Mussel Watch monitoring to assess status, trends, and continuous process improvement of environmental protection and restoration initiatives for Sinclair and Dyes Inlets, Liberty Bay, and Port Orchard, Rich and Agate Passages of the Puget Sound, WA
Presentation Abstract
As part of an Environmental Investment (ENVVEST) project to improve the environmental quality of Sinclair and Dyes Inlets and the surrounding watershed, a network of mussel watch stations was established to measure contaminant tissue residues in native mussels to assess the spatial distribution of contamination, evaluate temporal trends, assess whether exposure levels exceeded screening benchmarks, and identify locations where corrective actions may be warranted. Twenty-four indigenous Mussel Watch stations located in Sinclair Inlet, Dyes Inlet, Port Orchard Passage, Rich Passage, Agate Passage, Keyport, and Liberty Bay were sampled during the winter of 2009-2010 and 2011-2012. The 2012 data set also included a sample of mussels purchased from a public seafood market in Seattle, WA that originated from Penn Cove, WA. Indigenous bivalves were collected from a small boat and/or from along the shoreline, measured, composited, and analyzed for percent lipids, moisture, stable isotopes of carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N), Ag, As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, Zn, 21 polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) congeners, total PCB, and 44 parent and methylated (CH3) polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Data analyses evaluated the signed relative percent difference between years, the spatial distribution of contamination, and compared the results to ecological effects benchmarks, seafood market concentrations, and the range of metal and organic contaminants reported from two decades of monitoring by the National Mussel Watch Program. Results showed an overall decrease in PAH concentrations between 2010 and 2012, specific areas were identified as likely sources of Hg and other metals, and a regional baseline was established to evaluate the effectiveness of continuous process improvement of environmental protection and restoration initiatives within the Inlets.
Session Title
Session S-02B: Toxics in the Nearshore
Conference Track
Toxics
Conference Name
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference (2014 : Seattle, Wash.)
Document Type
Event
Start Date
30-4-2014 1:30 PM
End Date
30-4-2014 3:00 PM
Location
Room 608-609
Genre/Form
conference proceedings; presentations (communicative events)
Contributing Repository
Digital content made available by University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Subjects – Topical (LCSH)
Mussels--Washington (State)--Puget Sound--Observations; Water--Pollution--Washington (State)--Puget Sound
Geographic Coverage
Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.); Puget Sound (Wash.)
Rights
This resource is displayed for educational purposes only and may be subject to U.S. and international copyright laws. For more information about rights or obtaining copies of this resource, please contact University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225-9103, USA (360-650-7534; heritage.resources@wwu.edu) and refer to the collection name and identifier. Any materials cited must be attributed to the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Records, University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Type
Text
Language
English
Format
application/pdf
Mussel Watch monitoring to assess status, trends, and continuous process improvement of environmental protection and restoration initiatives for Sinclair and Dyes Inlets, Liberty Bay, and Port Orchard, Rich and Agate Passages of the Puget Sound, WA
Room 608-609
As part of an Environmental Investment (ENVVEST) project to improve the environmental quality of Sinclair and Dyes Inlets and the surrounding watershed, a network of mussel watch stations was established to measure contaminant tissue residues in native mussels to assess the spatial distribution of contamination, evaluate temporal trends, assess whether exposure levels exceeded screening benchmarks, and identify locations where corrective actions may be warranted. Twenty-four indigenous Mussel Watch stations located in Sinclair Inlet, Dyes Inlet, Port Orchard Passage, Rich Passage, Agate Passage, Keyport, and Liberty Bay were sampled during the winter of 2009-2010 and 2011-2012. The 2012 data set also included a sample of mussels purchased from a public seafood market in Seattle, WA that originated from Penn Cove, WA. Indigenous bivalves were collected from a small boat and/or from along the shoreline, measured, composited, and analyzed for percent lipids, moisture, stable isotopes of carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N), Ag, As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, Zn, 21 polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) congeners, total PCB, and 44 parent and methylated (CH3) polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Data analyses evaluated the signed relative percent difference between years, the spatial distribution of contamination, and compared the results to ecological effects benchmarks, seafood market concentrations, and the range of metal and organic contaminants reported from two decades of monitoring by the National Mussel Watch Program. Results showed an overall decrease in PAH concentrations between 2010 and 2012, specific areas were identified as likely sources of Hg and other metals, and a regional baseline was established to evaluate the effectiveness of continuous process improvement of environmental protection and restoration initiatives within the Inlets.
