Spokane River PCB TMDL home > Technical Information

Technical Information

• Spokane River PCBs Total Maximum Daily Load Study (draft Ecology publication)
• PCBs, PBDEs, and Selected Metals in Spokane River Fish, 2005 (Ecology publication)
• Spokane River PCB TMDL Stormwater Loading Analysis:  Final Technical Report (EPA-commissioned report)

Quality Assurance Project Plan: Total Maximum Daily Load Study for PCBs in the Spokane River (Ecology publication)
www.ecy.wa.gov/biblio/0303107.html

PCBs in fish from the Spokane River have been documented at concentrations well above the National Toxics Rule (NTR) criterion, and are currently at levels high enough to warrant consumption advisories for parts of the river. Although there is an abundance of data on PCBs in Spokane River fish, there has not been a recent analysis of PCB loading and dynamics in the river. There also has yet to be an examination of PCB accumulation pathways in fish.

This Quality Assurance (QA) Project Plan describes the sampling and analysis required to adequately assess PCB loading, dynamics, and accumulation pathways in the Spokane River. Sampling will be done to assess PCB concentrations in industrial effluent, stormwater, whole surface water, dissolved and particulate phases of surface water, surficial bottom sediments, sediment cores, whole fish, fish fillet, and gut contents from two species of fish. The data obtained will be used to develop a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for PCBs. The goal of the TMDL and the ensuing water cleanup plan is to meet the NTR criteria in Spokane River fish tissue.

If you have questions, contact Dale Norton at dnor461@ecy.wa.gov or 360-407-6765.