  |
|
|
Department of Ecology News Release - September 25, 2009
09-236
OLYMPIA – Recent sediment samples the state Department of Ecology (Ecology) has collected from the bottom of central Puget Sound’s Elliott Bay show signs of improved environmental health compared to samples from identical locations nearly 10 years ago.
The findings come from a just-released Ecology study, “Urban Waters Initiative, 2007: Sediment Quality in Elliott Bay” by Valerie Partridge, Sandra Weakland, Edward Long, Kathy Welch, Margaret Dutch and Marissa Jones.
The Elliott Bay sediment data collection is a follow-up to a previous Ecology sediment study at 30 identical locations in 1998.
The new study cites reduced levels of toxic metals in the sediments such as mercury, lead and tin. It found reductions in PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) and some types of PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons). The study also found an overall reduction in toxicity of the sediment and healthier populations of tiny bottom-dwelling life known as benthic invertebrates.
In addition, scientists from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (NOAA) National Marine Fisheries Service have found that liver cancer in English sole populations in Elliott Bay has declined from more than 30 percent to less than 3 percent in the last 10 years. The decline is likely related to reduced PAHs in the sediment, said Jim West, WDFW research scientist.
“WDFW and NOAA scientists have been monitoring the health of fish in Puget Sound for 20 years now, and – although we are still finding pollutant-related health problems in these English sole – we are seeing some positive signs in Elliott Bay,” West said.
Efforts to reduce toxic chemicals in the environment are important because some chemicals persist in the environment long after they are released and build up in the food chain.
“This is one more sign things are moving in the right direction to clean up Puget Sound,” said David Dicks, executive director of the Puget Sound Partnership. “We have a consensus for action, committed partners and – most of all – we’re seeing progress in Elliott Bay and across the Sound.”
Rob Duff, manager of Ecology’s environmental assessment program, said while the changes in sediment health are small, they provide clues about whether environmental regulation, source control, or localized cleanup efforts have created bay-wide improvements.
“These are significant findings for the heart of Puget Sound, where the bulk of the state’s population lives in King, Kitsap, Pierce and Snohomish counties,” Duff said.
Elliott Bay is Puget Sound’s most highly urbanized bay. It has been burdened by more than a century of heavy industrial and shipping activities and rapid commercial and residential growth.
Contaminants reaching the bottom of Elliott Bay, and all of Puget Sound, come from air pollution, contaminated stormwater runoff, and river sediments. Industries, municipal sewage treatment plants and internal combustion engines also add contamination. While the state has made strides in curbing pollution from industrial and sewer pipes for decades, pollution from diffuse sources is harder to tackle. Such sources include pollution from people’s activities on land. Stormwater acts like a highway, picking up the contaminants and carrying them into downstream waters.
Previous Ecology studies have shown that stormwater pollution is currently the number one threat to water quality in Puget Sound. On an average day, stormwater carries thousands of pounds of toxic chemicals into Puget Sound. These toxics concentrate in urban bays and enter the food chain.
While Ecology’s study found reductions of some important contaminants associated with stormwater, others contaminants increased in Elliott Bay, including plasticizers and zinc. These chemicals are commonly found in densely populated urban areas.
The Ecology study found no significant change in levels of some metals such as arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper and nickel.
Duff said, “Healthy sediments are an indicator of overall ecosystem health. They show us what types of pollution humans are sending into our urban bays. This baseline and long-term monitoring work helps us learn if our strategies are working and what future investments we need to make to restore and protect Puget Sound.”
He added, “While some sediment contaminants are declining in Elliott Bay, other levels of contaminants have remained the same or increased despite our efforts to reduce them.”
Ecology is finalizing a similar sediment study it conducted in Commencement Bay in 2008. And it is currently examining sediment samples collected in the Bainbridge Basin (Sinclair and Dyes Inlets). The work will expand to Bellingham Bay in 2010, Budd Inlet in 2011, and to Port Gardner/Everett Harbor in 2012.
###
Media Contacts:
Department of Ecology: Sandy Howard, 360-407-6408 (desk);
360-791-3177 (cell); sandy.howard@ecy.wa.gov
Puget Sound Partnership: Paul Bergman, 360-628-2428,
paul.bergman@psp.wa.gov
For more information:
Urban Waters Initiative, 2007: Sediment Quality in
Elliott Bay www.ecy.wa.gov/biblio/0903014.html
2-page focus sheet for general public: www.ecy.wa.gov/biblio/0903043.html
4-page summary for scientists: www.ecy.wa.gov/biblio/0903031.html
Sediment Monitoring for Ecology's Urban Waters Initiative - www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/eap/psamp/UrbanWaters/urbanwaters.htm
2007 Puget Sound Update (English sole research found in Chapter 4.4c, starting on page 167 of the printed copy, page 177 of the pdf.) www.psp.wa.gov/downloads/SOS07/2007_PS_Update.pdf
Control of Toxic Chemical in Puget Sound: www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wq/pstoxics/index.html
Puget Sound Partnership Web site: www.psp.wa.gov
ECOconnect blog: What are Elliott Bay sediments telling us? (9/28/09)
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
