Monitoring by Federal Agencies

Federal agencies have also evaluated levels of toxic chemicals in Washington's aquatic environments. Here's are several programs with links to more information:

EPA

Lake Roosevelt Contamination

Columbia River Basin Toxics Reduction Working Group

The Environmental Protection Agency's National Study of Chemical Residues in Lake Fish Tissue collected fish from 14 Washington lakes from 1999 to 2003.

The Environmental Protection Agency monitored fish tissue during the mid-1990s for toxic contaminants as part of the Columbia River Basin Fish Contaminant Survey.

EPA Region 10

USGS

The United States Geological Service has many projects in Washington that look at toxic chemicals in the environment:

Pesticides in water, fish tissue, and sediment in several Washington basins as part of the National Water-Quality Assessment Program (NAWQA), such as the Central Columbia Plateau and Yakima River basins; and the Puget Sound basin.
Pesticides in irrigation water in the Columbia Basin Irrigation Project
Pesticide toxicity in urban streams in King County
Contaminant levels in biota from alpine lakes in Washington
Lake Roosevelt Contamination
Pesticides in groundwater
Lake Whatcom Mercury

Broader efforts by USGS include:

Western Airborne Contaminants Assessment Project (multi-agency effort). Overview. Final Report.
Toxic Substances Hydrology Program

NOAA

NOAA’s Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment (CCMA) mission is to assess and forecast coastal and marine ecosystem conditions through research and monitoring. CCMA conducts field observations on regional and national scales. The center provides the best available scientific information for resource managers and researchers, technical advice, and accessibility to data.

Atmospheric Monitoring

The National Park Service conducted the Western Airborne Contaminants Assessment Project (WACAP) to determine the risk to ecosystems and food webs in western national parks from the long-range transport of airborne contaminants.
The National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP) monitors precipitation chemistry. The NADP is a cooperative effort between many different group, including federal, state, tribal and local governmental agencies, educational institutions, private companies, and non-governmental agencies.