[From the U.S. Government Printing Office, www.gpo.gov]
/ @- @56 Z/ An Environmental Assessment of Northern Puget Sound and the Strait of Juan de Fuca 17 0,4 9, ;p A Summary jA @@KA Aft X7 T R I-v Q14 541.5 S3 K6 1981 IF ~S~~5 AV AN ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT OF NORTHERN PUGET SOUND AND THE STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA A SUMMARY Ronald P. Kopenski and Edward R. Long NOAA/OMPA Seattle, Washington October 1981 L qA UNITED STATES NATIONAL OCEANIC AND Office of Marine DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION Pollution Assessment Malcolm Baldrige, John V. Byrne, R.L. Swanson, Secretary Administrator Director ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Many Federal, state, and local agencies as well as Our special thanks go to NOAA's National Ocean academic institutions and firms from the private sector Survey (NOS) who provided ships, personnel, and contributed to the success of this Project. In particular, funds for many field activities conducted by the Project. we are indebted to the U.S. Environmental Protection The assistance by the officers and crews on the ships Agency whose confidence and financial support made was invaluable. this Project possible. We are equally grateful to the Particular credit is due to the hundreds of scientists following organizations for conducting research, use of and skilled technicians whose efforts are recorded in facilities, and scientific and administrative expertise: technical documents and the scientific literature. Their NOAA Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory labors are the substance of this report. NOAA National Ocean Survey Our thanks also go to Joy Godfrey and Gini May, NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service illustrators, for their drawings and illustrations which NOAA Wave Propagation Laboratory added interest and clarity to this and many previous NOAA Environmental Data and Information documents. Service Project Office personnel who brought this Project to Institute of Ocean Sciences, Canada conclusion include: Howard S. Harris, Ronald Kopen- University of Washington ski, Edward Long, Alan Mearns, LCDR Robert Roush, Western Washington State University I-CDR Larry Keister, Billie Barb, Sharon Giese, and University of Alberta Claudia Edgmond. The contributions of past staff Washington State Department of Fisheries members LCDR Ray Reilly, CDR Jimmy Lyons, Dean Washington State Department of Ecology Dale, Barbara Olsen, and Anna Sullivan are deeply Oceanographic Institute of Washington appreciated. Dean Dale and Sidney Stillwaugh, EDIS, Battelle Pacific Northwest Laboratories provided data management services. The authors Mathematical Sciences Northwest, Inc. extend a special thanks to Sharon Giese and Claudia Research Planning Institute, Inc. E-dgmond for the typing and editing of this report. Evans-Hamilton, Inc. An Environmental Assessment of Northern Puget Sound and the Strait of Juan de Fuca A Summary Ronald P. Kopenski and Edward R. Long INTRODUCTION upon typical biota of the Northwest coast was not investigated, since other NOAA projects were addres- Overview sing this problem concurrently. A dedicated effort was made to seek out, analyze, The Environmental Assessment of Northern Puget arid to synthesize all relevant information in order to Sound and the Strait of Juan de Fuca was a five-year avoid any duplication of efforts and to identify and fill research project to address the potential marine in any serious gaps in our knowledge. These data, as environmental and ecological consequences of the well as Project-generated data, reside on magnetic intensified petroleum-related activities anticipated for data tape and are retrievable as simple tape copies, the next decade in the Puget Sound region. Initiated in printouts, and in a variety of other forms to meet user 1975, the Project was one of many funded by the U.S. needs and requirements. Some of these data were Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to provide closely examined with statistical methods to deter- the information needed to identify and cope with the mine their utility in assessing oil spill damage. Special impact of the nation's accelerated development of its publications and products and public meetings pro- energy resources. This research was administered by vided industry, concerned citizens, and Federal, state, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administra- and local agencies with important information about tion's MESA (Marine Ecosystems Analysis) Puget Project activities and findings. Much of the Project Sound Project Office located in Seattle, Washington. research was incorporated into the Bureau of Land The purpose of this research program was to Management's (BLM) Environmental Impact State- measure and characterize the major environmental ment distributed for comment in January 1979 components and processes of the region, such that concerning crude oil transportation systems, especial- the results could be used in planning future petroleum- ly terminals and pipelines, for the Puget Sound region. related activities, in minimizing damage that may be Many of the Project's principal investigators have caused by any oil spills, and in assessing any oil spill participated in public meetings and seminars and have damage that may occur. Existing levels of petroleum been interviewed by the media. Many of these same hydrocarbons in the marine environment were ob- scientists provided expert testimony at hearings served as were the physical, chemical, and biological conducted by the Washington State Energy Facility mechanisms that play an important role in dispersing Site Evaluation Council (EFSEQ in Olympia on siting and removing oil from the marine environment. Tides, of crude oil terminals and pipelines. winds, and water circulation were studied to deter- The results of Project -supported research are mine where a potential oil spill would go and what contained in numerous technical reports and papers shoreline areas could be impacted. A computer oil- listed in the Products section and reflect a broad spill trajectory model and a regional wind model were contribution from Federal, state, and academic developed to guide and assist oil-spill response teams institutions and private firms. The detailed information and clean-up crews. Shoreline areas were studied and contained in these technical reports was written mapped in detail and rated to determine their mostly for biologists, chemists, oceanographers, and sensitivity to oil spills and their capacity to recover. other technical specialists. High priority was given to inventorying and characteri- The objective of this report is to summarize the zing the major marine biological populations, including large body of technical information and to communi- the birds and mammals, that could be affected by oil cate the major findings and ideas to the general public. pollution. Also, the processes such as loss of oil, Only those major results that appeared to be of recolonization and rates of recovery of biota from a greatest general interest to the public were extracted simulated spill were documented. The effect of oil from the technical reports and included here. Boundary Say 49- AK I Roberts - - - - - - - - 100 fathoms C 5 0'- Ilk> aturnol. .0 40 Orcas Shawr) Port Son Juan Son Juan I 48* 30' L(pez D no VANCOUVER u, ISLAND U, Victoria 7:w 1/04A/ Deceotlan Cope, Socke 20'- lottery Neah C4 '\I,- Ho rbor Tatoosh 1, Bay Race Rocks S-th I Sekiu Slip Pt. Pi I lor Pt. New Dungeness c@- to'- Low Pt, lFres@wcler Po t Po t Townse Crescenl gay Angeles Bay Sequirins ection WASHINGTON STATE 5equlm Bay 1. DIscovery Bay 40' 20' 24' 40 20' 123 The Strait of Juan de Fuca and northern Puget Sound. Strait of Juan de Fuca and Northern Geographically, the Strait of Juan de Fuca is a Puget Sound glacially-formed submarine valley extending about 80 miles from its Pacific Ocean entrance at Cape Flattery Historians credit, with some degree of skepticism, eastward to the San Juan Archipelago. The Strait is the discovery of the Strait of Juan de Fuca to a Greek bounded by the more than mile high Olympic Range on navigator named Apostolus Valerianos. Apostolus, the south and the Seymour Range to the north where who purportedly spent 40 years sailing under the elevations exceed 3,900 feet. From its entrance near Spanish flag, was better known to his employers and Cape Flattery for about 50 miles eastward to Race shipmates by his Spanish alias, Juan de Fuca. The story Rocks, the Strait is about 12 miles wide with relatively goes that after piloting the Spanish exploration vessels steep sides, its U-shaped channel being testimony to from Mexico into the Strait of Juan de Fuca in 1592, he the glacial forces which helped to sculpture it. In the returned to Spain to proclaim discovery of the much next 30 miles, the Strait widens abruptly to around 16 sought after Northwest Passage and to await honor, miles. Depths exceed 840 feet in mid-channel off Cape fame, and fortune. Unfortunately for de Fuca, he was Flattery and decrease gradually for around the next 37 scoffed at and his discovery rejected for nearly 200 miles to 600 feet. This gradual decrease in depth years before its rediscovery by Captain Charles continues into the eastern portion, or basin, of the Barkley of the English Navy in 1787. Captain John Strait where the bottom topography becomes more Meares of the English Navy verified Barkley's discovery complex with deep channels separating numerous a year later and thus became the perpetrator in the shoals and banks. In this eastern basin, the Strait joins naming of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, for in his ship's log to the north Haro and Rosario Straits and the passages Barkley proclaimed, "We shall call the (Strait) by the through the San Juan Islands which, in turn, join the name of its original discoverer, Juan de Fuca." Strait of Georgia. Another major arm branches to the The northern Puget Sound region, as used in this southeast through Admiralty Inlet to join the central report, is that area northwest of Whidbey Island, basin of Puget Sound. A lesser branch in the northeast extending northward through the San Juan Islands to corner joins Skagit Bay through Deception Pass. the Canadian border. Although Juan cle Fuca may have sailed through this area into the strait of Georgia, credit for the discovery of the northern Puget Sound region in The Problem 1791 went to Lopez Gonzales de Haro who was under the command of Spanish explorer Francisco de Eliza. Prior to the mid 1970's, the Puget Sound region was Eliza worked for the viceroy of Mexico, one Sefior Don never a busy petroleum center. Only enough crude oil, Juan Vicente de GUemes Pacheco cle Padilla Horcasitas around 300,000 barrels per day, was imported and y Aguayo. Whether to honor his employer or to assure refined to supply the traditional market of the Pacific future patronage, Eliza chartered the island group as Northwest comprising Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. Isla y Archiepelago de San Juan. Headquartered on And, since the major portion of this amount was Vancouver Island, Eliza and his colleagues-Salvaclore supplied via a pipeline from Canada, there was Fidalgo, Jacinto Caarnafio, Cayentano Valdes, and historically only minor shipping of petroleum and Dionisio Alcala' Galiano-explored the island group for petroleum products through the area's waterways. the next two years. Next came the British with some Events started to unfold in 1968 which later would begin new discoveries and new names as well as rediscoveries to focus on the Puget Sound region and to raise and renaming of Spanish discoveries. This process was concerns of the threat of oil pollution to marine repeated by Charles Wilkes of the U.S. Navy and economic, recreational, and aesthetic interests. Commander of the U.S. Exploring Expedition of 1838- The search for a system to carry Alaskan crude oil to 1842. A worshipper of naval heroes of the War of 1812, market was begun in 1968 when the largest crude oil Wilkes named his discoveries after distinguished reservoir in the Western Hemisphere was discovered officers of the war such as Shaw, Decatur, Blakely, at Prudhoe Bay on the North Slope of Alaska, at the Sinclair, and others. Thus the waters and lands of the edge of the Beaufort Sea. By the end of 1972 numerous region reflect the Spanish- English-American influence alternatives on ways to distribute the oil to the lower 48 in addition to that of the original inhabitants, the native states had been suggested and evaluated. One major American Indian. alternative important to the Puget Sound region 3 Northern Tier 600- Refinery Start Up Pipeline Feeding Midwest Canadian (800,000 bbis/days) Pipeline 500- Mobil Shell Texaco Arco supply Ends 0 0 400- 0 Refinery Capacity SN D 300- 0 of WATER-BORqE 200- Ld (Foreign & Domestic) a- U.1 0 100- D Trans - mounta in Pipeline rojected F (Canada) 0 1 1 1 1 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 TIME (years) Crude petroleum inbound to Puget Sound (waterborne and pipeline) as projected in 1975. 