Welcome to the Drops Of Water

Issue 15 January 1998

This newsletter appears monthly in 45,000 households throughout the watershed. Printing is done by The Chronicle, and distribution is by the Chronicle, the Olympia Daily Olympian, the Tenino Independent, the Rochester Sun News and the Aberdeen Daily World. This is an early edition available only to WWW users. Please send us your feedback. The first people to find errors in spelling or word structure receive a free map of the Chehalis watershed. Send us an e-mail note telling us about the error.

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In this issue:

• 10 Things You Can Do To Save Nature's Creatures Chehalis River Basin Land Trust
• Do's and Don'ts Around the Home EPA
• How Healthy are Washington's Waters? WaDOE
• Protecting Coastal Waters from Nonpoint Source Pollution EPA
• Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control Programs EPA
  • Management Measures.
  • Enforceable Policies and Mechanisms.
  • Final Approval and Conditional Approval
• Managing Nonpoint Source Pollution from Agriculture one of a series from EPA
  • Managing Sedimentation.
  • Managing Nutrients.
  • Managing Confined Animal Facilities.
  • Managing Irrigation.
  • Managing Pesticides.
  • Managing Livestock Grazing.
• 10 Top Facts about Estuaries
• National Estuary Program: An Overview
  • What is an Estuary?
  • Why are Estuaries Significant?
  • How Are We Protecting Estuaries?
  • How Does the National Estuary Program Work?
• Want more information on these Organizations?
• Watershed Wish List for 1998
• Youth Corner Win a Large Watershed Poster!

This is an early electronic copy of Drops of Water. Drops of Water is distributed monthly to newspaper receiving households throughout the basin. It goes to print mid-December and will be distributed during the following week. Watch for it in the Tenino Independent, the Rochester Sun News, The Olympian, The Chronicle and the The Daily World.

The newspaper insert is funded with a grant from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. This electronic edition is sponsored by the CRC.

Letters to the Editor, contributed articles and contributing partnerships are encouraged.
Comments via email to The Chehalis River Council
Back to CRC Home Page

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10 Things You Can Do To Save Nature's Creatures

None of us can help the dodo bird or the passenger pigeon whose flocks darkened the skies of the eastern U.S. Nor can we help save the hippo-sized Stellar's sea cow, a native of Alaska. All of the above are now extinct. Professional conservationists are working hard to make sure that the plants and animals with whom we currently share this planet do not suffer the same fate. But what can we average citizens do to defend against the steamrollering of more species? Below is a rich mix of suggestions from people around the globe, practical advice we all can use:

First of all, you must know your own area to learn all about what plants and animals make it special. Bring a field guide and learn the names of things. Observe how they relate to one another - who eats what? See the difference a season makes. Life runs in cycles and you can find out how they operate in your area. As you become involved with the trees, the grasses, the pesky and fascinating insects, the singing birds, the swamps and the mountains, you can't help but learn to love them. And what you love you will want to protect. Then work with groups and organizations to work hardest for those local areas in greatest need of protection.

This is the hardest suggestion for many, myself included. But the truth is that roaming house cats do tremendous damage to birds, native rodents, reptiles and amphibians. Mine even caught a weasel once, a mammal that luckily was feisty enough to get away. Everybody who has a cat knows that a good hunter can kill 2-3 animals a week - that's hundreds a year. If only our felines would concentrate only on those pesky European invaders, the house mouse and the Norway rat. But most kill our native wildlife. Putting a bell on Tabby helps. Keeping him/her indoors most of the time is best.

Look for opportunities in your own communities to get involved, and not just in environmental issues. Bring your energy to bear in building communication bridges with all kinds of people in all walks of life. And then bring those new partners into improving the quality of your life and your natural surroundings. "It takes a village" and the support of all the villagers to achieve long-term improvement in our local environment.

Gardening is the Number 1 hobby in the U.S. All those people who love to garden can grow native plants - apples, vegetables, flowers, the sort of thing our grandparents did. Save seeds from your nicest specimens - flowers, tomatoes, etc. and grow next year's plants from seed. It's economical, it's satisfying and it preserves genetic diversity - keeping those genes from going extinct. Another benefit of a diverse garden is that it attracts a great variety of creatures - birds, butterflies, beautiful beetles. This year I noticed that my giant lupines were the dining tables for a lot of happy-looking tiger swallowtail butterflies. So I saved lots of seeds to expand my patch. You can find these old fashioned varieties through seed savers exchanges and perhaps at farmers' markets. Support nature's gardens, too, by protecting patches of local habitat near streams or in wetlands, at the shore or in the forest. If you want to have a native plant garden, rescue plants from an area which will be developed, after gaining the cooperation of the landowner.

