SK Annual Report 2008 

 

Accomplishments

·         147 volunteers on our ready-for-duty list, 33 new this year—a record.

·         130 of these volunteers logged hours this year—another record.

·         Volunteers logged 4350 hours, for an in-kind value of $88,300.[1]  This figure underestimates the true value, as much of the volunteer effort is highly technical and worth $50+/hr.  If this latter factor were figured in, the value would be well in excess of $100,000/yr.

·         Volunteers monitored 40 sites on 19 streams quarterly for WQ and flow: http://www.clallam.net/streamkeepers/assets/applets/2008_WQ_sampling_plan.pdf

·         Volunteers sampled 69 sites on 21 streams quarterly for fecal coliform: http://www.clallam.net/streamkeepers/assets/applets/Fecal_sites_Spring_2008.pdf

·         Volunteers sampled benthic macroinvertebrates at 17 sites on 14 streams this fall.

·         Volunteers served on or attended meetings of Dungeness River Management Team, Elwha-Morse Management Team, WRIA 19 watershed planning group, Clean Water Work Group, Lake Ozette Sockeye Steering Committee, County Planning Commission, and On-Site Septic Work Group.

·         A new Macroinvertebrate Sorting Team pre-sorted “stream bugs” from “stream gunk” in order to facilitate the work of the professional taxonomists.

·         Volunteers continued to improve and expand our database and website, and another volunteer now serves as editor-in-chief of our newsletter.

·         Staff and volunteers staffed booths at 6 community events (a new record):

o        Puget Sound Partnership regional meetings 1/30 & 3/7

o        Making It Last! sustainability forum 3/22

o        Mountain Music Celebration 4/26

o        Clallam County Fair 8/14-17 (partnering with Clallam Conservation District & N. Olympic Land Trust)

o        Streamfest 9/6-7 (partnering with Clallam Conservation District)

o        Dungeness River Festival 9/26-27 (partnering with Clallam County Environmental Health)

·         Staff and volunteers gave presentations to 8 community groups (a new record):

o        Kiwanis Club of Juan de Fuca 2/21

o        National Active & Retired Federal Employee Association, Olympic Peninsula Chapter 4/22

o        Master Gardeners of Clallam County 5/14

o        Sequim Prairie Grange 5/28

o        Clallam County Health & Human Services Dept. 9/3

o        Klahhane Club 10/21

o        Knotweed Working Group 11/19

o        Clallam County Planning Commission 12/3

·         The SK volunteer Research Team is working on several important data-analysis issues—see below.

·         Streamkeeper data constituted the bulk of the Clallam County data released in the WA Dept. of Ecology 2008 State Water Quality Report required under the Clean Water Act: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wq/303d/2008/index.html

·         Updated and revised the 2008 Volunteer Handbook: http://www.clallam.net/streamkeepers/html/volunteer_handbook.htm

·         Continued work on a revised Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP) for the State Dept. of Ecology, required under the WA Water Quality Data Act (RCW 90.48.570-590).

·         Continued to upgrade Quality Control procedures for measuring pH, dissolved oxygen, temperature, and conductivity (e.g., see http://www.clallam.net/streamkeepers/assets/applets/WtrChem.pdf).

·         A volunteer Equipment Calibration/Maintenance team formed and now takes primary responsibility for these duties and their documentation.

·         Collaborated on a successful Environmental Protection Agency grant application for $538,000 to develop and implement a comprehensive stormwater management plan for Clallam County, one-third of which will involve Streamkeepers in developing and implementing a stormwater monitoring plan—see http://www.clallam.net/streamkeepers/html/stormwater_monitoring.htm

 

Projects Supported:  In 2008, we supported numerous partnership projects with other groups:

·         Restoration project planning & effectiveness monitoring:

·         Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe:  Siebert & Ennis Creek channel/LWD restoration

·         Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe:  Dungeness 5.9 engineered logjam

·         North Olympic Salmon Coalition:  Valley and Morse Creek channel restoration

·         Quileute Tribe:  Bear Creek channel restoration

·         Clallam Conservation District:  Best Management Practice planning & evaluation (Bell, Bagley, et al.); Cassalery Creek channel & riparian restoration