300- Estimates@--) Cr based on 11.1 200- 60,000 dead >- weight ton 1-1 Cn (dwt) tankers a- 100- 0 1970 1975 1980 1985 TIME (years) Incoming crude petroleum tanker trips on Puget Sound. 4 involved new pipelines from the U.S. West Coast to been increasing, dropped sharply due to high prices markets east of the Rockies. Because of its closeness to and conservation after the 1973 oil embargo. With the terminus of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline at Valdez, steadily declining demand, it became clear shortly after Alaska, and an abundance of deep harbors, the Strait of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline started production in 1977 Juan de Fuca harbors and nearby ports were envi- that a surplus of Alaskan crude oil would occur on the sioned as potential crude oil superports. Recognition "lest Coast. By 1978, the volume of Alaskan crude oil would later come to places, among others, like Port reached about 1.2 million barrels per day; this created a Angeles, Low Point, Freshwater Bay, dherry Point, Surplus of about 600,000 barrels per day on the West and Burrows Bay, as candidates for a proposed Coast. The surplus was shipped via tanker through the terminal and starting point of a pipeline to carry crude Panama Canal to ports on the Gulf of Mexico and the oil eastward to refineries in Minnesota. East Coast. In addition, large supertankers which were In 1974, another event occurred which directly capable of transporting more oil longer distances at a affected the amount of crude oil moved on Washington cheaper per-barrel transportation cost than had previ- waters and stimulated and intensified the issue of a ously been possible were being placed into service. west-to-east pipeline. Historically, a large share of U.S. These tankers, however, needed off-loading ports with crude oil imports supplying the Northern Tier States of deep waters and room to maneuver. The West Coast Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, had deep water-in Washington, Oregon, and Califor- Minnesota, Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, and nia-and the ports had room and space to accommo- Ohio came from Canada. The volume imported from date the new tankers. Canada was averaging around 800,000 barrels per day. The search for a crude oil transportation system to The imported crude oil entered the United States deliver Alaskan and other crudes from the Pacific through pipelines from Canada to Washington, Mon- Coast to the Northern Tier and inland states recently tana, North Dakota, and Minnesota. In late 1974, the has narrowed to the Puget Sound region, especially the Government of Canada announced plans to reduce Port Angeles and Low Point areas on the Strait of Juan and eventually curtail exports of crude oil to the United de Fuca. Proposed crude oil terminal sites such as States by 1981. Many U.S. refineries using Canadian Cherry Point, Anacortes, Burrows Bay, and other crude were located in Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio where locations in Washington were considered and rejected supply alternatives existed through pipelines extending for various reasons. Long Beach, California, initially a from the Midwest, Southwest, and Gulf Coast. How- strong candidate, was also withdrawn from considera- ever, some refineries in the Northern Tier area had no tion. satisfactory alternative sources of crude oil. The Four companies have filed applications with the Federal Energy Administration (FEA), now the Depart- Secretary of Interior to construct and operate a crude ment of Energy (DOE), established an allocation oil terminal and transportation system. Only two program that gave first priority to those Northern Tier directly affect the Puget Sound region. The Northern refineries most dependent on Canadian oil. In addition, Tier Pipeline Company proposes to build a marine the FEA determined that major refineries in the Puget terminal at Port Angeles and to lay about 1,500 miles of Sound area of Washington located at Cherry Point, new pipeline to Clearbrook, Minnesota. The Trans Ferndale, and Anacortes, could receive crude oil by Mountain Oil Pipe Line Corporation proposes to build tanker to replace Canadian imports and thus ordered a marine terminal at Low Point with 150 miles of new that Canadian shipments to Washington be completely pipeline in the State of Washington to ultimately phased out by 1977. This action would require the connect to existing lines from Edmonton, Alberta, to supplying of Washington refineries solely by more or the Midwest states. The Department of Interior's larger tankers, or both. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has completed During the planning and early construction stages of Final Environmental Impact Statements covering all the Trans-Alaska Pipeline, the expected pipeline flow four applications. In addition, the two companies was not anticipated to exceed present West Coast (Northern Tier and Trans Mountain) have applied to demand. At that time, crude oil prices had remained the State of Washington for the necessary permits and relatively stable since the 1950's, and until 1970 the approval for construction. Both applications included major oil producing states had held production below underwater pipeline crossings near or in Admiralty full capacity. Low-cost foreign crude overshadowed the Inlet, though when the Project was initiated, no world petroleum market. However, the nation's de- underwater crossing was planned. mand for petroleum and refined products, which had 1 Boundary Bay P@ 49- t Roberts Lv- 5 0'- aturnal. -41C, 40 N Orcas Port Son Juan San Jua 1, 48"_ 30 %0. 44% VANCOUVER , op ez ISLAND Victoria Burr Sooke Cape Harbor lottery 2 0'- Neah do Bay %1411, 4,1111111. .00 Smum 1. Sekiu i '44b .0 .40 Pi I lot Pt. PROPOSED 40 Dungeness SO NORTHERN TIER PIPE LINE 10'- EdIz Hook Low P t. Crescent rt Port ownsen A rugeles Sequtme 7-R",V,,@SOPOS@D WASHINGTON STATE PIP6 Af0(j/VrAjjV Protection L /IVE 40' 20' 124- 40, 20- 12 3' Oil tanker routes to refineries and Northern Tier Pipeline Company and Trans Mountain Pipe Corporation proposed crude oil pipeline routes. APPROACH In early 1974, two Federal task forces were formed by the White House Office of Management and Budget under direction of the Council on Environmental Quality to develop recommendations for implementing Interagency Energy/Environment the program based on the AEC report. The two interagency task forces were to recommend how the Research and Development Federal funds requested by the President through the Program EPA could be allocated to support the most effective Federal energy research and development program. The two groups examined the areas of health and Although the Federal Government has been a major environmental effects of energy use and pollutant sponsor of energy research and development since the control technology for energy systems. Their reports early 1950's, environmental considerations associated recommended Federal funding in these two areas with energy development did not receive major public which would result both in closing existing research visibility until the early 1970's. During that period, the gaps and eliminating duplications of effort and in Federal Government's major emphasis was on the assessing potential long-range effects, or adverse development of nuclear power. Also at that time, health and ecological effects, of rapid energy develop- energy was plentiful and cheap, and the process of ment. initiating and utilizing ecological information in the Based on the recommendations and guidance planning and development of energy resource-oriented contained in the AEC report and the reports of the two projects was just beginning to ferment. The Federal working groups, the Interagency Energy/Environment Government's role was seen as a limited one, for the Research and Development Program was inaugurated nation believed that industry would provide the in 1975. The task of implementing this five-year, multi- solutions to the country's energy needs. The under- million dollar interagency plan fell to the Office of lying assumption of this belief was based on the then Energy, Minerals, and Industry within the Environ- widely prevalent view that the nation had nearly mental Protection Agency's Office of Research and inexhaustible domestic oil and gas resources. The Development. This massive effort became known as Mideast War and subsequent oil embargo of 1973 the Federal Interagency Energy/Environment R&D shattered this belief and helped to intensify the Nation's Program. EPA was given legal responsibility for the awareness of and concern about environmental prob- proper disbursement, monitoring, and control of the lems associated with rapid energy development. financial resources it transferred, or passed-through, to As events began to unfold in the Mideast in early the 17 Federal agencies that participated in this 1973, public and congressional pressure began to build program. This R&D program is still in progress. for a solution to the long gas lines and crude oil Research and development under the Interagency shortages. In June, the President directed the Chair- Energy/Environment R&D Program was separated man of the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC), Dixie into two groups: Processes and Effects and Control Lee Ray, to recommend an integrated energy research Technology. Five categories in the Processes and and development program for the nation. The AEC Effects R&D group include efforts to determine what a report "The Nation's Energy Future" (often referred to pollutant is, how it travels through the environment, as the Ray Report) was completed in December 1973. how much is present, at what level it is dangerous to That program, based upon the work of 23 Federal humans and to other living things, and what is its overall departments and agencies, as well as many experts impact on all segments of the energy/ environment from the private sector, recommended a five-year, $10 complex. The Control Technology R&D group in- billion Federal energy research and development cludes nine categories related primarily to the produc- budget. The report identified five tasks (related to tion and utilization of coal and to nuclear energy. The energy conservation, oil and gas, coal, nuclear energy, Ecological Effects category in the Processes and Effects and advanced energy resources) required to support group is of special significance to the Puget Sound the goal of "regaining and maintaining energy self- region. Ecological Effects R&D is concerned with the sufficiency at minimum dollars, environmental, and potential short- and long-term effects of energy social costs." In addition, a supporting environmental development and use on crops, plants, wildlife, and effects research program was recommended. On the natural habitats. In the Puget Sound region, this basis of the AEC report, the President's budget for program research effort relates to potential energy- Fiscal Year 1975 requested funding through the budget related environmental problems in ocean, coastal, and of the Environmental Protection Agency for the estuarine ecosystems resulting from increased tanker expanded Federal effort in energy/environment re- traffic, petroleum transfer operations, and refinery search and development. capacity. 