In the next issue of Drops of Water we will explore six more of the ways we watershed residents can protect the diverse collection of plants and animals with whom we share this planet Earth.

Janet Strong, President, Chehalis River Basin Land Trust

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Do's and Don'ts Around the Home

by Robert Goo

So what can you do to help protect surface and ground waters from so-called nonpoint-source pollution? You can start at home. Begin by taking a close look at practices around your house that might be contributing to polluted runoff: You may need to make some changes. The following are some specific tips to act on--do's and don'ts to help you become part of the solution rather than part of the problem of nonpoint-source pollution.

Water Conservation

Homeowners can significantly reduce the volume of wastewater discharged to home septic systems and sewage treatment plants by conserving water. If you have a septic system, by decreasing your water usage, you can help prevent your system from overloading and contaminating ground water and surface water. (Seventy-five percent of drainfield failures are due to hydraulic overloading.)

Use low-flow faucets, shower heads, reduced-flow toilet flushing equipment, and water saving appliances such as dish and clothes washers. (See table on water savings possible with conservation devices.)

Repair leaking faucets, toilets, and pumps.

Use dishwashers and clothes washers only when fully loaded.

Take short showers instead of baths and avoid letting faucets run unnecessarily.

Wash your car only when necessary; use a bucket to save water. Alternatively, go to a commercial carwash that uses water efficiently and disposes of runoff properly.

Do not over-water your lawn or garden. Over-watering may increase leaching of fertilizers to ground water.

When your lawn or garden needs watering, use slow-watering techniques such as trickle irrigation or soaker hoses. (Such devices reduce runoff and are 20-percent more effective than sprinklers.)

For more information on how you can help, contact your

State Water Quality Coordinator or Local Cooperative Extension Officer, or the CRC.

(Last in a series of 5, taken from an EPA Journal article, November/December 1991,EPA-22K-1005)

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How Healthy are Washington's Waters?

OLYMPIA, WA -- Washington residents who want to know whether fishing ponds or swimming holes in their area of the state are healthy may want to refer to a recent report the Washington Department of Ecology issued -- "1998 Washington State Water Quality Assessment." The report describes the quality of Washington's lakes, streams and estuaries.

"The report is the most comprehensive water quality assessment we do. One of the questions we are most commonly asked is whether area lakes or rivers are safe for fishing or swimming, and this report contains the best information that is available to help answer those questions," said Megan White, manager of Ecology's Water Quality Program. "The information in the report is not currently focused at reporting trends, however we are hoping to provide such information in the future. We can most definitely say that the primary sources of pollution may surprise you. It's not coming from industries or municipalities -- it's coming from activities many of us do every day."

The majority of Washington state's water pollution problems come from what's called nonpoint source pollution. That's pollution that comes from many diffuse sources -- stormwater runoff, agricultural and forestry practices, urban and suburban land development and failing septic tanks.

In all, Ecology assessed 98 percent of the streams, all of the estuaries and 99 percent of the lakes in Washington. The assessment found that 41 percent of the streams are healthy, 35 percent of marine waters are healthy and 65 percent of the lakes are healthy. The waters were assessed on how well they supported uses that the public expects such as aquatic life, swimming, boating and aesthetic enjoyment.

Fecal coliform bacteria are the primary pollution problem harming streams and marine waters. Fecal coliform may enter waters from dairy farms that are not properly managing their dairy waste, failing septic systems, pet waste and stormwater. It's an indicator that other pathogens may be present in the water, pathogens that when ingested may make people very sick.

Excessive nutrients are the primary problem in Washington's lakes. Excessive nutrients come from sources such as irrigated agriculture, gardening practices and urban and suburban property development. The nutrients cause algae and other aquatic plants to grow in lakes, which rob the aquatic life of the oxygen necessary for survival. In addition, algae and aquatic plants can make lakes unsafe for swimming and boating and cause a lake's aesthetic value to decline.

The leading sources of water pollution include some agricultural practices, urban development and failing septic systems. Statewide, pollution from agricultural practices accounts for 33 percent of water pollution problems. In streams not supporting beneficial uses of water, pollution from agricultural practice accounts for 57 percent of the problem.

