Drops
Of
Water
Issue 32 July 1999
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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Welcome
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Issue 32 July 1999 |
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 Drops of Water 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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News from the Chehalis River Council
At the May meeting of the CRC Board, Mr. Rob Schanz was appointed as a new member of the Board of Trustees.
Mr. Schanz, and his family are residents of the Rainbow Falls area. He graduated from the University of Virginia and the University of Washington, with a BA in Environmental Science and an MS in Civil Engineering. Mr. Schanz has worked as a consulting hydrologist and environmental activist for nearly 15 years, focusing in the last decade on projects related to river and wetland restoration. Since moving to Lewis County he has been actively involved with the Chehalis River Council and other groups in Volunteer Monitoring, environmental education, and Growth Management issues.
Westport resident and treasurer Brady Engvall stated that: "Rob adds to the board the technical skills, experience and eagerness that every conservation group seeks!"
Grant Awarded:
One of the many services provided by the CRC is the monthly newsletter Drops of Water. This newsletter reaches 45,000 readers in the watershed every month and has been supported by numerous organizations. Mr. David Kenney, Western Planning and Operations Forester, for the Hancock Timber Resources Group, told the board that the CRC has selected as a recipient of a corporate grant for Drops of Water.
According to Chehalis resident and CRC fund raiser Dave Spogen, "this is a very significant breakthrough for the CRC and we appreciate the confidence that Hancock Timber has in this organization and our Drops of Water".
The CRC also learned that the Washington State Employee Combined Fund Drive has recognized the CRC as an organization eligible to participate in the annual Combined Fund Drive. According to Onalaska resident and Vice Chairman Merrily Knutsen "this provides a state employees yet another choice in the way in which their charitable contributions are spent".
FEMA's Property Acquisition Handbook for Local Communities (FEMA 317) is a "how to" guide to help communities work through one specific hazard mitigation alternative known as property acquisition (also referred to as "buyout").
The Handbook contains four parts, representing the four phases of the property acquisition process. In addition, we included a Glossary, List of Acronyms, and an Index.
Phase I To Buy or Not to Buy, enables communities to determine if property acquisition is the most viable mitigation alternative for them before they invest too much time and too many resources.
Phase II Application, enables communities to complete and submit applications that are right the first time, precluding the need for revision cycles that can slow the process.
Phase III Implementation, leads communities through the actual acquisition of property and administration of FEMA funds precluding the need for revision cycles that can slow the process.
Phase IV Open Space Management, helps communities use and maintain acquired properties as open space in ways that make sense for them.
The Toolkit contains tools and forms to aid the process. The Toolkit is divided into two parts:
Part 1 Tools, includes checklists, examples, fact sheets, briefing notes, etc. These tools are designed to provide information succinctly and simply, illustrate a point, or ease the workload. They are numbered sequentially, according to the phase where they are first mentioned and referenced in the margin of the Handbook (e.g., Tool I-3).
Part 2 Reproducible Forms. These are templates to use "as is" or customize to the State's or community's specifications. They also are numbered sequentially, according to the phase where they are first mentioned in the Handbook (e.g., Form I-5).
Printed copies are available to States and Local communities. Email orders to: marilyn.maccabe@fema.gov
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Here are a few commonly used water related words
acre-foot (pl. acre-feet) aka AF, a-f The volume of water necessary to cover one acre to a depth of one foot. Equal to 43,560 cubic feet or 325,851 gallons or 1,233 cubic meters.
aquifer One or more geologic formations containing sufficient saturated porous and permeable material to transmit water at a rate sufficient to feed a spring or for economic extraction by a well. Combination of two Latin words, aqua or water, and ferre, to bring; literally, something that brings water.
artificial recharge The deliberate act of adding water to a groundwater aquifer by means of a recharge project; also, the water so added. Artificial recharge can be accomplished via injection wells, spreading basins, or instream projects. See also incidental recharge, natural recharge, recharge.
base flow Streamflow derived from groundwater seepage into the stream.
beneficial use A use of water, such as domestic, municipal, agricultural, mining, stock watering, recreation, wildlife, or power generation, that provides a benefit. capillary fringe The unsaturated zone immediately above the water table containing water in direct contact with the water table.