7 INTERAGENCY RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CATEGORIES PROCESSES AND EFFECTS CONTROL TECHNOLOGY Characterization, Measurement Energy Resource Extraction Monitoring Physical/ Chemical Coal Cleaning Environmental Transport Processes Flue Gas Cleaning Direct Combustion Health Effects Synthetic Fuels Nuclear Waste Control Ecological Effects Thermal Control Improved Efficiency Integrated Assessment Advanced Energy Systems FINDINGS The statements in this section are arranged in the following order: (1) the present level of oil pollution in the area, (2) the chemical changes that may occur to This Project, An Environmental Assessment of oil if it were spilled, (3) the processes that may disperse Northern Puget Sound and the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and transport oil, (4) the biota that may be affected by resulted in the publication of more than 100 technical oil spills, (5) the relative sensitivity of various habitat reports, papers, and special publications listed in the types to oil spills, (6) the effects of oil upon and the Products section. A few other reports have yet to be rates of recovery of oiled communities, and (7) the issued, and it is expected that additional information utility of the environmental data in assessing oil spill will be gleaned from the reports and data in the course damage. These topics are generally in the order of of future and related research. concerns expressed during an oil spill. That is, duringa Much of the material contained in the published spill one would worry about how much oil is in the literature is highly technical and difficult to understand environment now, what will happen to spilled oil, where without extensive training in one or more scientific will it go and what plants and animals are likely to be disciplines. This section on Findings, on the other hand, impacted, what areas should be protected, how long attempts to summarize and communicate this techni- will recovery take, and what damage was caused? cal literature to the general public. The section is organized into a number of statements The biota of the area are not now stressed by followed by an explanation, brief rationale, or argument petroleum hydrocarbons. in support of each statement. The statements are based on facts and conclusions presented in the Petroleum-related activities currently take place in technical literature as well as from expert testimony the region and likely result in the entry of some amount given by Project-sponsored researchers at Washington of oil, or petroleum hydrocarbons, into the marine State Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council (EFSEC) environment. Thus, it is reasonable to expect that hearings in Olympia, Washington, concerning the some parts of the region have some oil contamination, Northern Tier Pipeline Company's application for site but that most of the region is oil-free. How much oil is in certification for an oil port at Port Angeles and a the marine environment now and where is it? In order pipeline across the State of Washington. In some cases to answer these questions, a pilot study was initiated to the statements are simply the rephrasing of concerns determine the best way to perform an areawide survey. expressed by environmental administrators, planners, An approach involving sampling and chemical analysis and concerned citizens. No attempt was made to cite of beach sediment and mussels was developed. The references in this report. Instead, the reader is sediment samples were intended to provide long-term encouraged to consult the literature in the Products accumulation information, while the mussels would section for further information and discussions. provide short-term or recent oil-contamination levels. Samples of beach sediment and mussels were taken Circulation in the Strait of Juan de Fuca has been each season for a year at 23 sites throughout the area shown to be extremely complex and energetic, and at 10 of these sites for another year. Concentra- especially in the eastern basin and near the entrance to tions of petroleum hydrocarbons in these samples were Admiralty Inlet. A sill, or underwater ridge, in Admiralty found to be relatively low, far below what would be Inlet results in vigorous vertical mixing throughout the expected in highly industrialized areas or where spills water column. During a strong flood tide, an oil slick continually take place. For example, the concentra- introduced at the north entrance of Admiralty Inlet tions of selected aromatic hydrocarbons (one class of could be carried on the surface into or through compounds that is a major component of oil) rarely Admiralty Inlet, the extent of travel determined by the exceeded 20 parts hydrocarbons per billion parts strength and duration of the flood current. In contrast sediment (ppb). Hydrocarbon concentrations in mus- to the behavior of a surface slick, suspended and sel tissue rarely exceeded 200 ppb. In contrast to these soluble pollutants during a strong flood tide could be concentrations, marine sediments near Tacoma and transported through Admirlty Inlet to mid and bottom Seattle are known to contain many thousands (for depths in the deep basin to the south, The intruding example, over 50,000) ppb. Among the 23 sites, the water would tend to seek a depth at which its density highest concentrations were found at March Point near equals that of the resident water. Since the net the Anacortes refineries, at Sandy Point near a marina, estuarine flow in these lower layers is southward, False Bay on San Juan Island, Ediz Hook at Port pollutants trapped in these waters would be expected Angeles, and Baadah Point near Neah Bay. From these to travel southward to the head of the system in Puget data, it is safe to assume that the biota in the area are Sound. not stressed by oil pollution, except, possibly, in highly Elsewhere in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, researchers localized areas. have observed numerous rips and frontal zones at the water surface where floatable materials often collect. Oil spilled in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, especially These zones often represent the convergence of two in the eastern part, could transit Admiralty Inlet currents where one sinks beneath the other. Oil, into Puget Sound. whether in emulsion or solution, or attached to sinking particles, could be refluxed or carried downward by Crude oil is a complex mixture of natural products these sinking waters into the lower layer that flows and includes many thousands of different compounds. inland. The situation could be similar in the highly The composition of crude oil can vary widely from one turbulent and constricted passages of the San Juan producing field to another and can even differ from Islands. batch to batch in the same well. What happens to crude oil in Puget Sound waters depends to a great extent on Microbial degradation of crude oil on water or the composition of the oil and the physical and chemical beaches is likely to be slow due to limited nutrient changes the oil undergoes in the marine environment. auailability and low temperatures. Biological processes also play an important role in determining the fate of petroleum. Certain microorganisms, notably many bacteria, and When crude oil is spilled in marine waters, physical to a lesser extent, fungi and yeasts, have the ability to and chemical processes begin to react immediately. utilize complex hydrocarbons as sources of energy (or These processes include spreading to form slicks, food), and, thus, provide a biological system for the evaporation of the more volatile components, solution natural clean-up of spilled oil. Studies of this process of some compounds into the water column, emulsifica- were conducted for two years with water and beach tion, photochemical oxidation, and sedimentation. To sediment samples collected from more than 40 sites. All see how oil could transit Admiralty Inlet from the Strait tests were performed in laboratory conditions simulat- of Juan de Fuca, it is necessary to examine some of the ing those of the study area. physical and chemical processes acting to disperse and No chemical change in crude oil attributable to transport a potential oil spill and the physical oceanog- microbiological processes took place over a 28-day raphy of the region. period under "natural conditions." A minor amount of Oil immediately begins to spread when released on degradation took place when the studies were ex- the water's surface, and its rate of spreading is tended to three months. When nutrients (nitrogen, determined to some measure by its chemical composi- phosphorus) were added to the water samples, tion. The spreading slick will be shaped and moved by maximum rates of oil degradation of 50.5, 13.5, 37.7, surface currents driven by tides, wind, waves, and and 14.6 mg of oil removed per liter of water per day other forces. Some compounds in the oil will pass into were recorded at 8* Centigrade for samples taken from solution and be incorporated into the water column. Oil Fidalgo Bay, Ediz Hook, Peabody Creek (near Port can also adsorb onto particles. As a result of this Angeles), and Dungeness Spit, respectively. Negligible process, particles become denser or heavier than the activity was observed in samples taken from Point surrounding water, and they can sink to water levels Partridge. Thus, as indicated by the values above, oil that equal their density or to the bottom. degradation potential, particularly in the Port Angeles 9 650 2500 z 0 Ca Er 200- 0 Cr 0 150- < 0 of 100- w w -i LU Z 50- w 01 (9c < ND ND Cr 0- w A\ eel 0, 01 x 1 2 3 4 6 7 8 9 11 11 2 13 14 15 1 2 16 17 18 19 2 23 SfrGlf Of Georgio 4@ 13 5 3 0/ 2 0,0 21 19 2 Relative hydrocarbon levels in intertidal sediment (hatched bars) and mussels (clear bars) collected at 23 sites. *Data are based upon summed concentrations of 10 aromatic hydrocarbon concentrations. ND = none detected. 