"The water pollution problems we are seeing have a direct correlation to our state's declining salmon population. Poor water quality is part of the equation resulting in threatened and endangered salmon and steelhead," said White. "While this report is merely a snapshot of current water-quality conditions and does not indicate whether the water bodies are getting better or worse, we know that many lakes and streams currently are not healthy enough to support salmon and steelhead. That's a real barrier to recovering the stocks."

As part of Ecology's environmental agenda, the agency will be working to improve its relationship with the agricultural industry and work collaboratively to prevent and reduce pollution. Ecology will focus on improvements to the state's dairy waste management program, and conduct three pilot projects to provide on-the-ground technical assistance to help reduce contamination from agricultural lands to water:

Improving management of agricultural runoff in the Yakima River Basin; Working with hobby farmers in the Snohomish River Basin to stop manure from running off into nearby streams; and Reducing pollution from non-dairy livestock operations in the upper Chehalis River basin.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) uses Washington state's report along with reports from other states to provide the U.S. Congress with a national report depicting water quality. Ecology will provide its next Water Quality Assessment Report to EPA by April 2000.

Editors' Note: For specific water quality assessment information for your area, contact Steve Butkus, (360) 407-6482, or Mary Getchell, (360) 407-6157.

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Protecting Coastal Waters from Nonpoint Source Pollution

Coastal waters provide homes for an amazing array of plants and animals and are recreational havens for more than 180 million visitors each year. Yet, high levels of pollution prevented people from swimming safely at coastal beaches on more than 12,000 occasions from 1988 through 1994, and the latest National Water Quality Inventory reports that one-third of surveyed estuaries (areas near the coast where seawater and freshwater mixing occurs) are damaged. Rapidly increasing population growth and development in coastal regions could be a source of even more coastal water quality problems in the future.

A significant portion of the threats to coastal waters are caused by nonpoint source pollution (NPS). Major sources in coastal waters include agriculture and urban runoff. Other significant sources include faulty septic systems, forestry, marinas and recreational boating, physical changes to stream channels, and habitat degradation, especially the destruction of wetlands and vegetated areas near streams.

In 1990, Congress passed the Coastal Zone Act Reauthorization Amendments (CZARA) to tackle the nonpoint source pollution problem in coastal waters. Section 6217 of CZARA requires the 29 states and territories with approved Coastal Zone Management Programs to develop Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control Programs. In its program, a state or territory describes how it will implement nonpoint source pollution controls, known as management measures, that conform with those described in Guidance Specifying Management Measures for Sources of Nonpoint Pollution in Coastal Waters.

If these original management measures fail to produce the necessary coastal water quality improvements, a state or territory then must implement additional management measures to address remaining water quality problems. Approved programs will update and expand upon NPS Management Programs developed under section 319 of the Clean Water Act and Coastal Zone Management Programs developed under section 306 of the Coastal Zone Management Act.

The coastal nonpoint program strengthens the links between federal and state/territory coastal zone management and water quality programs in order to enhance efforts to manage land management activities that degrade coastal waters and coastal habitats. State and territorial coastal zone agencies and water quality agencies have coequal roles, as do the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) at the federal level.

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Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control Programs

In 1995, coastal states and territories submitted their coastal nonpoint programs to EPA and NOAA for review and approval. States and territories are scheduled to implement the first phase of their approved program by 2004 and, if necessary, the second phase by 2009. Approved programs include several key elements, described below.

Boundary. The boundary defines the region where land and water uses have a significant impact on a state's or territory's coastal waters. It also includes areas where future land uses reasonably can be expected to impair coastal waters. To define the boundary, a state or territory may choose a region suggested by NOAA or may propose its own boundary based on geologic, hydrologic, and other scientific data.

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Management Measures.

The state or territory coastal nonpoint program describes how a state or territory plans to control NPS pollution within the boundary. To help states and territories identify appropriate technologies and tools, EPA issued Guidance Specifying Management Measures for Sources of Nonpoint Pollution in Coastal Waters. This technical guidance describes the best available, economically achievable approaches used to control NPS pollution from the major categories of land management activities that can degrade coastal water quality. States or territories may elect to implement alternative measurement measures as long as the alternative measures will achieve the same environmental results as those described in the guidance.

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Enforceable Policies and Mechanisms.