·         Clallam County:  Restoration projects at Morse 0.3, Bagley 0.7, and Dungeness 0.7

·         WA Dept. of Transportation:  Wetland mitigation project at Bell Creek RM 0.8

·         Wild Salmon Center & North Olympic Land Trust:  Elk Creek (Calawah) property acquisition & stewardship

·         Port Angeles Rayonier Mill Site:  Salmon resources characterization in Port Angeles Harbor

·         Green Crow mill site at Eclipse Industrial Park, Port Angeles:  Dry Creek data to assist in mill re-design

·         Fish surveys:

·         U.S. Forest Service:  Bull trout wading survey on the Gray Wolf and upper Dungeness Rivers

·         Siebert Creek citizens’ group:  Steelhead spawner surveys

·         North Olympic Salmon Coalition:  Minnow-trap surveys on Valley Creek

·         Pollution source identification and remediation:

·         City of Port Angeles: Supplemental fecal-coliform sampling & other data in support of stormwater management plan

·         Clallam County Environmental Health Division: Supplemental fecal-coliform sampling

·         Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe:  Johnson, Bell, and Cassalery Creek monitoring

·         WA Dept. of Ecology:  Data for the 2008 State Water Quality (303d/305b) Report, which will lead to cleanup plans for impaired waters (under the federal Clean Water Act)

·         WA Dept. of Ecology:  Data on Cassalery Creek to aid in the Lower Dungeness River & Dungeness Bay TMDL pollution-cleanup effectiveness study

·         Lake Dawn (Port Angeles) landowners’ group:  Technical assistance in pollutant investigation

·         Watershed characterization and investigation:

·         Clallam County:  Ambient monitoring of Clallam County streams

·         WRIA 19 watershed planning group: Clallam River and other water-quality investigations

·         Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe:  Monitoring of Dungeness River and independent drainages in Sequim area

·         Elwha Klallam Tribe:  Monitoring of creeks from Siebert to Salt

·         Quileute Tribe:  Monitoring of Bear, Lake, and Elk creeks

·         Hoh Tribe:  Technical assistance on stream discharge study

·         Olympic National Park:  Macroinvertebrate and water-quality data on streams within the Park

·         City of Forks:  Baseline macroinvertebrate data on Mill Creek

·         WA Dept. of Natural Resources:  Database on Olympic Experimental State Forest

·         Environmental education:

·         Olympic Park Institute & Elwha Restoration Research Consortium:  Elwha River education

·         Peninsula College & Western Washington University:  Assisted student projects

·         North Olympic Land Trust, Dungeness River Audubon Center, BuiltGreen Clallam County:  Educational booths at public events sponsored by these organizations

·         Assisted student and class projects at Sequim Middle School, Lincoln High School (Port Angeles), North Olympic Peninsula Skills Center

·         Research:  The Streamkeeper Research Team performed the following investigations:

·         Literature reviews of land-cover/stream-health correlation studies

·         Analysis of Streamkeeper physical-habitat data and possible conclusions

·         Studies of the comparability of flow data taken by Streamkeepers vs. Dept. of Ecology stream gauges

·         Initial investigation into data outliers

·         Coordinating Function:

·         Served as information clearinghouse for people involved in watershed stewardship

·         Provided volunteers to other important projects on the North Olympic Peninsula

 

Funding:  We secured the following outside funding in 2008:

·         EPA:  $538,000 to Clallam County to develop a comprehensive stormwater management plan, 7/1/08-7/1/11; $145,000 of this to Streamkeepers to plan, gather, manage, and analyze stormwater and land-cover data

·         Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe:  $20,000 to perform water-quality monitoring in the Tribe’s U&A area

·         WDFW:  $16,900 to support operation and maintenance costs of the overall program, 7/1/08-6/30/09

·         USDA Forest Service, Title II:  $5400 in additional funding for fish habitat utilization surveys

·         City of Port Angeles:  $1000 for supplemental water-borne bacterial sampling


[1] (Using the national value of $19.51/hr for volunteer time established by Independent Sector in 2007, pro-rated by a 5.7% premium factor when the Washington state value was compared to the national value in 2006.)