10 Oxidation by sunlight Tidal and Estuarine Current Transport Evaporation -Cr Aerosols Spreading j@)r Wind I ---------- W -in-oil emulsion ater MOP* ater emulsion Oil-in-w B -degradation ic, Solution of water soluble components J. Mixing and Surface Return ,"Sinking on silt-- -Sea bottoff` A@;-@ .Chemical and bacterial- degradation Major processes affecting the movement and fate of oil in the marine environment. area, was highest in areas subjected to chronic inputs of As used here, the term "sorption" refers to the ability oil or other hydrocarbons and lowest in areas distant of suspended particles to either attract and hold from these inputs. petroleum hydrocarbons to the surface of the particles A lag time of 20 to 30 days usually was observed or to attract and incorporate them into the particles. between the time nutrient -enriched water or beach Suspended particulate material, such as particles of silt, samples were exposed to oil and the time when clay, and organic debris, carried to the marine waters degradation took place. This time lag was smallest in by local rivers has the property of taking up or areas where chronic hydrocarbon inputs were great- accumulating oil. Laboratory tests with suspended est. About one-third of the weight of crude oil was material from the Fraser River and Skagit River, the removed by mechanical weathering, another one-third two major sources of freshwater and sediment to the by microbial degradation, leaving a residue of about Strait, showed that these particles can accommodate one-third the original weight of oil. up to their own weight in oil. As particles increasingly The overall implication of these data is that over the sorb more oil, they increase in density and can short time period of an oil spill, say one week, microbial eventually sink to the bottom, thus providing an degradation would not be particularly important in effective means of removing spilled oil from the surface changing the amount or composition of spilled oil under and near surface layers of the water column. "natural conditions". Over a longer period of time, During an oil spill, this sorption/sedimentation however, ultimate removal of oil would be facilitated by process could be important in reducing the effects of oil this process. upon surface-dwelling marine organisms such as plankton, juvenile fishes, and marine birds. However, Sorption of oil by suspended particulate matter is this process would be effective only in areas where unlikely to play a major role in removing oil from suspended particles were concentrated. The lowest the open waters of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. concentrations of suspended particles encountered in SURFACE Complex water circulation in the Straitof Juan de Fuca and northern Puget Sound region makes it difficult to accurately predict the mouement of spilled oil. SUBSURFACE Water currents, tides, and winds are the most FLOAT important factors to consider in predicting the fate of an oil spill in the region. For three years, Project researchers studied water circulation throughout the length of the Strait of Juan de Fuca to determine the physical oceanographic processes that would disperse and transport a potential oil spill. Tides, currents, water temperature, and salinity were recorded at numerous locations and depths, along with weather data such as wind, sea level pressure, and air temperature. Standard CURRENT METER oceanographic recording instruments such as current meters, water bottles, thermometers, and conductivity- temperature -depth recorders were used to obtain a large number of measurements. Measurements taken by these instruments were augmented by satellite infrared imagery to detect and track the movement of water parcels and by a high-frequency radar system developed by NOAA, called CODAR, that can trans- mit signals from shore to instantaneously measure and map the surface currents over an extensive area. Specially designed objects that drift with the currents, called "drift sheets" and "drift cards", were put onto the water surface in great numbers to supplement the detailed current observation program and to aid in determining trajectories of a potential oil spill and the coastal resources that might be impacted. ACOUSTIC Water flow in the Strait of Juan de Fuca may be ANCHOR RELEASE characterized as a two-layered estuarine-type circula- tion. This two-layered system consists of a well- ANCHOR developed fresher and less dense upper layer directed seaward at about 0.4-0.8 knot with denser, more saline ocean water directed landward at around 0.2 knot in the lower layer. The fresher upper layer reflects the Typical subsurface current meter mooring. discharge primarily from the Fraser and Skagit Rivers and from lesser rivers and streams in the Puget Sound region. In the absence of other physical forces, this estuarine circulation might support the commonly held the study areas were in the open water of the western belief that surface-trapped material would be rapidly and central Strait; the highest were near the river carried out to sea. However, other forces are super- mouths and among the northern San Juan Islands imposed on this estuarine circulation and greatly north to the Fraser River. complicate the picture. Oil-laden particles, once removed from the water's The daily ebbing and flooding of the tide and their surface, would tend to accumulate on the bottom, associated tidal currents add another dimension to the especially in protected, low-energy areas like embay- circulation pattern. Spring tide heights range from ments. It is possible, then, that oil could accumulate in about 10-13 feet and tidal currents of 1V2-2Y2 knots are the detritus and mud of these protected areas and common, and often exceed 6 knots in restricted subsequently become incorporated into the food webs passages. Tidal ebb and flow currents are responsible that ultimately depend largely upon consumption of for the back-and-forth motion of the water and this detritus. (The role of detritus in food webs is contribute to the formation of eddies on the lee side of discussed in more detail later in this report.) promontories, such as Dungeness Spit, and the Overall, then, during an oil spill, oil sorption and formation of convergence fronts where opposing sedimentation would likely be relatively unimportant in waters meet, mix, and oftentimes, sink. Mean flow in deep open waters due to the lack of suspended matter. the eastern part, or basin, is further complicated by However, it would likely be very important in nearshore topography and the three major channels which empty areas or river plumes where suspended matter is most into the basin, the result being a weak clockwise concentrated and very efficient at attracting and circulation pattern in this area. With the exception of a sorbing oil. net eastward flow in the nearshore waters between 12 Ediz Hook and Dungeness Spit, little else is known about water transport along the shores of the Strait. Other forces, not entirely understood, tend to direct the flow southward across channel at the surface, or perpendicular to the axis of the Strait, especially in the western Strait. 15 L Regional wind patterns as well as localized winds 4- over the water also complicate the circulation, but the magnitude of their contribution is uncertain. Intrusions 22- 17 87 @3 of Pacific Ocean water generated by coastal winds have 2 13 been observed year-round in the Strait. These intru- sions of coastal water have the effect of reversing the 2 normal estuarine out-strait surface flow and have been observed as far east as Dungeness Spit. A Much has been learned about the general circulation patterns in the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the physical processes involved. However, the answer to the WA S H I N G T 0 N'.,.@- question, "Where would an oil spill go?" is dependent upon the location of the spill and the direct or indirect influences of many of the variables discussed previ- ously, that is, tides, winds, currents, etc. The accuracy L .. ... . of the answer, or our ability to predict the trajectory of an oil spill, is closely tied to the rate the variables change Recovery positions of drift cards released during and the length of prediction desired. For example, April 24-30, 1978, in vicinity of Port Angeles (see consider an oil spill in mid-channel directly north of Port insert for release sites). Numbered dots indicate Angeles. In the absence of any wind, it is expected that multiple recoveries. the oil would be carried by the estuarine out-strait surface flow toward the Pacific Ocean. An out-strait blowing wind would accelerate the movement and a slight in-strait wind would retard the speed of transport. pipeline is proposed that would carry the crude In either case, the wind would impart some new eastward to a terminus in Clearbrook, Minnesota. motions to the trajectory of oil. An intrusion of Pacific Project researchers conducted a number of studies Ocean surface water into the Strait during the oil's trek in order to determine the surface path of a potential oil to the ocean would reverse this flow and could carry the spill in Port Angeles and nearby approaches and the oil into the eastern part of the Strait. Regardless of the shoreline areas that might be impacted. Surface drift direction of oil transport, lateral spreading of oil would sheets and current drogues which move with the water occur, possibly resulting in fouling of beaches along the surface and subsurface layers, respectively, were spill trajectory. Now, consider the same oil spill, but released and tracked by boat and aircraft. Numerous under different conditions. With strong, persistent drift cards were released and their onshore recovery westerly winds and a flooding tide, the oil would be times and locations reported by card finders. All expected to move eastward into the eastern basin. available historical oceanographic data from 1932-1979 There it would be carried and dispersed by the complex were collected, analyzed, and synthesized. The data circulation in this area. On a day-to-day basis with included observations of tides, currents, winds, fresh- updated weather information the trajectory of oil on water runoff, water properties, and the transport of two water can be predicted with a fair degree of accuracy, previous oil spills, suspended sediment, and pulp mill assuming that the kind and location of the spill are effluent. A hydraulic tide model was constructed to known, along with the stage of the tide and direction provide the continuity in time and space necessary for and speed of the winds. Beyond the day-to-day the adequate synthesis of the data. The model forecasts, additional information is needed before compared favorably with actually observed water accurate long-range predictions can be made about the movements. physical fate of an oil spill. Results of the studies suggest that the surface water layers in the harbor may have a residence period of Oil spilled in Port Angeles Harbor and nearby several days to a week. The residence time for water at surface water would most likely reach Dungeness depth is unknown because of insufficient data. The data Spit and points farther to the east. would seem to indicate that an oil spill in the harbor would remain in the harbor long enough to be cleaned Port Angeles Harbor, located behind Ediz Hook in up or prevented from escaping. However, the location the Strait of Juan de Fuca, is under serious considera- and size of a spill in the harbor as well as the tide cycle, tion as a crude oil marine terminal. It is proposed that wind speed and direction during and after a spill could tankers in the harbor transfer crude oil through alter considerably the residence time for a surface submarine pipelines to storage facilities located ashore pollutant. For example, of 100 drift cards released in the at Green Point. From Green Point, a 42-inch diameter entrance to Port Angeles Harbor off Ediz Hook on April 13 27, 1978, 61 cards were recovered the next day on Dungeness Spit. This suggests that a very short residence time is possible. Once outside the harbor, both the predominant 49- westerly winds at Port Angeles and the eastward nearshore water surface transport between Ediz Hook and Dungeness Spit would tend to move a surface pollutant toward Dungeness Spit and eastward. This transport and dispersion were illustrated by the behavior of a previous oil spill, suspended sediment from local rivers, creeks, and eroding Cliffs; effluent from a Port Angeles pulp and paper mill; drift sheets and drift cards released in and near the harbor; and dye 48'- released in the hydraulic tide model. Concentrations and the effects of pulp mill effluent released in Port Angeles Harbor have been observed as far east as Dungeness Spit. Model studies indicate that surface contaminants could reach behind Dungeness Spit and to the mouths of Sequim and Discovery Bays. Recoveries onshore of drift sheets and drift cards show similar transport and dispersion from Port Angeles Harbor, with drift cards reaching a wide area including Sequim and Discovery Bays, Puget Sound, Whidbey 47'- Basin, and the Strait of Georgia. Oct-Mar Winds could be important in the transport of a Jun- Sep