Presentation Given By: Margaret Homerding, Nisqually Tribe Shellfish Program Manager

1. Local
Shellfish
Growing
Area
Upgrades
&
The
[Upstream]
Prac=ces
That
Allowed
For
Them
Margaret
Homerding
Shellfish
Program
Manager
Nisqually
Indian
Tribe
June
21,
2013

2. Shellfish
growing
area
classifica=on
• You
can’t
harvest
shellfish
from
everywhere!
– Bacterial
loads
of
freshwater
inputs
– Bacterial
loads
of
marine
water
– Bacterial
loads
and
Toxin
levels
in
shellfish
meats
– Concentra=ons
of
pollutants
in
shellfish
meat
and
sediment

3. Courtesy
of
Washington
Department
of
Health

4. • Largely
residen=al
area
– Older
sep=c
systems
– Pets
• Lots
of
small
farms
– Manure
• Lots
of
roads
• Road
runoff
• Shellfish
Farm
Photo
courtesy
of
Puget
Sound
Partnership
Henderson
Inlet
Watershed

5. Photo
courtesy
of
Puget
Sound
Partnership
Photo
courtesy
of
Skokomish
Indian
tribe
Stewardship
partners

7. Courtesy
of
Washington
Department
of
Health

8. • Urban
• Densely
populated
– Sewer
ou[alls
– Poten=al
heavy
metal
pollu=on
from
industry
and
roadways
JBLM/Chambers
Creek
Area

9. • EPA-­‐funded
NEP
grant
• 4
year
project
• Start
date
Oct.
1,
2010
• DOH
lead;
partners
include
Nisqually
Tribe,
Department
of
Ecology
Joint
Base
Lewis-­‐McChord/Chambers
Creek
Prohibited
Area
Courtesy
of
WADOH

10. Elements
of
Study
• An
evalua=on
of
shellfish
resources
• A
human
health
assessment,
including
=ssue
and
sediment
sampling
• Circula=on
and
dilu=on
studies

11. Shellfish
Resource
Survey
• Qualita=ve
Inter=dal
Survey
• Underwater
Towed
Video
Survey
• Sub=dal
SCUBA
Survey

12. Inter=dal
Shellfish
Survey
• Walking
the
shoreline
at
low
=de
• Digging
samples
of
clams
• Coun=ng
oysters
and
other
shellfish
observed
• No=ng
any
cri=cal
Habitat

13. Photo
by
Michael
Kyte
Inter=dal
Shellfish
Survey
• Lifle
to
few
clams
or
oysters
• Loss
of
habitat
due
to
development
•
armoring
of
shoreline

14. Underwater
Video
Survey
• Towing
a
video
camera
behind
a
boat
• Must
go
slowly
• Constantly
liging
and
dropping
camera
to
stay
close
to
the
bofom

15. Underwater
Video
Survey
• Poten=al
Geoduck
and
Horseclam
beds
• Eelgrass
beds

16. • SCUBA
diving
along
set
transects
• Coun=ng
geoduck
and
horseclams
• No=ng
any
observed
species
• Marking
any
cri=cal
habitat
Sub=dal
Shellfish
Survey

17. Sub=dal
Shellfish
Survey
• Large
tracts
of
geoduck
beds
• Rela=vely
few
horse
clams
• Several
crabs

18. • Collec=ng
sediment
and
geoduck
samples
• Analysis
of
samples
for
likely
contaminates
Human
Health
Assessment

19. • Contact
or
inges=on
of
sediments
will
not
have
deleterious
affects
to
human
health
• Inges=on
of
geoduck
meat
will
not
increase
risk
of
disease
Human
Health
Assessment

20. Circula=on
and
dilu=on
Studies
• Drogue
study
to
verify
=me
of
=de
change
• Fluorometers
installed
in
front
of
geoduck
tracts
and
public
beaches
• Dye
injected
for
24.8
hours
• Dye
tracked
un=l
gone

21. Mixing
dye
Photo
courtesy
of
WADOH

22. Dye
injec=on
into
wet
well
ager
UV
Photo
courtesy
of
WADOH

23. Tracking
Tracking
the
Dye
Photo
courtesy
of
WADOH

24. Monday
11/12/12
morning
Photo
courtesy
of
WADOH

25. Preliminary
Dye
Study
Results
• Lifle
or
no
dye
got
across
channel
or
to
north
Ketron
• Dye
was
restricted
between
Sunnyside
Beach
to
the
south
during
flood
=de
and
along
the
east
shore
north
past
Day
Island
Marina
during
ebb
=de.
• Final
closure
zone
for
Chambers
Creek
WWTP
should
not
impact
Fox
Island,
McNeil
Island
or
Ketron
Island
geoduck
tracts.

26. Next
steps
• Complete
Sub=dal
Resource
Surveys
• Dye
injec=on
study
at
JBLM
Sewage
treatment
plant
• Recommenda=ons
to
state
based
on
findings
• More
projects

27. Resources
• Mark
Toy.
Washington
State
Department
of
Health.
Restoring
Shellfish
Harvest
to
Joint
Base
Lewis-­‐McChord/Chambers
Creek
Prohibited
Area.
2013
Pacific
Rim
Shellfish
Sanita=on
Conference.
Presented
April
3,
2013
• Bradbury,A.,
Sizemore,
R.,
Rothaus,
D.,
Ulrich,
M.
Washington
Stat
eMarine
Resources
unit
Fish
Management
Division
Fish
Program.
Stock
Assessment
of
Sub=dal
Geoduck
Clams
(Panopea
abrupta)
in
Washington.
January
2000.
• Nisqually
Reach
and
Henderson
Inlet
Shellfish
Protec=on
Districts
Combined
Shellfish
District
2008
Annual
Report.
Available
at:
hfp://www.co.thurston.wa.us/planning/natural-­‐res/docs/shellfish-­‐annual-­‐
report-­‐2008.pdf.
Accessed
6/21/2013