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1 November 2012

Lessons of the Elwha River: Managing Health Hazards During Dam Removal

Publication: Environmental Health Perspectives
Volume 120, Issue 11
Pages a430 - a435
First page of PDF

References and Notes

1.
Eighty-three percent of the watershed lies within Olympic National Park.
2.
The Elwha Watershed [website]. Port Angeles, WA:Olympic National Park, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior (updated 30 Sep 2012) Available: http://www.nps.gov/olym/naturescience/the-elwha-watershed.htm [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
3.
DOI. Secretary Salazar Applauds Beginning of Restoration of Elwha River, Largest in U.S. History [press release] Washington, DC:U.S. Department of Interior (17 Sep 2011). Available: http://www.doi.gov/news/pressreleases/Secretary-Salazar-Applauds-Beginning-of-Restoration-of-Elwha-River-Largest-in-US-History.cfm [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
4.
DOI. 2010 Survey Report for Lake Mills and Lake Aldwell on the Elwha River, Washington. Technical Report No. SRH-2010-23. Denver, CO:Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Department of the Interior (Amended Jun 2011). Available: http://www.nps.gov/olym/naturescience/upload/2010-Reservoir-Survey-Report.pdf [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
5.
NPS. Elwha River Ecosystem Restoration Implementation. Draft Environmental Impact Statement. Washington, DC:National Park Service, U.S Department of the Interior (1996).
6.
Winter BD, Crain P Making the case for ecosystem restoration by dam removal in the Elwha River, Washington. Northwest Sci 82(sp1):13-28 2008.http://dx.doi.org/ https://doi.org/10.3955/0029-344X-82.S.I.13.
7.
NPS. Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS): Elwha River Ecosystem Restoration Implementation. Port Angeles, WA:National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior (1996). Available: http://www.nps.gov/olym/naturescience/loader.cfm?csModule=security/getfile&PageID=136253 [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
8.
History of Elwha and Glines Canyon Dams [website]. Moscow, ID:Elwha Watershed Information Resource (2012). Available: http://www.elwhainfo.org/elwha-river-watershed/dam-removal/history-elwha-and-glines-canyon-dams [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
9.
Elwha River Ecosystem and Fisheries Restoration Act of 1992. Public Law No. 102-495. Available: http://www.nps.gov/olym/naturescience/loader.cfm?csModule=security/getfile&PageID=136258 [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
10.
NPS. Final Environmental Impact Statement: Elwha River Ecosystem Restoration. Port Angeles, WA:National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior (1995). Available: http://www.nps.gov/olym/naturescience/loader.cfm?csModule=security/getfile&PageID=136255 [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
11.
NPS. The Elwha Report: Restoration of the Elwha River Ecosystem & Native Anadromous Fisheries. A Report Submitted Pursuant to Public Law 102-495. Port Angeles, WA:National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior (Jan 1994). Available: http://archive.org/details/elwhareportresto94nati [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
12.
Frequently Asked Questions [website]. Port Angeles, WA:Olympic National Park, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior. Available: http://www.nps.gov/olym/naturescience/elwha-faq.htm [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
13.
In 2004 the former Naval Station Bremerton merged with Naval Submarine Base Bangor to form Naval Base Kitsap. The installation—the largest in Navy Region Northwest—serves as host command for the U.S. naval fleet throughout West Puget Sound.
14.
DOI. Olympic National Park, PMIS No. 005375. Removal of Elwha and Glines Canyon Dams, Elwha River Restoration Project, Washington, Specifications. Denver, CO:Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Department of the Interior (2010).
15.
Mapes LV. Elwha Tribe Still Waiting for Money Congress Promised. Seattle Times, online edition (13 Aug 2012). Available: http://o.seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2018894874_elwhamoney11m.html [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
16.
NPS. Glines Canyon Dam Level 2/3 Environmental Assessment Report. Olympia, WA:Ecology and Environment/National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior (1999).
17.
EPA. Lead; Identification of Dangerous Levels of Lead. Fed Reg 66(4):1206–1239 (2001). Available: http://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/EPA-TOX/2001/January/Day-05/t84.pdf [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
18.
Serdar D. PCB Concentrations in Fish from Ward Lake (Thurston County) and the Lower Elwha River. Olympia, WA:Department of Ecology, State of Washington (Sep 1999). Available: https://fortress.wa.gov/ecy/publications/publications/99338.pdf [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
19.
Childers D, et al. Hydrologic Data Collected During the 1994 Lake Mills Drawdown Experiment, Elwha River, Washington. USGS Water-Resources Investigations Report 99-4215. Tacoma, WA:U.S. Geological Survey (2000). Available: http://archive.org/details/hydrologicdataco00chil [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
20.