surface and near-surface waterborne contami- nant such as oil. The effect of the winds on the water is to produce surface currents by transferring energy from the winds 124' 122' to the waves and then into surface currents. A rough rule of thumb for this effect is that wind currents usually Prevailing surface winds. move at approximately 3 percent of the wind speed. Theoretically, a 20-knot wind blowing persistently in a nearly constant direction for a half day or more should generate a surface current of about 0.6 knot directed shoreline. Under some circumstances, the cross- approximately 10 degrees to the right of the wind. channel component of the local winds could be These wind-generated surface currents will either sufficient to move pollutants shoreward to the north or strengthen or weaken other currents in the Strait, such south. Coastal storms also can dramatically affect the as tidal and estuarine currents. Since the estuarine flow circulation in the entire Strait of Juan de Fuca. These is about 0.4 to 0.8 knot, the movement of floating oil storms, associated with persistently strong south- may be controlled by winds under some circumstances. southwesterly coastal winds can cause reversals in the Because of the funneling effect of the mountain normal upper layer flow in the Strait. When these winds ranges that border the Strait of Juan de Fuca, winds in persist for three or more days, the sea level surface the western portion of the Strait tend to flow either up- rises at the entrance to the Strait. This piling-up of strait or out-strait. Generally, winds are westerly during coastal water results in an in-strait propagation of the summer months (June -September) and easterly coastal water and reversal of normal out-strait flow in during the winter season (October-May). East of Race the upper layer. Reversals have been observed both Rocks in the eastern portion of the Strait, winds are during the winter and summer for periods up to 10 days more confused and complicated during both seasons. with speeds of over 1 knot off Neah Bay with Pacific Winter weather is usually dominated by low pressure Ocean water propagating eastward off Dungeness Spit. systems, or cyclonic storms, that migrate across or The duration and extent of reversals vary with the north of the region which temporarily redirect the strength and persistence of the southwesterly winds off winds in the Strait from easterlies to westerlies. Also, in the coast and can occur in any season. winter, high pressure systems located north of the region can direct cold continental air southward to alter The potential for an oil spill beaching increases the wind patterns. with eastward distance into the Strait of Juan de Besides the local seasonal wind-driven currents, Fuca. there are other wind patterns that could have a significant effect in moving surface pollutants about. Surface waters of the Strait of Juan de Fuca mostly Seldom do winds in the western Strait parallel the undergo a net seaward transport of around 0.4 to 0.8 14 many tidal cycles and varying wind conditions before it reaches some final destination. Oil may come ashore and subsequently be relaunched repeatedly. -4 The 80-mile-long Strait of Juan de Fuca has been hown to be a highly energetic and complex system, the -omplexity dramatically increasing inward from the lk Pacific Ocean. Superimposed on the estuarine circula- tion which eventually transports surface waters out to sea are the water motions associated with the tides and winds and the reversals that propagate up the Strait. Because of these and the complex patterns of eddies, fronts, and shore-directed current components, the 7,L- potential for beaching an oil spill greatly increases eastward into this 80-mile-iong waterway. Areas of the shoreline with rock, cobble, or -mud habitats are most impor- protected mixed tant for intertidal organisms. The amounts and kinds of organisms, such as barnacles, clams, and mussels, that inhabit the inter- tidal zone vary from habitat type to habitat type. The intertidal zone is that part of the shoreline that is 'IA repeatedly exposed at low tide and submerged at high tide. For two years, each major habitat type (for example, rock, sand, mud) that occurs in the study area was sampled at representative locations seasonal- ly. Deeper water (5 and 10 meters) organisms, called subtidal benthos, were also sampled at the same locations. They live within the bottom sediments or attached to the bottom and include clams, worms, shrimp, and kelps. Ten locations were studied along the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Using similar methods, the Washington DepartMent of Ecology sampled numer- ous locations in the San Juan Islands and northern Puget Sound. The biota that inhabit the intertidal zone were most 44 -mud habitat samples collected at abundant in mixed Jamestown east of Dungeness; a maximum of over 50,000 organisms were found per square meter of beach. Abundance was usually highest at the lower tidal elevations. Samples taken at rock and cobble locations also showed high abundance. Organism Black and white photograph of satellite infrared abundance was often lowest at sand and gravel image of Puget Sound taken September 13, 1979, beaches. showing intrusion of warmer (darker) Pacific The total numbers of species found was highest (over Ocean water into the Strait of Juan de, Fuca. 160 species) at locations with rocky habitat followed by Shorelines were darkened for clarity. those with cobble, mixed-mud, sand and gravel habitats. Because many of the organisms associated with rock are large and/or have thick shells, the total weight of biota was highest (as much as 11,000 grams knot. This observation implies that a contaminant per square meter) at rocky locations. trapped in the surface layer would be rapidly carried The biota found along the Strait were more diverse out the Strait to the Pacific Ocean before touching and dense, especially on rock, than those found in the shore or beaching. It must be kept in mind that net San Juan Islands and roughly equivalent to those found transport is the result or sum of numerous motions of a in the Anacortes-Bellingham area. Some species found particle or parcel of water. Net transport does not in the western part of the Strait were also known to single out the vagaries of motions caused by the tides, occur on the outer coast but do not occur inland. Very winds, and other current-driving forces and, therefore, few organisms found on rock were found in mixed-mud does not represent the actual path of a parcel of water. or other unconsolidated beaches. Cobble beaches had It is highly likely that a surface pollutant such as oil a mixture of species from both rock and unconsoli- would travel a rather circuitous route, especially over dated habitat types. 15 60,000- 50,000- West 1976/77 C@- 1977/78 Z40,000- E LU 30,000- 0 z z 20,000- 7) CD 10,000- 0- -%t3tO +66+3tO -6t3+0 *6t3`0 `6 t3 +0 t6 +3 +0 +6 ""1 +0 +6 +3 +0 +6 +3 +0 +6 +3 +0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Kydaka Pillar Twin Tongue Morse Dunge- James- Beckett North North Beach Point Rivers Point Creek ness town Point Beach Beach sand) rock) (gravel) (rock) (cob b le (gravel) (m. mud) (m. mud) (cobble) (sand) VAG V i c t* 0 r i a Cape F I a t t e S 7- RA IT 0 JU4' DE F-UCA 2 Clal lam - 3 .: 4 6 10 B y PO! 9.*'* Angeles Olympic Peninsula, Washington Average abundance of intertidal organisms collected at three tidal elevations (+6,+3, +0 feet) at 10 sites. 16 Organism abundance, numbers of species, and total dispersing oil or oil/detritus mixtures. The accumula- weight were usually highest in spring and summer. The tion and incorporation of petroleum hydrocarbons into kinds of species varied seasonally. Small-scale varia- muddy and detrital sediments could result in prolonged tions in habitat type, exposure to waves, slope of the recycling of persistent compounds through the food shore, water quality, and other environmental factors web. Since oil could remain bound to these sediments also contributed to considerable variations in the kinds for years, repopulation could be very slow. Newarrivals and abundance of biota with time. may be subjected to lingering oil pollution for many Subtidal benthic organisms were somewhat more years. Many of the detritus-consuming crustaceans abundant in areas with mixed-mud habitats than in that are important members of the epibenthic zoo- other areas. Abundance was lowest in areas with plankton were found to be sensitive to the effects of oil gravel. Numbers of species were roughly equivalent in (discussed below). Major repercussions to animals, all areas, showing a small increase from the western such as juvenile salmon that are highly dependent upon end of the Strait to the east. The weight of these epibenthic zooplankton, could occur in the event of the organisms also increased eastward along the Strait, loss or contamination of these organisms during an oil except where a highly productive rocky location in the $pill. western Strait was sampled. Areas of the shoreline with protected unconsoli- Small detritus-consuming animals are most con- dated habitats are most important for many centrated in protected nearshore habitats, are nearshore fishes. very sensitive to the effects of oil, and are the Fish that live in the surf zone and nearshore waters major prey group for many other animals. were sampled at eight locations along the Strait seasonally for up to three years. Sampling was done Studies of the feeding habits of many animals found with three methods. Trawl nets towed behind a boat in the area and examination of available information were used to collect fishes that live in water about five have shown that food webs based upon detritus- meters deep, usually on the fringe of the kelp beds. consumpton are the most important of the food webs Beach seines, another kind of net, were deployed by occurring in nearshore habitats. Detritus is formed by rowboat and pulled ashore by hand to sample fishes the decomposition of organic plant and animal material. that live in the shallow water in or just outside the surf It accumulates primarily in protected embayments, zone. Aquarium dip nets and similar devices were used mudflats, and eelgrass beds, though it may originate to collect fishes that occupy tide pools or depressions elsewhere, such as at kelp beds and marshes. under cobbles. The kinds and numbers of fish were Small crustaceans, such as copepods, amphipods, determined and the stomach contents were examined and other shrimp-like organisms, and to a lesser extent, to determine dietary habits. The same kinds of trawls other animal groups, living near or on the bottom are and beach seines were also used by the Washington called epibenthic zooplankton. They are the initial Department of Ecology in nearshore fish studies at consumers of detritus. Samples taken along the Strait about 15 locations in the San Juan Islands and northern showed that these animals were up to 10 times more Puget Sound. It is important to note that no studies concentrated in the protected eelgrass beds southeast were undertaken to characterize commerical fisheries. of Dungeness Spit than elsewhere. Many of the bottom For example, adult salmon populations were not fishes that inhabit nearshore waters of the Strait are sampled, though juvenile salmon were recorded as a highly dependent upon epibenthic zooplankton; thus, part of beach seine and trawl catches. these fishes are very abundant in protected nearshore Numbers of species, total abundance, and weight of habitats. During their migration to the Pacific Ocean, nearshore fish caught in beach seines were often juvenile salmon from all the rivers in the Puget Sound greatest in samples collected in protected, mixed-mud region pass through the Strait and feed almost habitats, particularly at Beckett Point in the mouth of exclusively upon the epibenthic zooplankton in the Discovery Bay. Fish catches at exposed sand and shallow water along the shoreline. The majority of the gravel beaches (e.g., Morse Creek, Dungeness Spit, marine bird species in the area feed upon small fish and West Beach) in the Strait usually were low. However, bottom invertebrates and the majority occur in shallow infrequent capture of schooling fish such as smelt or nearshore waters, salt marshes, and mudflats. Brant herring sometimes resulted in unusually large catches feed upon eelgrass. Densities and total number@ of at these sites. For example, a very large catch was marine birds were highest year-round in protected made at Kyclaka Beach in the summer of 1977. The rich embayments and mudflats such as those that occur fish fauna captured in beach seines at Beckett Point southeast of Dungeness Spit. The most common consisted mainly of flatfish, sculpins, perch, and cods. marine mammal in the area, the harbor seal, also eats As many as 30 species were caught at Beckett Point per bottom fishes and invertebrates, which, in turn, sampling period; whereas, rarely more than 20 species consume epibenthic zooplankton. were caught elsewhere. Nearly 20 grams of fish per Circumstantial and experimental evidence indicate square meter of water were collected in individual that detritus-based food webs are very sensitive to the samples at Beckett Point. Similar data collected in the effects of oil. Detritus tends to sorb oil droplets. It San Juan Islands and northern Puget Sound confirm usually is most concentrated in protected areas where that protected mixed-mud habitats are highly impor- winds and water currents have little effect in diluting or tant for shallow-water fish. 17 M rsh h- Se@@ Estuari e a Bran Mors Mo c rophy t i c Litter r Algae Colanoid Copepod.