CD Conservation District. There is one in each Washington County
consumptive use A use that makes water unavailable for other uses, usually by permanently removing it from local surface or groundwater storage as the result of evaporation and/or transpiration. Does not include evaporative losses from bodies of water. See non-consumptive use
contaminant plume A zone of polluted groundwater down-gradient from a point source of pollution.
discharge The volume of water (and suspended sediment if surface water) that passes a given location within a given period of time.
DNR Wa. Dept. of Natural Resources
DNS A Determination of Non-Significance. This is a decision made by a lead agency that an activity for a which a SEPA checklist was submitted, will have no significant environmental impact.
DOE In this state (Wa) DOE generally refers to the Wa. Dept. of Ecology. Nationally it is used to refer to U.S. Dept. of Energy.
DOH Wa. Dept of Health
effluent Treated wastewater discharged from sewage treatment plants. See tertiary treatment.
EIS Environmental Impact Statement
evaporation The process of liquid water becoming water vapor, including vaporization from water surfaces, land surfaces, and snow fields, but not from leaf surfaces. compare with transpiration
evapotranspiration The sum of evaporation and transpiration.
gaging station A site on a stream, lake, reservoir or other body of water where direct systematic observations of hydrologic data are obtained.
groundwater Subsurface water body in the zone of saturation, OR (more commonly, available groundwater is defined as:) That portion of the water beneath the surface of the earth that can be collected with wells, tunnels, or drainage galleries, or that flows naturally to the earth's surface via seeps or springs.
hydrologic cycle The cyclic transfer of water vapor from the earth's surface via evapotranspiration into the atmosphere, from the atmosphere via precipitation back to earth, and through runoff into bodies of water.
incidental recharge Water incidentally added to a groundwater aquifer due to human activities, such as excess irrigation water applied to fields or water discharged as waste after a use. See also recharge, artificial recharge, natural recharge.
natural recharge Naturally occurring water added to an aquifer. Natural recharge generally comes from snowmelt and storm runoff. See also recharge, artificial recharge, incidental recharge.
non-consumptive use A use that leaves the water available for other uses. Examples are power generation and recreational uses. See consumptive use.
non-point source A source of water pollution that originates from a broad area, such as agricultural chemicals applied to fields or acid rain. See point source.
pH A measure of the relative acidity or alkalinity of water. Defined as the negative log (base 10) of the hydrogen ion concentration. Water with a pH of 7 is neutral; lower pH levels indicate increasing acidity, while pH levels above 7 indicate increasingly basic solutions.
phreatophyte A plant whose roots generally extend downward to the water table which customarily feeds on the capillary fringe. Phreatophytes are common in riparian habitats. Term literally means water-loving plants.
Primary treatment Is a physical process in which the sewage flow is slowed down in settling tanks or lagoons. The thicker part of the wastewater -- the sludge -- is then removed from the bottom and disposed of in a variety of ways. Floatable solids, oil and grease are usually skimmed off the surface before the remaining effluent is discharged into a waterbody.
point source A source of water pollution that originates from a single point, such as an outflow pipe from a factory. See non-point source.
potable wate r Water of a quality suitable for drinking.
recharge To add water to an aquifer; also, the water added to an aquifer. See also artificial recharge, incidental recharge, natural recharge.
riparian habitat Natural home for plants and animals occurring in a thin strip of land bordering a stream or river. Dominant vegetation often consists of phreatophytes.
riparian Of, or pertaining to, rivers and their banks.
Secondary treatmen t Also known as biological treatment, further reduces the amount of solids by helping bacteria and other microorganisms consume the organic material in the sewage. Oxygen is critical to this treatment stage. Air activated sludge and biological filters are two of many methods of secondary treatment.
streamflow The discharge that occurs in a natural channel. A more general term than runoff, streamflow may be applied to discharge whether or not it is affected by diversion or regulation.
