Streaming Media
Presentation Abstract
The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community is a federally-recognized Indian Tribe and political successor in interest to certain tribes and bands that signed the 1855 Treaty of Point Elliot, which among other things reserved fishing, hunting, and gathering rights and established the Swinomish Reservation on Fidalgo Island in Skagit County, Washington. Fish and fish habitat are crucial to the cultural, spiritual, subsistence, and commercial activities of the Swinomish Tribe. Surface water quality monitoring of marine and fresh waterbodies on and surrounding the Swinomish Reservation began in 1997. Over time, additional monitoring sites have been added to provide a thorough understanding of the quality of its marine and fresh water. Areas that are currently monitored include: four freshwater creeks, Skagit River, Swinomish Channel, Padilla Bay, Turner’s Bay, Similk Bay, Kiket Bay, and Skagit Bay. Priority areas for monitoring are identified based on ecological and cultural significance. Swinomish’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has collected between 10 and 20 years of data at the majority of monitoring sites. This long-term dataset supports a variety of statistical approaches to characterizing spatial and temporal variability of the quality of Reservation waters. Trend analyses assess any change that may have occurred over time and results are often unique to individual waterbodies. Comparison analyses document differences between sites to inform specific areas of concern and suggest possible causes of trends. Finally, regression analyses identify the most influential variables on water quality changes, including variables to help highlight possible influences of weather and climate. This poster highlights some of the most interesting results of analyses and ideas for using these analyses to guide long-term monitoring strategies. Understanding of water quality changes in all areas of the Reservation is critical for informing continued monitoring, management, and future restoration projects.
Session Title
Poster Session 3: Land - Water Connections
Conference Track
SSE14: Posters
Conference Name
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference (2022 : Online)
Document Type
Event
SSEC Identifier
SSE-posters-43
Start Date
27-4-2022 4:00 PM
End Date
27-4-2022 4:30 PM
Rights
Copying of this document in whole or in part is allowable only for scholarly purposes. It is understood, however, that any copying or publication of this document for commercial purposes, or for financial gain, shall not be allowed without the author's written permission.
Type
Text
Language
English
Long-term water quality monitoring trends and drivers of change in marine and fresh waters of the Swinomish Reservation, WA
The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community is a federally-recognized Indian Tribe and political successor in interest to certain tribes and bands that signed the 1855 Treaty of Point Elliot, which among other things reserved fishing, hunting, and gathering rights and established the Swinomish Reservation on Fidalgo Island in Skagit County, Washington. Fish and fish habitat are crucial to the cultural, spiritual, subsistence, and commercial activities of the Swinomish Tribe. Surface water quality monitoring of marine and fresh waterbodies on and surrounding the Swinomish Reservation began in 1997. Over time, additional monitoring sites have been added to provide a thorough understanding of the quality of its marine and fresh water. Areas that are currently monitored include: four freshwater creeks, Skagit River, Swinomish Channel, Padilla Bay, Turner’s Bay, Similk Bay, Kiket Bay, and Skagit Bay. Priority areas for monitoring are identified based on ecological and cultural significance. Swinomish’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has collected between 10 and 20 years of data at the majority of monitoring sites. This long-term dataset supports a variety of statistical approaches to characterizing spatial and temporal variability of the quality of Reservation waters. Trend analyses assess any change that may have occurred over time and results are often unique to individual waterbodies. Comparison analyses document differences between sites to inform specific areas of concern and suggest possible causes of trends. Finally, regression analyses identify the most influential variables on water quality changes, including variables to help highlight possible influences of weather and climate. This poster highlights some of the most interesting results of analyses and ideas for using these analyses to guide long-term monitoring strategies. Understanding of water quality changes in all areas of the Reservation is critical for informing continued monitoring, management, and future restoration projects.