- Juvenile Salmon p Birds -Z- .@50@@ eaperc Bacteria Fungii Mysid Harpacticoid Eel Copepod 40C,6 Gross Isopod @)00 D 4 e IVD Protozoa Detritus Part icle Cumacean Juvenile Flatfish noid Gommorld A mphipod Deposit- :_ Feeding Bivalve Deposi t Feeding Polychoete 6E@ Simplified example of a detritus-based nearshore food web. M &14 1 34 fishes were found to prey upon small crustaceans; many of them feed exclusively on these animals. 1.0 76,177 77/78 The Strait of Juan de Fuca and northern Puget - 0.8- 78/79@ Sound regions support a large and uaried popula- E tion of marine birds. 6 .5 0.6- >_ Marine bird surveys were performed at least monthly cn 1/77/ from planes, boats, ferries, and on land throughout the 0.4 study area for two years to determine areas of relative importance. The study area was broken up into 13 0.2 major regions, each of which encompassed subregions of various sizes. Regions found to be important for marine birds were the offshore waters of the outer Strait of Juan de Fuca (a part of Region 02) in the fall 41'@ 0 C' and winter; offshore waters and the Jamestown shore of the inner Strait (parts of Region 03); the Padilla 0-1 Bay/Samish Bay/ Bellingham Bay complex (parts of Region 05); and the shore of Lummi Bay, Cherry Point, Boundary Bay, and offshore waters in the Eastern Georgia Strait region (parts of Region 06). In most Average density of nearshore fish caught in beach regions, bird densities were greatest in the fall and seines during three years at eight sites. winter when migratory birds were present. Many Qf the passages and channels among the San Juan Islands had relatively few birds, though large numbers occasionally occurred where tidal currents were strong. The numbers and weight of fish caught in trawls were About 130 species were observed. Many of the more variable than for beach seines due to the greater species known to be sensitive to the effects of spilled oil influence of schooling fish. Few trends in the data were were found in large numbers in the protected bays of apparent because of the high variability, though the inner Strait and Anacortes- Bellingham areas. Many catches were usually greatest in spring and summer species of loons, grebes, cormorants, and alcids were and lowest in winter. It is apparent from the data that seen in deep water; shearwaters, sandpipers, ducks, most trawl-caught fish are relatively uniformly distri- geese, herons, and plovers were seen in shallow waters buted along the shoreline of the Strait and are or on beaches. Gulls were seen throughout the area. occasionally augmented by large schools of smelt and A projected estimate of 240,000 Common Murres herring or the infrequent capture of a single large fish, were observed in the offshore waters of the outer such as a dogfish, which greatly influences the total Strait. A projected total of up to 69,000 birds, mainly weight of the collection. The Pacific herring was by far Common Murres, were found in the offshore waters of the most abundant species. Similar data collected in the the inner Strait. The Jamestown subregion contained San Juan Islands and northern Puget Sound confirmed up to 28,000 birds, mostly ducks, geese, gulls, and that catches were usually greatest in spring or in shorebirds. The Padilla Bay, Samish Bay, and Belling- summer. Sites sampled in the San Juan Islands had the ham Bay subregions, together, may account for over 80 fewest species; those in the eastern Strait had the most. percent of the birds in the study area in the spring. As Overall, fish abundance was highest along the Strait many as 90,000 birds, including migratory waterfowl, and total weight was highest in the Cherry Point/ grebes, and shorebirds, were estimated to occur in Lummi Bay area. Padilla Bay in the winter. Similar total counts of birds Totals of 60 and 81 species were caught during the were estimated for Boundary Bay where scoters, three years of study in trawl and beach seine other ducks, geese, and shorebirds were abundant. collections, respectively. Many of the species found Though these studies did not include the area east of were larvae and juveniles, reflecting the extensive use Whidbey Island, there is evidence that as many as .50,000 birds may occur there during the winter at any of nearshore habitats as nursery areas for local species. .1 The most prominent feeding habit was one that one time. depended entirely upon epibenthic zooplankton, those Approximately 39,000 pairs of breeding birds were small organisms that live in the water very near the counted in the study area. Rhinoceros Auklets (18,000 bottom. pairs) and Glaucous-winged Gulls (14,000 pairs) were The scuipins were most common among the 26 most common. Nesting cormorants, storm-petrels, species of tidepool fishes found in the study. The and alcids were also seen. A total of about 22,000 pairs numbers of species found at each site increased slightly were observed at Protection Island in the inner Strait from the east end of the Strait to the west, possibly in region (Region 03), by far the most important breeding response to increasing kinds of habitat types available. colony. About 17,000 of the pairs of birds on Protection Many of the tidepool fishes were adults. Seasonal Island were Rhinoceros Auklets. Other notable breed- trends in abundance were not apparant. Most tidepool ing colonies were found on Tatoosh Island in the outer 19 110 100- 180 15 20 190 Spri ng/Summer/Fall/ Winter 80- 60- to 40- 20- 0 ka TAW -a lp@ V @X- 0". OA 'S" J- OR X Y// es 0 0 15, 0.1 /0 REGIONS 40 20 124' 40 20 123' 40 20 49' Pt rts 49' 6 7 13 VANCOUVER ISLAND 8 0 Bellingham 40- 12 ORCA 9 40 t Is SAN 11 8 jUAN I Is1 s 6- nacor s HARD - STRAI I TATOOS S7-)y Victoria Is OF h 20 2C -ay be 3 2 4 o risen Pr I Ar,q@le5 48 48. 40 20 124 40 20 123@ 40 20 Regional projected total counts for'all marine birds for each season (average of 1978 and 1979 observations). *indicates no observations made. 20 25,000 25,930 200- 218M NOV 77/OCT 78 DEC 78/AUG 79 (n 20,000- 150- 0 a. _j Z 100- F) 15,000- LU LLJ ir 50- 10,000- ir W Z) z 51000 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 0 bb 0 0 U157? % REGIONS 15 14 16 7 7G Regional totals of pairs of breeding marine birds (average of 1978 and 1979 data). 2 10@ Strait (02), on scattered rocks and islands thoughout northern Puget Sound and the San Juan Islands (05, 06, 08, 10), along northern Rosario Strait (09), and on Mandarte Island in Canadian waters (13). Average total counts of harbor seals observed in 17 The area found to be most important to marine regions in 1977-1978 and 1978-1979. mammals is the eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca. Twenty-one species of marine mammals exist through- out the area, and they tend to congregate at certain Vulnerability of seals to oil pollution and disturbance isolated locations. Places of importance to these is highest in spring and summer during pupping species offer food and protection, and, in the cases of activities. Pups are less able to avoid humans and seals and sea lions, provide areas to haul out onto the predators than adults and can be adversely affected shore for resting, escape from predators, and rearing of (luring suckling by coming into contact with oil trapped young. Generally, the waters and shorelines of the in the mother's fur. eastern Strait were most important for the marine The cetaceans (whales, dolphins, and porpoises) mammals that were censused. were found throughout the area, but large numbers Field surveys by boat, plane, and beach walks were most often occurred in the eastern Strait of Juan de performed at least monthly for two years. Since harbor Fuca. Killer whales, numbering at least 80 animals in the seals are by far the most abundant species in the area, area, are the most common cetaceans. Their feeding their abundance and distribution was emphasized in habits often take them through the eastern Strait of the studies. The study area was broken down into 17 Juan de Fuca. Some species of cetaceans (for example, standardized regions for reporting survey results, humpback whales) occurred in the area historically but especially for harbor seals. have not been seen there in recent years. Regions 2, 3, 4, 7, 10, and 17 had the highest average Nearly 300 sea lions may occur in the area at one counts of seals. These regions correspond with the time; peak counts occur in winter from October to northern San Juan Islands, Haro Strait, interior San May. They were most abundant at Race Rocks, near Juan Islands, Smith-Minor Islands, Protection Island, Vancover Island and at Sucia Island in the northern San and the Race Rocks area of Vancouver Island. A peak Juan Islands. A group of over 100 California sea lions count of over 200 harbor seals was made in the area at was sighted on a grounded barge near Everett in April one time. Four islands (Smith-Minor, Protection, 1979, a highly unusual event since these animals had Chain, and Race Rocks) and four bays (Boundary, previously been reported to congregate mainly on Race Dungeness, Samish, and Padilla) were most important Rocks. The enormous (about 2,000 kg) northern for pupping activity. elephant seal exemplifies many of the marine mammals 21 in the area in that they occur there infrequently as Cove, and Dugalla Bay. In the Anacortes- Bellingham migrants or as occasional visitors. area, the sensitive shorelines exist in Padilla Bay, Samish Bay, Fidalgo Bay, and northern Bellingham The shoreline habitats most sensitive to oil and Bay. The sensitive areas in the southern Strait of most difficult to clean up are sheltered marshes Georgia are the tidal flats at Roberts Bank, in Boundary and sheltered tidal flats. Bay, Semiahmoo Bay, Drayton Harbor, and Birch Bay. In the San Juan Islands, the protected rocky shores on Because human resources and equipment to combat Sucia, Orcas, Stuart, San Juan, Shaw, Lopez, Blakely, and clean up large oil spills are often limited, it becomes and Decatur Islands are sensitive along with isolated necessary to make choices, especially during a large tidal flats and marshes in Westcott Bay, False Bay, Mud spill, as to what areas must be protected. These choices Bay, Fisherman Bay, and Buck Bay. can be based upon predetermined criteria that con- Critical biological areas were designated as such sider the known behavior of oil on each kind of according to the occurrence of high concentrations of shoreline; the known kinds and amounts of biota marine mammals (hauling out beaches), marine birds, usually associated with each shoreline type; and the spawning fish, and commercially important fish and relative difficulty involved in cleaning up a spill on each shellfish. Primarily, these areas were found in the San type. Juan Islands, in the Paclilla/Samish/Bellingham Bay To satisfy this need for criteria, an Environmental complex, in the Tatoosh Island/Cape Flattery area, at Sensitivity Index was developed and applied to the Smith-Minor Islands, and in the Protection Island/ area. The index rates each shoreline habitat type on a Discovery Bay/Sequirn Bay/Jamestown/ Dungeness scale of I to 10. The most sensitive type, sheltered Bay area. marshes, is a 10 and thus warrants first priority in oil spill responses involving protection and cleanup. The Biological communities living on rocks, in sand, 10 categories and their ranks are: andin mixed mud-_qrauel beaches are projected to 1. Exposed rocky headlands recover from a single major oil spill in 3 to 13 2. Wave-cut platforms months, 31 months, and 46 months, respectively. 