SEPA State Environmental Policy Act, the name of an Act , in Washington, which is designed to protect the natural resources of the state. SEPA checklists are completed by an applicant and reviewed by a lead agency. If there is a significant environmental impact an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) will be required.See DNS.
tertiary treatment Postsecondary treatment of water designed to improve the quality of the water to the point where it can be put to a particular beneficial use.
TMDL Total Maximum Daily Load. A study or, or report of, the pollution loading of a body of water. Serves to identify the sources and the maximum discharges allowed if the waterbody is to meet legal requirements for beneficial uses.
transpiration The vaporization of water given off by plants. See also evaporation and evapotranspiration
Trichloroethylene Also known as TCE, an industrial solvent and suspected human carcinogen commonly found as a pollutant in urban groundwater.
WaDOE Washington State Dept. of Ecology
water quality The physical, chemical and biological characteristics of water and how they relate to its suitability for a particular use.
watershed That surface area which drains to a specified point on a water course, usually a confluence of streams or rivers.
water table The upper boundary of a free groundwater body, at atmospheric pressure.
wetland Land with a wet, spongy soil, where the water table is at or above the land surface for at least part of the year.
For more definitions, check out the Chehalis River Council web page at http://www.crcwater/org
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Did you like the furry harp seal in the June issue? I did too.
I have since learned that harp seals have absolutely nothing to do with Pacific Salmon. Please don't blame the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for my error.
Dave Palmer, CRC
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Rob Schanz, Chehalis River Council
The following is the third in a series of lessons developed by the Chehalis River Council to educate students and the general public about measuring water quality.
This curriculum was funded through a grant from the U.S. EPA, and is part of a program run through the Onalaska School District for students throughout Lewis County. Other lessons include:
- Quality Assurance/Quality Control
- Data Interpretation
These are all available on the internet at www.crcwater.org/onalaska.
INTRODUCTION
A sampling plan is a report that describes how you are going to measure water quality. A good sampling plan will help ensure that your measurements answer the right questions, and communicates to other people what you are trying to accomplish. Most sampling plans include the following report sections:
- 1. Project Goals
- 2. Parameters to be Measured
- 3. Sampling Locations
- 4. Sampling Timing and Frequency
- 5. Methods
PROJECT GOALS
A clear understanding of project goals is crucial to developing a succesful monitoring program. The project goals define what kinds of questions you are trying to answer, and help you decide what methods to use. The following are some typical goals for different types of water quality studies:
Educational Monitoring : The primary goal of these studies is to educate students and volunteers about water quality issues and water quality monitoring. The data may not be used for detailed scientific studies, but can help identify gross water quality problems.
Water Quality Assessments : The goal of these studies is to assess how well a river is meeting water quality standards. The first water quality study of a river is often a screening-level assessment , in which approximate methods are used to get a quick assessment of water quality problems. This is then followed by a comprehensive study , in which more samples are taken and analyzed to a higher level of accuracy.
Permitting Studies : These types of studies focus on a specific source of pollution, such as a wastewater treatment plant, city stormdrain system, or dairy farm. They are usually initiated so that the discharger can get a permit from the Department of Ecology or U.S. EPA. The goals of permitting studies are to assess how much impact the pollutant source is having on the river, and to determine how clean the discharged water needs to be if the river is to meet water quality standards.
Wasteload Allocation Studies : These are similar to permitting studies, except that they include all potential sources of pollution within a watershed. The goal of these studies is to determine how much pollution the river can handle, and to allocate how much pollution each type of source is allowed to discharge. The amount of pollution discharged is defined as a wasteload , expressed in pounds of pollutant per day.
Habitat Studies : The goal of a habitat study is to determine how well a river is functioning as habitat for wildlife, fish, and other aquatic organisms. Water chemistry testing may be a part of a habitat study, but these studies also include biologic indices and measurements of the river's physical structure (sediments, channel shape, woody-debris).
PARAMETERS TO BE MEASURED
The goals of your study will help you decide what kinds of physical, chemical, and biologic parameters you will measure. The sampling plan should describe these parameters, and give your reasons for selecting them.
