Model Assessment of Cattle and Climate Impacts on Stream Fecal Coliform Pollution in the Salmon River Watershed, British Columbia, Canada

Abstract The use of indices in ecosystem management is attractive because it allows for the representation of a complex set of information on ecosystem variables in a simple fashion. Recently the British Columbia Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks developed the British Columbia Water Quality Index (BCWQI). As this index is currently being considered as the basis for other provincial indices and a national water quality index, the character of the BCWQI needs to be carefully considered. This study evaluates the performance of the BCWQI and assesses how useful and appropriate it is as a management tool at the watershed level. For this purpose the index is used to express the results of two sampling programs, one by the British Columbia Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks, and the other by the Westwater Research Centre, of two relatively small watersheds in the Greater Vancouver area: the Brunette River watershed, heavily impacted by urbanization, and the Salmon River watershed on the urban-rural fringe. For both watersheds the intended use is the protection of aquatic life and only those water quality objectives are considered. The results indicate that the BCWQI is extremely sensitive to sampling design and highly dependent on the specific application of water quality objectives. A comparison is made with another type of index in widespread use in North America: the National Sanitation Foundation Water Quality Index (NSFWQI). This index appears promising for stream stewardship groups because of its simplicity and ease of use. For watershed managers, an alternative to the BCWQI is suggested, based on exceedance factors for individual objectives. This Simple Water Quality Index (SWQI) recognizes the importance of objectives that are specific to a particular water body, but overcomes some of the limitations of the BCWQI. A presentation format is suggested for objective exceedance factors, with a clear indication of exactly which objectives were included — without this, the final numerical index value is meaningless. This study suggests that the BCWQI in its current form has serious limitations for comparing water bodies and for establishing management priorities. If local watershed managers use the BCWQI in guiding efforts to protect aquatic resources, they should consider these limitations carefully.

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Detrital zircon geochronology of Neoproterozoic to Permian miogeoclinal strata in British Columbia and Alberta

Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences ◽

10.1139/e98-071 ◽

1998 ◽

Vol 35 (12) ◽

pp. 1380-1401 ◽

Cited By ~ 51

Author(s):

George E Gehrels ◽

Gerald M Ross

Keyword(s):

British Columbia ◽

Detrital Zircon ◽

Isotopic Signature ◽

Detrital Zircons ◽

Detrital Zircon Geochronology ◽

Salmon River ◽

Western Canada Sedimentary Basin ◽

Cordilleran Margin ◽

Peace River Arch ◽

Detrital Zircon Ages

U-Pb ages have been determined on 250 detrital zircon grains from Neoproterozoic through Permian miogeoclinal strata in British Columbia and Alberta. Most of the grains in these strata are >1.75 Ga and are interpreted to have been derived from nearby basement provinces (although most grains were probably cycled though one or more sedimentary units prior to final deposition). Important exceptions are Ordovician sandstones that contain grains derived from the Peace River arch, and upper Paleozoic strata with detrital zircons derived from the Franklinian orogen, Salmon River arch (northwestern U.S.A.), and (or) Grenville orogen. These provenance changes resulted in average detrital zircon ages that become progressively younger with time, and may also be reflected by previously reported shifts in the Nd isotopic signature of miogeoclinal strata. In addition to the grains that have identifiable sources, grains of ~1030, ~1053, 1750-1774, and 2344-2464 Ma are common in our samples, but igneous rocks of these ages have not been recognized in the western Canadian Shield. We speculate that unrecognized plutons of these ages may be present beneath strata of the western Canada sedimentary basin. Collectively, our data provide a record of the ages of detrital zircons that accumulated along the Canadian Cordilleran margin during much of Paleozoic time. Comparisons between this reference and the ages of detrital zircons in strata of potentially displaced outboard terranes may help reconstruct the paleogeography and accretionary history of the Cordilleran orogen.

