Usgs

Lower Elwha Klallam, USGS, Sea Grant: More forage fish seen at Elwha River mouth

The Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and Washington Sea Grant are observing an increase of forage fish and Dungeness crab near the mouth of the Elwha River since the river’s two dams have been demolished.

Divers have noted continuous sand deposits in the Elwha nearshore, covering formerly cobble-dominated sub-tidal areas. This has resulted in the habitat shifting from a rocky bottom and kelp-dominated habitat to a soft-bottomed habitat suitable for clams, crabs, and other species.

“We first documented sand lance near the mouth of the river in 2012 after the dams started to come down in 2011,” said Matt Beirne, the tribe’s environmental coordinator and diver. Juvenile crab were also first seen in the new sand habitat just off the river mouth in 2013 during a dive survey.

(more…)

Continue ReadingLower Elwha Klallam, USGS, Sea Grant: More forage fish seen at Elwha River mouth

Skokomish Tribe, USGS map seafloor topography and habitats of Skokomish estuary

If the waters of Hood Canal were drained from the Skokomish delta today, the exposed seafloor would show a complex network of channels within the delta that leads to steep ridges on the bottom of Hood Canal.

The Skokomish Tribe is working with U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to map the topography, morphology and habitats of the delta and the tribe’s 1,000-acre estuary in southern Hood Canal.

The goal is three-fold: to determine the amount and condition of existing nearshore habitats; to better understand how the river’s sediment transports to the delta; and how sediment movement effects ecosystems, including eelgrass, tidal flats and food resources for salmon. (more…)

Continue ReadingSkokomish Tribe, USGS map seafloor topography and habitats of Skokomish estuary

AP: Tribes combine science, canoes for water quality

The Associated Press had the following story about the Tribal Canoe Journey:

TSAWWASSEN, British Columbia — Pushing off one morning from a beach riddled with dead eelgrass, skipper Larry Nahanee plunked a scientific probe into the water and steered the hand-carved cedar canoe toward the next landing.

His ancestors, the Coast Salish Indians, had paddled the same waters to Washington for hundreds of years before him, using canoes as spiritual vessels.

This summer, as dozens of Northwest tribes make the same journey, their canoes will tow U.S. Geological Survey equipment to measure the health and quality of the water. (more…)

Continue ReadingAP: Tribes combine science, canoes for water quality

Tribes to gather water quality info during Canoe Journey for second year

Tribal canoes are participating in a water quality study in partnership with the USGS for a second year. Five canoes will tow water quality probes during the annual Tribal Canoe Journey, which culminates at Suquamish Aug. 3-8.

The Daily Herald:

To learn about what happens on and in the water, one of the best places to be is in the belly of a canoe — about a foot away from the surface, moving more slowly than most other vessels. That’s why federal scientists have asked tribal canoeists, for the second year in a row, to help them find out more about the health of the water in the Puget Sound region. (more…)

Continue ReadingTribes to gather water quality info during Canoe Journey for second year