All studies have budget limitations, and you can't measure everything. The trick is to develop a practical list of parameters that is affordable and meets your project goals. This isn't always easy, especially when you don't have a clear idea of what types of water quality problems are present. The first step is therefore to inventory what is already known about local water quality problems and sources of pollution. If you are analyzing the impacts of a sewage treatment plant, you would look at pollutants found in sewage (coliform bacteria, ammonia, BOD, metals). If people have observed algae blooms and dead fish, your study would focus on dissolved oxygen, temperature, nitrates, and phosphates. A sampling program located near an oil refinery might look at petroleum byproducts and metals.
SAMPLING LOCATIONS
The sampling plan should describe the locations where you will measure water quality. Sampling locations should be described in enough detail so they can be found in future studies.
Sampling locations are often identified in terms of river miles , defined as the number of miles you are upstream from the mouth of the river. You should also describe how far the location is from the nearest bridge, tributary stream, or landmark. The description should include how far you will sample from the shore, and the depth where you will sample.
Sampling locations are selected to meet the goals of your study. If you are doing a water quality assessment, locations may be evenly distributed along the length of the river (for instance, you might collect one sample every mile). If the assessment is a screening study, you would collect from fewer locations than if it were a comprehensive study.
In permitting studies you are trying to determine how much the pollutant source changes water quality. To do this you need background samples that are designed to tell you what the water quality would be if the pollutant source weren't there. Background samples are often collected upstream of the source at a location that has conditions similar to those found at the discharge point. To assess the impact of the pollutant source, you then collect samples downstream of the discharge point and compare them to the background samples.
SAMPLING TIMING AND FREQUENCY
The sampling plan should describe how often you will sample, and at what times of year. Many water quality problems change with the seasons. For instance, low dissolved oxygen levels usually occur in the summer when flows are low and temperatures are higher. Coliform bacteria from manure is more of a problem in the winter when rainstorms wash polluted runoff into rivers. Sewage treatment plants discharge year-round, and therefore can cause water quality problems in all seasons.
Water quality assessments will typically include summer dry-weather sampling, winter wet-weather sampling, and winter dry-weather sampling. Screening studies will sample less frequently than comprehensive studies. Permitting studies will focus on the months when the discharge has the most impact, but usually include monthly or weekly sampling throughout the first year.
METHODS
The sampling plan should provide a detailed description of your methods, including:
- Field Sampling Techniques
- Storage and Transportation of Samples
- Instrument Calibration
- Laboratory Methods
- Quality Control/Quality Assurance
The method should reflect your budget and the degree of accuracy needed. Educational monitoring projects usually have the lowest budgets and accuracy requirements, and may use either field test kits or calibrated instruments. Screening-level water quality assessments use calibrated instruments that can be taken in the field, supplemented by a few laboratory samples. Comprehensive water quality assesments and permitting studies require greater accuracy, and use a combination of calibrated field instruments and detailed laboratory analysis.
Quality Control and Quality Assurance are methods used to check the accuracy and precision of your data; these will be described in a later unit.
EXERCISES
Develop a brief sampling plan to solve the following hypothetical water quality problem:
The Department of Ecology wants to measure the water quality impacts of a sewage treatment plant that discharges into Trout River at River Mile 11. Cow Pasture Creek enters Trout River about 1-mile upstream of the treatment plant, and drains several large dairy farms. Trout River enters the Pacific Ocean about 11 miles downstream of the treatment plant. The plant operates all year.
Be sure to include a few sentences on each of the following elements of your sampling plan:
- 1. Project Goals
- 2. Parameters to be Measured
- 3. Sampling Locations
- 4. Sampling Timing and Frequency
- 5. Methods
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WISDOM OF A CHILD:
Never trust a dog to watch your food.
Wear a hat when you feed seagulls.
Never try to baptize a cat.
When your dad is really mad and asks you, "Do I look stupid?" don't answer him.
A pencil without an eraser may as well be a pen.
If money could talk, it would say goodbye.
JOKES:
What happened when the cow jumped over the barbed wire fence?
It was an udder catastrophe!
What does a bee use to brush her hair?
A honeycomb.
Do they have a 4th of July in England?