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Geology and ore deposits of Salmon river district, British Columbia

10.4095/101685 ◽

1922 ◽

Author(s):

S J Schofield ◽

G Hanson

Keyword(s):

British Columbia ◽

Ore Deposits ◽

Salmon River

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Salmon River district, British Columbia

10.4095/103428 ◽

1921 ◽

Author(s):

S J Schofield ◽

G Hanson

Keyword(s):

British Columbia ◽

Salmon River

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Monitoring Glacier Outburst Floods

Hydrology Research ◽

10.2166/nh.1980.0015 ◽

1980 ◽

Vol 11 (5) ◽

pp. 285-300 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

G.J. Young

Keyword(s):

British Columbia ◽

Geographical Distribution ◽

Modes Of Occurrence ◽

Salmon River ◽

Outburst Floods

A review is given of the phenomenon of glacier outburst floods. Geographical distribution, modes of occurrence of glacier-dammed lakes and modes of lake-emptying are discussed. Techniques of monitoring the filling and emptying of glacier-dammed lakes are evaluated and procedures for forecasting the magnitude and frequency of floods are analyzed. The histories of floods on the Salmon River (British Columbia/Alaska) and the Donjek River (Yukon) are given as examples.

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Experimental Analysis of Microhabitat Selection by Juvenile Steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) and Coho Salmon (O. kisutch) in a British Columbia Stream

Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences ◽

10.1139/f93-136 ◽

1993 ◽

Vol 50 (6) ◽

pp. 1198-1207 ◽

Cited By ~ 110

Author(s):

Kurt D. Fausch

Keyword(s):

British Columbia ◽

Oncorhynchus Mykiss ◽

Habitat Complexity ◽

Field Experiments ◽

Coho Salmon ◽

Early Summer ◽

Microhabitat Selection ◽

Salmon River ◽

Identical Construction ◽

Stream Salmonids

Replicate experiments were conducted in the Salmon River, British Columbia, during early summer 1990 to test the relative importance of velocity refuge, visual isolation, and overhead cover to microhabitat selection by steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) parr and age-0 coho salmon (O. kisutch). Four types of artificial Plexiglas structures, the first three of identical construction, had different portions painted to provide increasing habitat complexity: velocity refuge alone, velocity refuge with visual isolation, all three features combined, and overhead cover alone. Steelhead parr selected structures with overhead cover alone or all three features significantly more often than those without overhead cover. Steelhead also selected structures adjacent to the swiftest velocities available and closest to other natural overhead cover, which accounted for most differences in use of the same structure in different locations. In contrast, few age-0 coho salmon used any structures. Those that did selected the three types of structures with velocity refuge about equally, but significantly more often than those with overhead cover alone, regardless of their location. Field experiments such as this hold promise for elucidating mechanisms of habitat selection by stream salmonids.

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Risk Assessment of Copper-Contaminated Sediments in the Tsolum River Near Courtenay, British Columbia

Water Quality Research Journal ◽

10.2166/wqrj.1996.039 ◽

1996 ◽

Vol 31 (4) ◽

pp. 725-740 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

John Deniseger ◽

Y.T. John Kwong

Keyword(s):

Water Quality ◽

Risk Assessment ◽

British Columbia ◽

Organic Carbon ◽

Dissolved Organic Carbon ◽

Secondary Source ◽

Aquatic Life ◽

Mine Site ◽

River Watershed ◽

Copper Contaminated

Abstract Acidic drainage originating from an abandoned copper mine on Mt. Washington has given rise to elevated dissolved copper concentrations that may threaten aquatic life throughout most of the Tsolum River watershed on central Vancouver Island. Only sediments in the upper portion of the watershed near the mine site, however, have tested acutely toxic to the amphipod Hyalella azteca. Despite evidence of mechanical transport of copper up to 18 km down-stream from the mine site, the sediment-bound copper in the lower watershed appear to be highly stable such that the copper-rich sediments are unlikely to become a secondary source of dissolved copper. In addition to copper attenuation through dilution, extensive wetland areas in the lower watershed contribute significant amounts of dissolved organic carbon that form stable complexes with copper and ameliorate the toxic effects of dissolved copper. These observations imply that successful reclamation at the mine site is probably sufficient to assure acceptable water quality farther downstream.

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