States and territories need to ensure the implementation of the management measures. Mechanisms may include, for example, permit programs, zoning, bad actor laws, enforceable water quality standards, and general environmental laws and prohibitions. States and territories may also use voluntary approaches like economic incentives if they are backed by appropriate regulations.

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Final Approval and Conditional Approval

In certain circumstances, NOAA and EPA may grant a program conditional approval for up to 5 years. Conditional approval provides a state or territory additional time to fully develop its management program while it begins initial program implementation. Conditional approval would include benchmarks for progress toward eventual full program development and approval.

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Managing Nonpoint Source Pollution from Agriculture

The United States has over 330 million acres of agricultural land that produce an abundant supply of low-cost, nutritious food and other products. American agriculture is noted worldwide for its high productivity, quality, and efficiency in delivering goods to the consumer. However, when improperly managed, agricultural activities can affect water quality.

The most recent National Water Quality Inventory reports that agricultural nonpoint source (NPS) pollution is the leading source of water quality impacts to surveyed rivers and lakes, the third largest source of impairments to surveyed estuaries, and also a major contributor to ground water contamination and wetlands degradation.

Agricultural activities that cause NPS pollution include confined animal facilities, grazing, plowing, pesticide spraying, irrigation, fertilizing, planting, and harvesting. The major agricultural NPS pollutants that result from these activities are sediment, nutrients, pathogens, pesticides, and salts. Agricultural activities also can damage habitat and stream channels. Agricultural impacts on surface water and ground water can be minimized by properly managing activities that can cause NPS pollution.

Numerous government programs are available to help people design and pay for management approaches to prevent and control NPS pollution. For example, over 40 percent of section 319 Clean Water Act grants were used to control agricultural NPS pollution. Also, several U.S. Department of Agriculture and state-funded programs provide cost-share, technical assistance, and economic incentives to implement NPS pollution management practices. Many people use their own resources to adopt technologies and practices to limit water quality impacts caused by agricultural activities.

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Managing Sedimentation.

Sedimentation occurs when wind or water runoff carries soil particles from an area, such as a farm field, and transports them to a water body, such as a stream or lake. Excessive sedimentation clouds the water, which reduces the amount of sunlight reaching aquatic plants; covers fish spawning areas and food supplies; and clogs the gills of fish. In addition, other pollutants like phosphorus, pathogens, and heavy metals are often attached to the soil particles and wind up in the water bodies with the sediment. Farmers and ranchers can reduce erosion and sedimentation by 20 to 90 percent by applying management measures to control the volume and flow rate of runoff water, keep the soil in place, and reduce soil transport.

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Managing Nutrients.

Nutrients such as phosphorus, nitrogen, and potassium in the form of fertilizers, manure, sludge, irrigation water, legumes, and crop residues are applied to enhance production. When they are applied in excess of plant needs, nutrients can wash into aquatic ecosystems where they can cause excessive plant growth, which reduces swimming and boating opportunities, creates a foul taste and odor in drinking water, and kills fish. In drinking water, high concentrations of nitrate can cause methemoglobinemia, a potentially fatal disease in infants also known as blue baby syndrome. Farmers can implement nutrient management plans which help maintain high yields and save money on the use of fertilizers while reducing NPS pollution.

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Managing Confined Animal Facilities.

By confining animals to areas or lots, farmers and ranchers can efficiently feed and maintain livestock. But these confined areas become major sources of animal waste. Runoff from poorly managed facilities can carry pathogens (bacteria and viruses), nutrients, and oxygen-demanding substances that contaminate shellfishing areas and other major water quality problems. Ground water can also be contaminated by seepage. Discharges can be limited by storing and managing facility wastewater and runoff with an appropriate waste management system.

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Managing Irrigation.

Irrigation water is applied to supplement natural precipitation or to protect crops against freezing or wilting. Inefficient irrigation can cause water quality problems. In arid areas, for example, where rainwater does not carry residues deep into the soil, excessive irrigation can concentrate pesticides, nutrients, disease-carrying microorganisms, and salts-all of which impact water quality-in the top layer of soil. Farmers can reduce NPS pollution from irrigation by improving water use efficiency. Actual crop needs can be measured with a variety of equipment.

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Managing Pesticides.

Pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides are used to kill pests and control the growth of weeds and fungus. These chemicals can enter and contaminate water through direct application, runoff, wind transport, and atmospheric deposition. They can kill fish and wildlife, poison food sources, and destroy the habitat that animals use for protective cover. To reduce NPS contamination from pesticides, people can apply Integrated Pest Management (IPM) techniques based on the specific soils, climate, pest history, and crop for a particular field. IPM helps limit pesticide use and manages necessary applications to minimize pesticide movement from the field.

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Managing Livestock Grazing.

Overgrazing exposes soils, increases erosion, encourages invasion by undesirable plants, destroys fish habitat, and reduces the filtration of sediment necessary for building streambanks, wet meadows, and floodplains. To reduce the impacts of grazing on water quality, farmers and ranchers can adjust grazing intensity, keep livestock out of sensitive areas, provide alternative sources of water and shade, and revegetate rangeland and pastureland.

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10 Top Facts about Estuaries

1: An estuary is a body of water partly surrounded by land where fresh water from rivers and streams runs into and mixes with salt water from the ocean. Estuary is another name for bay, sound, inlet, harbor, lagoon -- what's important is the mixing of fresh and salt water.

2: Estuaries are among the most productive natural systems on earth due to the mixing of nutrients from land and sea, producing more food per acre than the richest Midwestern farmland.

3: There are 102 estuaries in the U.S. according to the EPA. Of these, 28 have been designated by their states and the federal government to be of national importance.

4: Our coastal regions today are the home for 110 million people -- a number that is expected to increase to 127 million by the year 2010.

5: People love estuaries for their beauty and for fishing, swimming, boating, diving, wildlife viewing, hunting, learning, and working. In 1993, over 180 million Americans visited estuaries -- about 70 percent of the entire U.S. population.

6: Estuaries have many different types of habitats, vital to many important species of plants, fish, and other wildlife. Habitat -- one could also say 'home' -- includes shellfish beds, sea grass meadows, salt and fresh marshes, forested wetlands, beaches, river deltas, and rocky shores.

7: Estuaries and coastal waters provide essential habitat for over 75 percent of the commercial fish catch and 80-90 percent of the recreational catch of fish.

8: Fishing, tourism and recreational boating -- which depend on healthy and productive estuaries -- provide more than 28 million jobs for our nation. Commercial and sport fishing alone contribute $111 billion yearly to the nation's economy.

9: There's a lot we don't know yet about estuaries, like exactly how many acres of estuary habitats have been and continue to be destroyed. We do know that the level of habitat loss in some of our nation's most important estuaries is approaching 80 to 95 percent.

10: We can save estuaries and their habitats!

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National Estuary Program: An Overview

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What is an Estuary?

An estuary is a coastal area where fresh water from rivers and streams mixes with salt

water from the ocean. Many bays, sounds, and lagoons along coasts are estuaries. Portions of rivers and streams connected to estuaries are also considered part of the estuary. The land area from which fresh water drains into the estuary is its watershed.

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Why are Estuaries Significant?

Estuaries are significant to both marine life and people. They are critical for the survival of fish, birds, and other wildlife because they provide safe spawning grounds and nurseries. Marshes and other vegetation in the estuaries protect marine life and water quality by filtering sediment and pollution. They also provide barriers against damaging storm waves and floods.

Estuaries also have economic, recreational, and aesthetic value. People love water sports and visit estuaries to boat, fish, swim, and just enjoy their beauty. As a result, the economy of many coastal areas is based primarily on the natural beauty and bounty of their estuaries. Estuaries often have ports serving shipping, transportation, and industry. Healthy estuaries support profitable, commercial fisheries. In fact, almost 31 percent of the Gross National Product (GNP) is produced in coastal counties. This relationship between plants, animals, and humans makes up an estuary's ecosystem. When its components are in balance, plant and animal life flourishes.

Because of our love of the water, almost half of the United States population now lives in coastal areas, including shores of estuaries. In addition, coastal counties are growing three times faster than anywhere else. Unfortunately, this increasing concentration of people upsets the balance of ecosystems. People need housing services, and roads, so new industry and businesses arrive to provide them. When severe, such stresses have forced government authorities to close beaches and shellfish beds and issue warnings about eating fish. In addition, removing grass and trees for development can cause soil erosion and reduce natural habitat, which contributes to the threat of extinction of endangered wildlife.

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How Are We Protecting Estuaries?

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How Does the National Estuary Program Work?

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Want more information?

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Watershed Wish List for 1998

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Youth Corner Win a Large Watershed Poster!

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