Of course! it's right after the 3rd of July.
I told my doctor I was having trouble getting to sleep. He told me to sit on the edge of the bed and I'd soon drop off.
Knock, knock.
Who's there?
Noah.
Noah who?
Noah more jokes, please!
Find these words in the puzzle:
| Astronomy | Moon | Rocket | Star | USSR |
| Cosmic | NASA | Saturn | Sun | Venus |
| Earth | Planet | Science | Telescope | USA |
| Mars | Pluto | Space | - | - |
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| L | C | O | S | M | I | C | A | S | T | E |
| S | P | F | U | S | E | M | R | Y | P | A |
| C | R | P | L | U | T | O | M | V | L | R |
| I | O | L | S | O | C | O | E | E | M | T |
| E | C | A | T | I | N | N | P | N | A | H |
| N | K | N | A | O | S | A | T | U | R | N |
| C | E | E | R | K | V | S | U | S | S | R |
| E | T | T | E | I | L | P | N | A | S | A |
| V | S | P | A | C | E | U | O | R | I | T |
| A | T | E | L | E | S | C | O | P | E | H |
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Chehalis Fisheries Restoration Program 1999 Projects The following is a summary of this year's scheduled fish habitat restoration and protection, monitoring, and education projects funded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Chehalis Fisheries Restoration Program. Please call Mike Kelly at 360-753-9560 (email mike_kelly@fws.gov) if you have any questions, or would like more information. Thanks.
South Fork Chehalis Stillman Creek Project Fund - COOPERATOR: Lewis Conservation District - LOCATION: The South Fork Chehalis, and all of its tributaries including Stillman Creek - DESCRIPTION: We have reserved $30,000 for projects to be identified in this upper Chehalis watershed. Please contact Mike Kelly at 360-753-9560, or Bob Amrine at 360-748-0083 x115 if you might be interested in implementing fish habitat restoration or protection practices on your property in the South Fork watershed.
Salzer and Coal Creek Riparian Planting - COOPERATOR: Lewis Conservation District - LOCATION: These creeks drain the hills just east of Centralia - DESCRIPTION: This project includes re-establishment of native riparian trees and shrubs on eight properties on the two creeks.
Middle Fork Newaukum Wetland Protection - COOPERATOR: Lewis Conservation District - LOCATION: An unnamed tributary and wetland in the Middle Fork Newaukum watershed - DESCRIPTION: We are providing cost share to assist a landowner with development of an alternative watering source for livestock that have been watering in a wetland.
Michigan Hill Road Culvert - COOPERATOR: Thurston County Roads and Transportation Services - LOCATION: An unnamed tributary to Independence Creek. - DESCRIPTION: This culvert currently blocks salmon passage to approximately one mile of spawning and rearing habitat. We are teaming with the cooperator to replace the culvert with a much larger one that will allow passage to all life stages of resident and anadromous fish.
Rock Creek Culvert and Road Decommissioning - COOPERATOR: Mason Conservation District - LOCATION: A tributary to Cloquallum Creek in Mason County. - DESCRIPTION: Simpson Timber Company is removing the culvert and decommissioning the road. Our program is providing funds to revegetate the banks and the old road surface. The overall project will reopen approximately 1/3 mile of stream, and reduce fine sediment inputs to the creek by closing and revegetating about 1/4 mile of logging road.
Decker Creek and Wetland Livestock Fencing - COOPERATOR: Mason Conservation District - LOCATION: Decker Creek in the Satsop basin. - DESCRIPTION: We are providing funds for this livestock exclusion project that includes almost a half mile of fencing that will protect approximately 40 acres of wetland and riparian area.
Chehalis and Metcalf Slough Riparian - COOPERATOR: Natural Resources Conservation Service/Ducks Unlimited - LOCATION: Lower Chehalis River Mainstem, Camp Creek, and side channels - DESCRIPTION: The property is enrolled in the Wetland Reserve Program, and will have 312 acres of wetland and riparian areas permanently set aside and for fish and wildlife habitat. We are providing almost 17,000 trees to be used in helping to replant 5.1 miles of 200 foot wide riparian zone.
