Currently there are a number of organizations involved in some form of monitoring in the lower Columbia River and estuary and its tributaries. The Estuary Partnership is a member of the estuary subgroup of the Pacific Northwest Aquatic Monitoring Partnership (PNAMP) which provides a forum to coordinate aquatic habitat and salmon monitoring programs. As a part of PNAMP, a monitoring inventory is being completed to improve data sharing and help identify other entities involved in aquatic monitoring. This inventory is helping the Estuary Partnership identify existing monitoring data and efforts so that data gaps and coordination opportunities can be identified. The work of other groups is providing important baseline data and in some cases directly addressing elements of the Estuary Partnership's Monitoring Strategy.
The following is a brief overview of some of the work done by these organizations and links for more information.
US Geological Survey
US Environmental Protection Agency
US Army Corps of Engineers
Oregon Department of Environmental Quality
Washington Department of Ecology
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/Northwest Fisheries Science Center
Center for Coastal Margin Observation and Prediction (CMOP)
US Geological Survey (USGS)
The US Geological Survey through their National Stream Quality Accounting Network (NASQAN) program currently maintains one ambient water quality sampling site on the Columbia River at the Beaver Army Terminal and one site on the Willamette River through there National Water Quality Assessment Program. These sites have provided most of the data for long term trend analysis for the lower Columbia River and estuary. Visit the USGS website at http://www.usgs.gov/
US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
EPA is currently conducting a temperature study of the Columbia River above Bonneville Dam. Using historic temperature data, EPA is developing a model for predicting water temperature and will attempt to answer questions regarding what causes elevated mainstem water temperatures and what management actions might be taken to reduce them. The results, however, may help address current temperature problems in the lower river. For more information log onto http://yosemite.epa.gov/r10/ecocomm.nsf/Columbia/Columbia
In 1999 and again in 2000, the EPA Coastal Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program (CEMAP) conducted an extensive sampling project on the lower Columbia River. In 1999, 27 random sites were sampled in the back waters of the lower river. In 2000, 50 additional random sites were sampled on the mainstem Columbia River from the mouth to Bonneville Dam. In addition to basic water quality parameters, sediments and tissue analyses were performed for toxic contaminants. For more information see the EPA CEMAP Web Site .
EPA's Columbia River Basin Web Site details EPA's designation of the Columbia River as a Great Water Body in their 2006-2011 Strategic Plan and provides a wide range of Columbia River information. EPA is also spearheading the Columbia River Toxics Reduction Strategy Group which aims to prevent and reduce toxics concentrations and loads in the Columbia River. The group consists of members from various state, federal, tribal and non-profit organizations interested in reducing toxics in the mainstem Columbia as well as its major tributaries.
US Army Corps of Engineers (Corps)
The Corps conducts routine monitoring for temperature and total dissolved gas at 11 sites in the lower Columbia River and estuary. This effort provides long-term information on two parameters that are of particular concern because of non-compliance with water quality standards and the probable negative impacts on migrating salmonids. The Corps, because of its responsibilities for channel maintenance, dredging, and deepening, also conducts sediment sampling for toxic contaminants. This information provides background data on toxic contaminants in the sediments of the navigation channel. Visit the Corps of Engineers website at http://www.nwp.usace.army.mil/home.asp
Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ)
ODEQ maintains sites on the lower Columbia River and its tributaries, which are monitored on a monthly or quarterly basis. DEQ is required under the Clean Water Act to complete Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDL) for water quality limited water bodies. TMDLs are being developed statewide and address declining water quality and protection of beneficial uses, such as salmon and steelhead populations. DEQ supports monitoring efforts on the lower Columbia River which address water quality assessment and the protection of beneficial uses. Please visit the DEQ website at http://www.deq.state.or.us/ .
Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology)
The Washington Department of Ecology maintains ambient monitoring sites on major tributaries on the Washington side of the upper and lower Columbia River, but no sites on the mainstem. Like DEQ, Ecology must meet statewide TMDL requirements and address declining salmon and steelhead populations and their monitoring on the lower Columbia River helps the egency meet these needs. . Ecology supports monitoring efforts on the lower Columbia River which help the agency meet its needs regarding these two issues. Visit the Ecology website at http://www.ecy.wa.gov/
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NOAA)
NOAA is currently conducting several salmon-related studies in the lower Columbia River and estuary. Please visit the Northwest Fisheries Science Center for more information on current and historic studies in the estuary. http://www.nwfsc.noaa.gov/
Center for Coastal Margin Observation and Prediction (CMOP)
CMOP maintains a river-to-shelf collaboratory called SATURN, Science and Technology University Research Network. SATURN uses an integration of networked sensors, platforms, models, data, and analyses to understand the structure and function of the Columbia River system. The SATURN Observation Network provides an interactive map with links to physical and biogeochemical data from endurance stations in the Columbia River and near ocean plume. The Virtual Columbia River provides simulation tools of the circulation processes including; daily forecasts, a climatological atlas, and a decade-scale retrospective simulation database maintains a series of continuous monitoring stations for temperature, salinity, and conductivity in the estuary. Visit the CMOP website at http://www.stccmop.org/