern for water bodies such as Ross Lake (WA) where glacier runoff may transport the microplastics into the watershed and be available to aquatic organisms. Currently there is no evaluation of how organism storage methods may impact microplastic recovery. In this study microplastic type and color in whole body Richardsonius balteatus (redside shiners) from Ross Lake were counted. Fish were collected from Ross Lake on July 6th, 2019. Approximately half of the samples were stored in ethanol and the remainder on ice. Characteristics including color and type …

Quantifying Extinction Risk In Commercial Marine Species, Rondi Nordal

Scholars Week

The sustainability of some species is at risk as a result of anthropogenic influences such as climate change and harvest. This study focused on the combined role of economic and ecological factors that can lead to overharvesting of commercial marine species and aimed to understand the relationship between ecological extinction risk, biological productivity, and economic value. We used existing economic, ecological, and extinction risk data and compiled it for use in the analysis. We focused on maximum sustainable yield as an indicator of productivity, economic data that indicated the landed value of a species, and International Union for the Conservation …

Evaluation Of A Bayesian Network For Strengthening The Weight Of Evidence To Predict Acute Fish Toxicity From Fish Embryo Toxicity Data, Adam Lillicrap, S. Jannicke Moe, Raoul Wolf, Kristin A. Connors, Jane M. Rawlings, Wayne G. Landis, Anders Madsen, Scott E. Belanger

Institute of Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry Publications

The use of fish embryo toxicity (FET) data for hazard assessments of chemicals, in place of acute fish toxicity (AFT) data, has long been the goal for many environmental scientists. The FET test was first proposed as a replacement to the standardized AFT test nearly 15 y ago, but as of now, it has still not been accepted as a standalone replacement by regulatory authorities such as the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA). However, the ECHA has indicated that FET data can be used in a weight of evidence (WoE) approach, if enough information is available to support the conclusions related …

Knowledge Exchange And Social Capital For Freshwater Ecosystem Assessments, Lauren M. Kuehne, Angela Strecker, Julian Olden

Publications

The 1972 Clean Water Act (CWA) provided crucial environmental protections, spurring research and corresponding development of a network of expertise that represents critical human capital in freshwater conservation. We used social network analysis to evaluate collaboration across organizational types and ecosystem focus by examining connections between authors of freshwater assessments published since the CWA. We found that the freshwater assessment network is highly fragmented, with no trend toward centralization. Persistent cohesion around organizational subgroups and minimal bridging ties suggest the network is better positioned for diversification and innovation than for learning and building a strong history of linked expertise. Despite …

European Green Crab Mitigation In Whatcom County, Patty Barry, Melissa Browning, Alexis Bryson,, Harrison Fuchs, Etilet Maipi

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

This report presents a background on the invasive European green crab ( Carcinus maenas ), describes a variety of techniques to monitor and manage their presence in the region, and puts forth several comprehensive strategies for mitigating a potential invasion of C. maenas in the Salish Sea. C. maenas was likely initially introduced to the Pacific coast of the United States as larvae carried in ballast water, though they are also spread as larval by currents and as hitchhikers in seafood transport. C. maenas tolerates a wide range of salinities, temperatures, and habitats, they prey on virtually any available species, …

Lake Whatcom Monitoring Project 2017/2018 Report, Robin A. Matthews, Michael Hilles, Joan Pickens, Robert J. Mitchell, Geoffrey B. Matthews

Lake Whatcom Annual Reports

This report describes the results from the 2017/2018 Lake Whatcom monitoring program conducted by the Institute for Watershed Studies at Western Washington University (www.wwu.edu/iws). The major objectives in 2017/2018 were to continue long-term baseline water quality monitoring in Lake Whatcom and its major tributaries; collect storm runoff water quality data from representative streams in the watershed; and continue collection of hydrologic data from Austin and Smith Creeks.

Using Bayesian Networks To Predict Risk To Estuary Water Quality And Patterns Of Benthic Environmental Dna In Queensland, Scarlett E. Graham, Anthony A. Chariton, Wayne G. Landis

Institute of Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry Publications

Predictive modeling can inform natural resource management by representing stressor-response pathways in a logical way and quantifying the effects on selected endpoints. This study demonstrates a risk assessment model using the Bayesian network-relative risk model (BNRRM) approach to predict water quality and; for the first time, eukaryote environmental DNA (eDNA) data as a measure of benthic community structure. Environmental DNA sampling is a technique for biodiversity measurements that involves extracting DNA from environmental samples, amplicon sequencing a targeted gene, in this case the 18s rDNA gene which targets eukaryotes, and matching the sequences to organisms. Using a network of probability …

Environmental Inequality Dataset, Aran Clauson, Debra J. Salazar, Troy D. Abel

College of the Environment on the Peninsulas Publications

The Disaggreated RSEI model data (also known as RSEI-GM, or Geographic Microdata) version 2.3.4 was downloaded from the Amazon Web Service created by EPA. The RSEI-GM provides detailed air model results from EPA’s Risk-Screening Environmental Indicators (RSEI) model. The results include chemical concentration, toxicity-weighted concentration and score, calculated for each 810 meter square grid cell in a 49-km circle around the emitting facility, for every year from 1988 through 2014. The data can be used to examine trends in air pollution from industrial facilities over time and across geographies. In order to allow for evaluation of toxic-weighted concentration over time, …

Lake Whatcom Monitoring Project 2016/2017 Report, Robin A. Matthews, Michael Hilles, Joan Pickens, Robert J. Mitchell, Geoffrey B. Matthews

Lake Whatcom Annual Reports

This report describes the results from the 2016/2017 Lake Whatcom monitoring program conducted by the Institute for Watershed Studies at Western Washington University (www.wwu.edu/iws). The major objectives in 2016/2017 were to continue long-term baseline water quality monitoring in Lake Whatcom and its major tributaries; collect storm runoff water quality data from representative streams in the watershed; and continue collection of hydrologic data from Austin and Smith Creeks.

Characterization Of An Unmanned Aerial System For Detection Of Wetland Methane Emission Hotspots, Andrew D. Falabella, John A. Lund, David O. Wallin

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

Undergraduate Honors research project using low-cost methane gas sensors mounted on an unmanned aerial vehicle for remote sensing of gas emissions from wetlands. The report also includes experimental calibration work done to improve upon sensor accuracy.