This shellfish restriction required Clallam County to form a shellfish protection district pursuant to RCW 90.72.045.  On October 11, 2000, a recommendation was made by the Dungeness River Management Team (DRMT) to the Board of Clallam County Commissioners to call the shellfish protection district a "Clean Water District" and to have its boundaries be the same as the management area of the DRMT.  The DRMT management area includes the Dungeness watershed and those waters influenced by it through the irrigation system and the Sequim Bay watershed.

Impacts from bacterial pollution
The variety of impacts from bacterial pollution in the watershed and Bay range from increased public health risk to decreased economic potential.  Most importantly, bacterial pollution presents an increased health risk to residents and visitors to the area. Fecal coliforms are used as an indicator of bacterial waste and are a types of bacterium found in the feces of warm-blooded animals (e.g., humans, birds, and livestock).  Most fecal coliform bacteria are not harmful, but their presence is used to indicate the potential for a variety of disease-carrying microorganisms, known as pathogens.  If present, these pathogens are also transported in human and animal feces and can cause illnesses in humans ranging from stomach upset to more serious diseases, like hepatitis and typhoid.  Increased amounts of fecal coliform in surface water indicate an increased chance that pathogens are in the water. 

Humans are exposed to pathogens when wading or swimming in water and when we eat contaminated shellfish. People are exposed to pathogens when water is swallowed (via splashing or hand to mouth contact) or when water comes into contact with open cuts or wounds.  Pathogens enter into the shellfish (oysters, clams and mussels) as they filter the water for food.  There is concern that some people will continue to harvest shellfish in the closed area, either unaware of the posted closure or simply ignoring the closure signs.  These people will have an increased risk of illness, if they eat shellfish. 

The closure of shellfish harvesting within Dungeness Bay decreases economic potential within the local community.  The direct commercial impacts from the harvesting closure include:

• Loss of productivity of all tidelands farmed by Northwest Corner Oyster Company,
• Loss of one-third of the area farmed for shellfish by Jamestown Seafood, Inc., including the loss of the company's wet storage, where shellfish may be held for a short time before sent to market, and
• Reduction in the lease value of tidelands owned and leased out by the Port of Port Angeles and the Washington State Department of Natural Resources.

In addition, the closure results in a loss of harvest opportunity by residents and visitors, due to the official closure of the tideflats at the Dungeness boat ramp and recreational areas within the Dungeness Bay Wildlife Refuge.  Members and guests of three private organizations (San Juan Duck Club, Dungeness Beach Association, and Dungeness Farms) with tidelands no longer have the opportunity to harvest shellfish.  Finally, high levels of bacteria in the streams, river and bay tarnishes the "pristine" reputation of the Dungeness Bay and Dungeness River, which could affect tourism to the area.