The Water Quality and Flow Monitoring Program is pleased to provide a comprehensive summary of sediment quality on Bainbridge Island. The State of the Island’s Sediment report synthesizes the sampling data collected over the past 13 years and distills it into metrics and indices. Integral Consulting was enlisted to help us organize the data and compare them to state standards to better understand the quality of sediment in our streams and beaches.
The report took a deep dive into the sediment data collected by staff and citizen scientist volunteers during the summers of 2008, 2013 and 2019. By comparing data to state standards, the freshwater and intertidal marine areas can be assessed and ranked to understand which watersheds may need extra attention in the way of clean-up efforts, education and outreach or increased stormwater maintenance.
In the future this analysis may be used to prioritize areas of the island that may need restoration effort and stormwater retrofits to improve the overall health of the Puget Sound and greater Salish Sea. If we want more healthy salmon returning to our Island, we first need clean sediments that house healthy insects that feed healthy fish.
