River, Stream and Lake Quality
This indicator describes the quality of freshwater found in water bodies such as streams, creeks and sloughs for 2003. Collectively, stream and lake quality is based on considerations of water chemistry, physical habitat and the health of small critters ("biological assemblages").

How does this affect me?

Drinking Water Quality

Poor water quality is a risk to drinking water supplies. Protecting the watersheds that provide drinking water is crucial to meeting drinking water quality standards. For example, the Cedar River watershed-the primary source for Seattle's drinking water-is protected from all residential, commercial or industrial activities.⁸

Taxpayer Expense

Impaired freshwater quality is extremely expensive to restore. Let's take the Nooksack River, for example. The water quality cleanup plan for the Nooksack cost approximately $500,000, which includes salaries, lab fees, and public outreach. These costs are borne by taxpayers in Washington State. Additional implementation costs of over $4 million were also offset by Washington State, which financed $1.4 million of that sum. Accordingly, it cost $4.5 million to clean up one freshwater river system.⁹

Lost Revenues from Wildlife Viewing and Salmon

This region is a premiere wildlife viewing area. People travel locally and from across the globe to marvel over our teeming life such as elk, bear, hundreds of bird species, Orcas, eagles and otters. Each one of these species is dependent, either directly or indirectly, on freshwater quality. Washington State is fifth in the US for wildlife viewing, generating $980 million in revenue annually. Importantly, most of these revenues benefit rural communities through lodging, food, equipment and expanded recreation opportunities.¹⁰ In addition, the salmon industry in this region is worth billions of dollars.

The 2006 estimated adult salmon run return in Puget Sound is 3,556,059 salmon.¹¹ Estimates include Chinook, Chum, Coho, Pink and Sockeye. In 1999, Puget Sound Chinook, Coastal/Puget Sound bull trout and Hood Canal Summer Chum were listed as threatened by the National Marine Fisheries Service and the US Fish and Wildlife Service.¹² This triggered the involvement of:

• 39 counties
• 277 cities
• 44 sewer districts
• 125 water districts
• 26 irrigation districts
• 14 Port districts
• 48 Conservation districts
• 170 Municipal Water suppliers
• 16 offices or agencies of Washington State

Programs to protect salmon from poor stream quality in Puget Sound cost $60 million each year, with roughly $20 million of that from local government sources.¹³

The BC Wilderness Tourism Association estimates that the nature-based tourism industry generates over $2 billion in revenue each year.¹⁴ The BC tourism industry, which experienced a 42 percent growth rate between 1994 and 2000, relies heavily on a healthy environment because it is the reason why many people travel to BC. Quite simply, in the Puget Sound Georgia Basin, we live in one of the most spectacular places in North America.

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