Title | Focus On: French Creek Orange Water Study |
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Focus On: French Creek Orange Water Study (Number of pages: 2) (Publication Size: 478KB)
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Author(s) | Sarah Yepez, Molly Gleason | ||||
Description | People near French Creek have noticed an orange-brown color at the lower sections of French Creek that has been occurring each year. Ecology sampled French Creek in summer and fall of 2022 to better explain the color and water quality conditions. Our results suggest that the principal likely cause of the orange color during summer is linked to an orange carotenoid protein produced by blue-green algae, which were abundant at the downstream sampling site. Nutrient levels measured at the downstream site were moderate to high. These nutrient levels encourage algal growth, which has an impact on other water quality parameters like dissolved oxygen and pH. The high nutrient levels measured at the downstream site reflect that current nutrient management approaches in this area are not working. Ecology provides recommendations for nutrient management in the French Creek watershed and additional resources for property owners and operators. | ||||
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Contact | Sarah Yepez at 206-594-0000 or syep461@ecy.wa.gov | ||||
Keywords | nutrients, French Creek, Snohomish River, cyanobacteria, algae, orange water | ||||
WEB PAGE | French and Pilchuck watersheds | ||||
WATERSHED | Water Resource Inventory Area 07 Snohomish |
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