3. Pocket beaches along rocky exposed shores The field surveys described above provided informa- 4@ Sand beaches tion on the relative richness of the intertidal biological 5. Mobile sand and gravel beaches communities of the region. However, no data existed 6. Stable sand and cobble beaches on either the possible effects of oil on these communi- 7. Exposed tidal flats ties or on the rates and processes of recovery of these 8. Sheltered rocky shores communities following oiling. To address these con- 9. Sheltered tidal shores cerns, a two-year series of experiments was conducted 10. Sheltered marshes in the field at three locations in the eastern Strait of As the data on abundance of intertidal biota, fish, birds, Juan cle Fuca. The experiments involved many month- and mammals discussed above indicate, the highest long, 3-month-long, and 15-month-long tests following ranked habitats often support the most plant and single doses of crude oil. Beach materials were animal life. The exposed sandy and gravel beaches, removed from several locations, repeatedly frozen and wave-cut platforms, and pocket beaches (usually thawed to eliminate all living organisms, mixed thor- gravel) support little marine life. These habitat types, as oughly with Prudhoe Bay crude oil, and placed in well as exposed rocky shores, are easily cleaned of oil permeable plastic boxes. The boxes were then partially by wave action and/or by humans in clean-up activities. buried in the original collection locations so that the top Once the index was established, the Strait of Juan cle surface was flush with the beach surface. Tests were Fuca and northern Puget Sound were surveyed by conducted in the mouth of Sequirn Bay, in Discovery boat, foot, and plane to determine the extent and Bay, and on Protection Island. Concrete bricks were distribution of each shoreline type. Critical biological used in one set of tests to simulate a rocky substrate. populations were also noted. A series of large-scale and All experiments were performed with untreated (no oil) small-scale maps were prepared that show in color controls. code the occurrence of each shoreline type and unique The colonization of oil-treated and untreated sub- biological features. These maps are available for use strates ar;,.1 the rates of loss of oil were measured by during oil spills (see Products). periodically subsampling the material in the boxes and The four most sensitive habitat types (ranks 7-10) on the bricks. The kinds and numbers of organisms in were found scattered throughout the entire area. Most the untreated substrates at the end of the 15-month of the western Strait has low-ranking shorelines, experiments were used as a definition of full recovery. primarily exposed rock and sand or gravel beaches. When full recovery of oiled substrates did not occur The sheltered marshes at the mouths of the Pysht River within the period of the test, an estimate of recovery and Salt Creek are exceptions. Highly sensitive areas in time was made, based upon projection of observed the eastern Strait include Dungeness Bay, the tidal flats rates of loss of oil and rates of recovery. at Jamestown, and the tidal flats at the heads of Sequim Predicted full recovery time of a mixed mud-gravel and Discovery Bays. East of Whidbey Island, sensitive habitat used for a commercial clam operation in areas are the tidal flats at Port Susan, Skagit Bay, Penn Discovery Bay was 46 months, following initial oil 22 Boundary Say 49- oberts 5 0'- aturno 4 Orcas@ fA Port Son Juan Son Juan I.. 48,- 30 VANCOUVER ISLAND Victoria "Cio, Sooke Harbor ery 20'- Neah SM11h I Bay Sekiu Pillar Pt. to'- Crescen Port B. Port Townsend y Angeles Sequirne Protection , @-'Porlln J.. WASHINGTON STATE I @0' 210 12'4' 4'0' 210, 123- Occurrence of the four habitat types that rank 7 to 10 on the Environmental Sensitivity Index (darkly sl- areas). treatment. For the sand habitats at Protection Island increasing sunlight and temperatures. This phenome- and the entrance to Sequim Bay, the full recovery time non was noted in late June 1976. It was not observed in was predicted to be 31 months. Full recovery of bricks, 1977, though it likely occurred. These phytoplankton used to simulate natural rock substrates, was predicted organisms constitute the "grass" of the sea. Thus, the to be from 3 to 13 months in "best" and "worst" case density of zooplankton that graze upon the phyto- situations, respectively. plankton also tended to increase markedly in June and Recovery in terms of numbers of species preceded July, often remaining high through August. These that for numbers of individuals following oil treatment. zooplankton are highly important prey for fish larvae, For example, in one 15-month test, 69 percent of the small open water fish such as herring, and juvenile fish species had returned after three months, while only I I such as pink salmon, which, in turn, are preyed upon by percent of the total individuals had returned relative to marine birds, large fish, and whales. what was eventually found after 15 months. Recovery Fish eggs and larvae are known to be particularly was slightly faster in summer-fall tests than in the sensitive to the effects of oil because many forms occur spring-summer period. Recovery was faster at the -2 at or near the water's surface. Many species spawn only foot tidal elevation than at Mean Lower Low Water (0 during a single short period of the year. The survival of elevation). one year's offspring could be jeopardized if an oil spill Oil was retained in the mixed-mud clam bed beach occurred when a year-class of a species was in the area longer than in the sand beach. About 13 and 15 percent, of the spill. Samples taken with a net that passes respectively, of the initial oil concentration was lost through only the upper 10 or 15 centimeters of the from these two substrates in three months. Oil was water were taken specifically to collect the fish eggs and retained longer at the upper tidal elevation than at the larvae at the surface. lower elevation. At the clam bed location, more oils was The eggs and/or larvae of 49 kinds of fish were found retained deep in the substrate than near the sediment- in these surface samples. Fifteen were of known water interface. A high proportion (about 84 percent of commercial value, including salmon, sole, smelt, the initial concentration) of oil was lost from the bricks greenling, herring, cod, and ling cod. The greatest in five days. numbers of species and individuals were seen in late Among all the combinations of experimental condi- winter and early spring. By counting the numbers of fish tions that were performed, 70 percent of the 56 eggs in the volumes sampled and mathematically biological parameters measured were significantly projecting them to the entire area of the Strait, the total reduced by the oil treatments. Molluscs in the population was estimated. An average of about 100 commercial clam bed, including the littleneck clam, and million eggs was estimated. A peak estimate of 500 on the rock/brick habitat were found to be sensitive to million was made for April 1977. Estimated average and oil treatment and slow to recover. Polychaetes (worms) maximum total populations of fish larvae were made for and crustaceans were sensitive in sandy substrates. April 1977. Estimated average and maximum total Detritus-consuming and plant-consuming animals were populations of fish larvae were 100 million and 650 almost universally influenced by oil. Carnivores were million (during February 1977), respectively, for the less sensitive; suspension (filter) feeders the least upper water layer of the Strait. sensitive. Some unusual species of copepods appeared in Highly muddy substrates were not studied. How- some zooplankton samples. These species were ever, there is evidence from large oil spills throughout known to usually occur in offshore Pacific Ocean the world that muciflats and marshes may require a water, and not in inland waters. When the incidences of decade or more to fully recover. these oceanic species were examined relative to oceanographic data, it became apparent that these species were entering the Strait during storm events. Huge numbers of planktonic organisms occur in The eastward surface currents associated with these the open water of the Strait, especially in the storms were determined through oceanographic ob- spring. servations described above. These oceanic copepods, thus, became indicative of unusual water currents Though emphasis in the biological studies was placed otherwise measured with highly sophisticated elec- upon nearshore and intertidal environments of the tronic equipment. area, a study of the open water plankton of the Strait of Juan de Fuca was performed to determine what Estimates of biological damage due to oil spills organisms may be at risk there to oil spills. Planktonic would be difficult to make from auailable data. communities consist of drifting single-cell plants, copepods and other microscopic animals, and the eggs and larvae of numerous invertebrates and fish. These Statistical tests performed on the biological data communities were sampled with a variety of nets, each showed that the kinds and numbers of organisms designed to catch certain sizes of organisms at certain (birds, mammals, fish, invertebrates) were highly depths. Sampling was conducted at nine locations in variable. Thus, if a spill were to occur that caused the Strait 13 times over a two-year period. biological effects, our ability to estimate changes Phytoplankton undergo a massive increase in num- caused by oil in the composition and abundance of bers in the spring or early summer in response to various communities would be limited. 