WADOE. Re: Water Quality Certification Order #3959 (Corps No. 200600334). Elwha River Ecosystem Project, Clallam County, Washington. Olympia,WA:Department of Ecology, State of Washington. Available: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wq/ferc/existingcerts/elwha.pdf [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
21.
Ward L, et al. Elwha River Fish Restoration Plan Developed Pursuant to the Elwha River Ecosystem and Fisheries Restoration Act, Public Law 102-495. NOAA Technical Memorandum NMFS-NWFSC-90. Seattle, WA:National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce (Apr 2008). Available: http://www.nwfsc.noaa.gov/assets/25/6760_06202008_151914_ElwhaPlanTM90Final.pdf [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
22.
Wild Fish Conservancy. Suit Filed To Block Elwha Hatchery Programs [press release]. Duvall, WA:Wild Fish Conservancy (9 Feb 2012). Available: http://wildfishconservancy.org/about/press-room/press-releases/suit-filed-to-block-elwha-hatchery-programs [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
23.
Wild Fish Conservancy. Interim Agreement Protects Wild Elwha Steelhead from Hatchery Release [press release]. Duvall, WA:Wild Fish Conservancy (28 Feb 2012). Available: http://wildfishconservancy.org/about/press-room/press-releases/interim-agreement-protects-wild-elwha-steelhead-from-hatchery-release [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
24.
Meyer PA, et al. Elwha River Restoration Project: Economic Analysis. Final Technical Report. Davis, CA:Lower Elwha S’Klallam Tribe/Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. National Park Service (Feb 1995) Available: http://www.nps.gov/olym/naturescience/upload/Economic%20analysis.pdf [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
25.
NPS. Elwha River Ecosystem Restoration Implementation. Final Supplement to the Final Environmental Impact Statement. Port Angeles, WA:National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior (Jul 2005). Available: http://www.nps.gov/olym/naturescience/upload/All_Chapters.pdf [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
26.
The U.S. National Inventory of Dams is a database that includes over 80,000 dams that are at least 25 feet high, store at least 50 acre-feet (64,000 m3) of water, or are considered a significant hazard if they should fail. Source: National Inventory of Dams [website]. Washington, DC:U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (2012). Available: http://geo.usace.army.mil/pgis/f?p=397:12:4398225106308821 [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
27.
Grossman E. Watershed: The Undamming of America. New York, NY:Counterpoint (2002).
28.
Johnson A, et al. An Assessment of the PCB and Dioxin Background in Washington Freshwater Fish, with Recommendations for Prioritizing 303(d) Listings. Olympia, WA:Department of Ecology, State of Washington (Jan 2010). Available: https://fortress.wa.gov/ecy/publications/summarypages/1003007.html [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
29.
The Suquamish Indian Tribe. Fish Consumption Survey of the Suquamish Indian Tribe of The Port Madison Indian Reservation, Puget Sound Region. Suquamish, WA:The Suquamish Tribe Fisheries Department, Port Madison Indian Reservation (Aug 2000). Available: http://www.deq.state.or.us/wq/standards/docs/toxics/suquamish2000report.pdf [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
30.
WADOE. Reducing Toxics in Fish, Sediments & Water [website]. Olympia,WA:Department of Ecology, State of Washington. Available: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/toxics/fish.html [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
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Water Quality Standards for Toxic Pollutants [website]. Portland, OR:Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (2012). Available: http://www.deq.state.or.us/wq/standards/toxics.htm [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
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WADOE. Open Letter to Interested Parties from Ted Sturdevant, Director. Olympia, WA:Department of Ecology, State of Washington (16 Jul 2012). Available: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/toxics/docs/20120716_FCR_SturdevantLetter.pdf [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
33.
WADOE. Fish Consumption Rates Technical Support Document: A Review of Data and Information about Fish Consumption in Washington. Olympia, WA:Department of Ecology, State of Washington (2011). Available: https://fortress.wa.gov/ecy/publications/publications/1109050.pdf [accessed 9 Oct 2012].
34.
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Information & Authors

Information

Published In

Environmental Health Perspectives
Volume 120Issue 11November 2012
Pages: a430 - a435
PubMed: 23117191

History

Published online: 1 November 2012

Authors

Affiliations

Wendee Nicole
Freelance science writer and photographer Wendee Nicole (formerly Holtcamp) has written for Nature, Scientific American, National Wildlife, and other magazines.

Notes

Writer Wendee Nicole saw the two Elwha River dams in their full glory in 2010, and returned this summer to witness history in the making as the dams were being torn down. She interviewed several people involved in the project while in the area, hiked through one of the river’s tributaries in hip waders with biologists sampling turbidity levels, and visited the river’s mouth on the Lower Elwha Klallam reservation.

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