Weyco-Briscoe Off-Channel Pond Monitoring - COOPERATOR: Grays Harbor College - LOCATION: The "Weyerhaeuser-Briscoe" gravel pits on the Wynoochee River - DESCRIPTION: This project is the fourth year of monitoring fish use and water quality of enhanced gravel pits on the Wynoochee River. A variety of enhancements were made to the ponds during the early to mid-1990s. The work included placement of woody cover, native terrestrial and aquatic vegetation planting, and development of a channel through which juvenile and adult salmon can access the ponds for spawning and rearing. According to a recent issue of WDNR's Washington Geology magazine, this is the only site in the state where salmon use of enhanced gravel pits has been directly monitored. Please contact Mike Kelly at 360-753-9560 if you would like copies of reports.
Water Quality Monitoring - COOPERATOR: Washington Department of Ecology - LOCATION: Various CFRP project streams in the Chehalis Basin - DESCRIPTION: This will be the sixth year of monitoring water quality associated with CFRP restoration projects and other key sites in Chehalis Basin. We are seeing water quality improvements in streams where our projects have excluded livestock and replanted streambanks. Please contact us at the number provided above if you would like copies of reports.
Drops of Water Newsletter - COOPERATOR: Chehalis River Council - LOCATION: In your local newspaper once a month - DESCRIPTION: Unless you are reading this on the Chehalis River Council's excellent web site, you hardly need me to describe what you are holding in your hands. For the web site folks:
Drops of Water is a newsletter that reaches 45,000 households in the Chehalis River Basin. It contains articles, puzzles, photos and all sorts of other great stuff that is in some way related to water in the Chehalis River Watershed. This will be our third straight year of funding for Drops of Water.
Scatter Creek Fencing - COOPERATOR: Thurston Conservation District - LOCATION: An unnamed tributary to Scatter Creek east of Tenino - DESCRIPTION: We are providing funds to help implement a livestock exclusion and riparian revegetation project that will link to a previous project just downstream.
Habitat Restoration Action through Education - COOPERATOR: Chehalis Basin Fisheries Task Force - DESCRIPTION: We are working with the Task Force and other groups to present workshops that explain how, and through what programs, citizens can help improve the health of local streams. We hope to carry out workshops in two or three watersheds over the coming year. We have done one such workshop in the South Fork Chehalis watershed. Several other groups and agencies are helping to organize and present these workshops. We hope to see you at one of them, and we'll provide dates and locations through this newsletter.
Jack Creek Culvert Removal - COOPERATOR: Chehalis Basin Fisheries Task Force, Washington Department of Natural Resources - LOCATION: Jack Creek is in the Rock Creek watershed, which drains from the Lower Chehalis State Forest in the area between Oakville and Porter. - DESCRIPTION: This project was delayed for a season in order resolve some considerations about the road under which the culvert passes. The culvert is a partial barrier to adult salmon and a complete barrier to juveniles. Above the culvert there are approximately 1200 feet of open channel and significant potential rearing habitat.
OLC 1200 Line Culvert Replacement - COOPERATOR: Washington Department of Natural Resources - LOCATION: An unnamed tributary in the Skookumchuck watershed - DESCRIPTION: This culvert currently blocks salmon passage to approximately one-half mile of spawning and rearing habitat. We are teaming with the cooperator to replace the culvert with a much larger one that will allow passage to all life stages of resident and anadromous fish.
Revegetation Maintenance - COOPERATOR: Grays Harbor Conservation District - LOCATION: Various sites in Grays Harbor County - DESCRIPTION: This project is providing monitoring, maintenance and replanting at six riparian revegetation sites that were funded by the CFRP and the Conservation District between 1993 and 1997. This is the second year of this two-year project.
Waddell Creek Tributaries Fish Passage - COOPERATOR: Agua Tierra Environmental Consulting - LOCATION: Tributaries to Waddell Creek in the Black River basin - DESCRIPTION: A total of four culverts on three tributaries to Waddell Creek will be removed and/or improved to allow passage to a total of 8800 feet of spawning and rearing habitat. One mile of dirt road will also be abandoned to help stop delivery of fine sediment to the creek. This project is undergoing engineering design, and is scheduled to take place during the summer of 1999.
Waddell Creek Tributary Dam and Culvert Passage - COOPERATOR: Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife - LOCATION: An unnamed tributary to Waddell Creek in the Black River basin - DESCRIPTION: We are working with WDFW to construct a fishway on a small private dam, and to replace a culvert on the same property that will allow passage to almost 2 miles of salmon spawning and rearing habitat.
Back to top or back to home page or back to Whats New Editors note: This month the focus is on the Satsop. Each month we will publish a watershed description from the original 1992 Chehalis River Basin Action Plan.
We are looking for serious volunteers who will help the Chehalis River Council bring this section of the report up to date. Please contact us if you are interested.
The Satsop River
Topography and Geology
The Satsop River originates on the southern slopes of the Olympic Mountains within Grays Harbor and Mason Counties. From this point, the rivers four major tributaries (the West, Middle, and East Forks and Decker Creek) flow for some 50 miles through heavily wooded hill country before joining the main stem a few miles above the community of Satsop.
The Satsop below the forks flows south through a broad flat agricultural valley with scattered areas of deciduous vegetation. The upper areas consist of moderately sloping hills forested with second growth timber. The streambed is cobbles and gravel with a low gradient. The river averages 30 to 45 yards in width and provides a blend of long pools and short riffles. Rural and farm residences are scattered throughout the valley land. Minor tributary streams include one unnamed stream, and Mitchell and Sherwood Creeks.
The mainstem flows through a lightly agricultural river valley before discharging into the Chehalis River, at river mile 20.2. The total drainage of the Satsop River system amounts to approximately 186,282 acres, (291 square miles) with 111,285 acres originating in Mason County and 74,997 acres from Grays Harbor County. The mean annual flow is 2016.3 cfs. Maximum recorded flow was 46,600 cfs in January of 1935, and minimum recorded flow was 166 cfs in September of 1938. Approximately 30% of the flow of the Chehalis River at Cosmopolis in August is from the Satsop.
Several lakes act as sources for some of the smaller creeks in the Satsop system. There are also three small reservoirs located about three miles north of the confluence of the East and West Forks.
The Middle Fork heads in the foothills of the Olympic Mountain range and flows southerly through steep valleys and canyons to its confluence with Baker Creek, then through a gradually widening valley to its confluence with the East Fork. Decker Creek flows south through broad prairie land and sloping valleys.
Most of the Middle Fork watershed is in second-growth timber production. Old growth timber is found in the foothills of the Olympics at the heads of several of the tributary streams. Small acreages of farmland are found throughout the lowlands.
The East Fork flows southwesterly from the confluence of Phillips and Stillwater Creeks to Simpson State Salmon Hatchery at mile 17.5. The river flows through a broad flat valley of mixed coniferous and deciduous trees. One major tributary, Bingham Creek, and five smaller tributaries enter the East Fork.
The West Fork Satsop River heads in the steep foothills of the Olympic Mountains and flows southerly through a narrow valley to mile 33, below here, the stream flows through a broad valley with low surrounding hills.
The majority of the West Fork 154 square mile drainage is managed under the 100-year Shelton Cooperative Sustain Yield Unit agreement between USDA Forest Service and Simpson Timber Company. Other private lands managed for forestry practices or agriculture are a small percentage.
Today, 70% of the Satsop drainage stands are less than 35 years of age. Nearly 70% of the drainage has slopes greater than 65% with high erosion and mass wasting hazards. Road densities range from 4.3 to 5.8 miles per square mile. High road densities and subbasins not yet at a stage of hydrologic recovery set the stage for high sedimentation rates and instream impacts related to peak flows. Older roads constructed using sidecast waste designs, infrequent drainage, and located on unstable mid-slopes create a high hazard for slope failure and erosion revel. Erosion and slope failures often reach a perennial watercourse.
Current forest practices on national forest lands incorporate site specific and cumulative effects analysis to reduce further impacts. A watershed improvement needs inventory has identified hundreds of sites in need of erosion control or potential sedimentation sources through mass wasting. Funding has been a limitation in addressing this watershed improvement need in total.
Beneficial Uses of Water
In December 1966, the Washington Department of Fisheries completed construction of the experimental egg incubation channel on the East Fork. In May 1971, the Department improved a natural spawning channel just above Schafer State Park, a popular recreational area, to improve potential chum spawning grounds, and cleaned the gravel to the inlet and outlet to the Satsop egg incubation channel. Simpson State Hatchery is located upstream from this section. Fish released from these projects pass through the East Fork and Satsop River.
The Middle Fork supports very large runs of all three species of salmon found in the Chehalis basin. Chinook spawning occurs in the Middle Fork, Decker Creek, and Lower Dry Run Creek. Chum spawning occurs in these same reaches and also in several of the smaller tributaries. Coho are found throughout the accessible portion of the watershed. It is estimated that some 40 miles of mainstem in the Middle Fork and Decker Creek and some 34 linear miles of tributaries to these channels are presently utilized by salmon.
The majority of the Middle Fork watershed is in timber production. The steeper slopes near the headwaters are forested with mature, old growth timber, while the lower areas are in second growth timber with scattered, cleared farmland. There have been no residential developments in the Middle Fork watershed. Swinging Bridge Park is located at mile 7.3.
The West Fork Satsop River supports a run of Chum, Chinook, and Salmon. Chum and Chinook utilize the mainstem for spawning with major Chinook spawning below mile 20.0. The river is suited for Chum and Chinook spawning to mile 33. The lower 10 miles of Canyon River and the lower 0.8 miles of Little River are also suited for these species. Coho and a limited number of Chum also spawn in all accessible tributary stream up to mile 35.5 on the West Fork Satsop River.
According to Washington Department of Fisheries 1975, the lower section of The West Fork becomes rather warm during the hot summer months with temperatures known to approach, and likely exceed 70 degrees F. Its spawning gravels contain considerable sand silt which inhibit successful incubation. Low summer flows, lack of stream bank vegetation, naturally high cut banks, and the logging of the steep slopes in headwaters all contribute to the problem which limit salmon production. A total of 562 acres have surface irrigation rights. Only one half of these are actually used.
Existing Land Use Patterns
Land ownership is broken down as follows; 33,022 acres National Forest, 23,615 acres Private, 117,010 acres Corporate, 12,011 acres State and 618 acres Municipal and County.
Present land use in the watershed includes 176,772 acres commercial forest, 2,283 acres noncommercial, 5,084 acres cropland, 280 acres pasture, 668 acres rural nonfarm, 449 acres built up lands, and 100 acres barren lands. A total of 562 acres have surface irrigation water rights.
Biological Resources
Wildlife found in the watershed include big game such as blacktailed deer, Roosevelt Elk, cougar, and black bear,: upland game, including grouse, pheasants, quail, and cottontail rabbit (mostly common to lower agricultural areas), and the fur-bearers; beaver, muskrat, raccoon, river otter, martin, weasel, and lynx.
Some of the waterfowl found in the area include ducks, and geese. There are also many other small species of animals such as various reptiles, amphibians, rodents, and song birds.
Back to top or back to home page or back to Whats New Have you ever thought about how ecosystems mightt be affected when water below ground meets up with surface water?
EPA Intern Kerianne Gardner recently prepared an issue paper that pulled together information from a variety of resources to show the ecological significance of surface water interacting with groundwater. This paper, called The Importance of Surface Water/Ground Water Interactions, is now available from EPA at 206/553-200 or 1-800-424-4EPA.
Back to top or back to home page or back to Whats New EPA recently unveiled the Watershed Information Network (WIN) .
This Internet-based tool can be used to f ind and exchange environmental infonmticn needed in activities to sustain and restore water quality. WIN can be used to provide information on how to network with others, what resources are available, how to start a watershed group, the condition of watersheds, and who is at work in watersheds.
WIN can be found at http: //ww. cleanwater. gov/win on the Internet.
A Look Back And Focus On The Satsop River
When the waters meet!
What's WIN?
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