24 Since some variability from place to place, season to project was one of many funded by the Environmental season, and year to year was expected at the start of Protection Agency (EPA) predicated on the belief that the project, biological studies were conducted for at development of our nation's energy resources need not least two years. The fish studies went for three years. be the precursor of widespread environmental damage Observations were made at numerous places and and insult, which, too often in the past, accompanied during each of the four seasons. However, the major resource development. This research project was objective of these studies was to characterize what administered by the National Oceanic and Atmo- biota occurred where and when, not necessarily to spheric Administration's MESA (Marine Ecosystems develop a data base against which oil-caused changes Analysis) Puget Sound Project Office in Seattle, could be assessed. Washington. Overall, upon examining the data available now, one Many of the same questions and concerns expressed could expect certain animals to usually occur at certain in this report helped to shape and guide the Project places and at certain times of the year, but could not throughout its lifetime. During the formative years, the predict very accurately the number that would be there Project goal and objectives were both generic in nature at any specific time. For example, one could expect to and formidable. The goal directed attention to the find sea lions all winter at Race Rocks, but the number whole of the Strait of Juan cle Fuca and northern Puget of them may vary from 35 to nearly 400. An average of Sound, including passages through the San Juan about 140 harbor seals usually occur at Protection Islands and tanker routes in Rosario Strait to Cherry Island year-round, but the number at any time may Point, Ferndale, and Anacortes. When the Project range from 0 to over 200. The distribution of nesting initiated its first field studies in late 1975, the issues of birds appears to be relatively consistent from year to crude oil superports and pipelines under Puget Sound year, but migratory birds vary greatly at many places had progressed beyond the visionary stage but had not from one year to the next. The same species of fish, the surfaced for public debate and decision-making. Pacific herring, was always most common in trawl net In July 1976, Northern Tier Pipeline Company filed catches. However, due to large variability in abun- an application with the State of Washington Energy dance, it was calculated that a 95 percent decrease in Facility Site Evaluation Council to construct a crude oil abundance or biomass of trawl net catches would be terminal at Port Angeles, Washington, with a pipeline necessary to be statistically detectable. That is, if an route to run round-the-Sound to Clearbrook, Minne- average of 100 fish were known to occur at a certain sota. The issue of supertankers offloading at proposed location in a specific season and if a spill occurred there, superports at Cherry Point and Burrows Bay, or at a total catch of fewer than five fish would be necessary enlarged facilities east of Port Angeles, was a topic of to conclude that an actual change in abundance had heated debate for the next two and one-half years. On actually taken place. October 17, 1977, the Magnuson Amendment to the The intertidal and shallow subtidal invertebrate data Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 was enacted. proved to be highly variable. Community composition The Magnuson Amendment, in effect, prohibited new varied considerably from place to place as expected. In or expanded petroleum receiving facilities east of Port addition, species and abundance for any single habitat Angeles and supported the concept of a single, major type varied with tidal elevation, exposure to waves, crude petroleum receiving and transfer facility at or seasons and years. Though absolute estimates of oil- west of Port Angeles. caused changes in abundance of all species for all In March 1979, Northern Tier Pipeline Company habitat types are probably impossible, the presence or announced that it intended to change its original absence of some species or groups of species can be proposal and route the proposed pipeline under and estimated reliably, especially in well-defined, protected across Puget Sound rather than around the southern intertidal habitats. end of the Sound, which had been the main consideration in the draft environmental statement prepared two months earlier by the Department of Interior's Bureau of Land Management. Also, in August 1979, Trans Mountain Oil Pipe Line Corporation submitted an application to the State of Washington A SYNOPSIS Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council to construct and operate a crude oil marine terminal 18 miles west of This research project, "An Environmental Assess- Port Angeles at Low Point and lay about 148 miles of ment of Northern Puget Sound and the Strait of Juan new pipeline under and across Puget Sound to connect de Fuca," was conducted to provide information usable with existing links at Edmonton, Alberta. These rapid in answering environmental questions. The questions changes of events during the life of the Project helped pertain to the potential environmental effects from oil guide the Project. Nevertheless, the original questions pollution associated with increased tanker traffic, and concerns about potential effects from oil pollution petroleum transfer operations, and refinery capacity continued to steer the Project to its conclusion. anticipated for the next decade in the Puget Sound So what if oil entered the marine waters of the Strait region. It was not intended to address the impacts of of Juan de Fuca or northern Puget Sound? How would any specific proposed crude oil pipeline, refinery, spilled oil compare in amount to that of petroleum- terminal, or any other marine facility. The five-year derived *hydrocarbons that might already be there from 25 other man-related activities? Will the oil remain in the harbor. Eastward transport along the shore to environment for any length of time, or will physical, Dungeness Spit and beyond is possible. chemical, and biological processes come into play to Spills in the open water of the eastern Strait could go disperse, transport, and degrade the oil? What in most any direction, depending upon which way the shoreline areas and resources might be impacted and tide was running, direction of winds, and whether the how long would it take to be flushed out to the Pacific spill was at the bottom or on the surface. Oil spilled at or Ocean? What biological resources are at risk and how near the bottom could be transported southward into long might they take to recover from the direct or the Puget Sound main basin by the prevailing bottom possible long-term effects of oil pollution? These are currents. Because of the complex patterns of local some of the basic questions and concerns the Project winds, eddies, fronts, and other small-scale features, attempted to answer. the chances of an oil spill escaping westward out the The data base formed as a result of this research Strait without fouling the shore decrease greatly as the project represents the most comprehensive under- initial impact is moved eastward into the Strait. standing of this part of the Puget Sound's environment Areas of the region that are most important to the ever assembled. Data now exist to assess future biota are those that provide a suitable habitat for changes in oil pollution levels, predict the possible fate feeding, resting, breeding, rearing of the young, and of spilled oil, identify what parts of the region are protection from storms, predators, and human biologically important and what biological effects may disturbance. Though all parts of the region are occur as a result of an oil spill. occupied by marine organisms, some parts appear to Though specific statements regarding the likely fate be especially noteworthy. Based upon the data and effects of oil spills are impossible due to site-specific gathered in these studies, the far western Strait/Cape differences in environmental conditions, some general Flattery area; the area bounded by Jamestown, conclusions can be drawn from the findings. Dungeness Spit, Miller and Quimper Peninsulas and It is apparent that most of the region is free of including Protection Island; the Smith-Minor Island petroleum hydrocarbons. Though minor concentra- area; the Samish/Padilla/Bellingham Bays complex; tions were noted near refineries, marinas, and harbors, the Cherry Point area; and the Boundary Bay area these hydrocarbons were often nondetectable in areas appear to be very important. These areas generally distant from these facilities. Microbiological processes support the most dense populations of birds, and sorption/sedimentation processes may not be of mammals, fish, and invertebrates. much importance in the short term regarding chemical Among these areas, as well as throughout the entire changes in oil or removal of oil from the marine system. region, certain shoreline habitat types are clearly most However, mechanical weaLthering of oil by waves may worrisome with respect to the effects of oil spills. These be important during a spill. Thus, oil spilled or leaked in habitat types are sheltered marshes and sheltered tidal protected or calm waters may remain relatively toxic flats. They (1) are usually protected from winds and and concentrated for sufficient lengths of time to waves and thus are often muddy and accumulate algal impact plants and animals that come in contact with it. and other organic debris; (2) tend to accumulate and Transport and dispersal of spilled oil would be bind up oil; (3) support highly concentrated communi- caused by winds and water currents. Both winds and ties of detritus-consuming organisms which are, in turn, water currents, which vary with time and location, are food for many larger animals; (4) often, as in the case in very complex. Additional complexities are caused by the Jamestown area, support huge numbers of benthic the influences of river mouths, the tides, storms, and invertebrates, nearshore fish, birds, and mammals; (5) land masses, such as islands. The net flow of surface are slow to recover from oil spills because oil becomes waters among the San Juan Islands is generally bound to the mud and organic particles and does not southward and that of the Strait of Juan de Fuca is leave or degrade quickly; and (6) are difficult to clean up generally westward. Thus, given these conditions, oil without causing further damage by heavy equipment. spills, especially those occurring in open water, would Many of the areas and habitats that are both sensitive to the effects of oil and important to the biota studied be expected to be transported westward out the Strait are in the eastern Strait or in northern Puget Sound. to the Pacific Ocean. However, a number of important They could be affected directly by activities that result features and processes in the region complicate these in loss of habitat or by oil spills within each area. In "normal" conditions and would tend to result in addition, they could be affected by oil spills originating eastward transport of oil in the Strait. Strong eastward elsewhere being transported to these areas. For surface currents, that is, reversals of the normal example, the sensitive and important area near westward flow, associated with coastal storms would Dungeness Bay and Protection Island could be ad- transport oil eastward, possibly as far as Whidbey versely affected by construction activities and oil spills Island. Winds along the southern shoreline of the Strait within that area, as well as by oil spills transported are often from the west, particularly at Port Angeles, eastward along the shore from Port Angeles or from the and thus would tend to move oil eastward along the western portion of the Strait. Commonly occurring shore. Numerous experiments and observations at westerly winds and eastward nearshore currents could Port Angeles confirmed that eastward transport of transport spilled oil exiting Port Angeles Harbor to this surface-borne materials such as oil would usually take area, resulting in possible damage or loss of biological place if spills occurred in or beyond the mouth of the resources there. Spills occurring in the western Strait 26 during surface current reversal events could also be presented in Environmental Statements prepared by transported there in as little time as one to three days. the Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Though the resources in the region east of Whidbey Management, and the Washington State Energy Island were not studied, the Skagit Bay area is known to Facility Site Evaluation Council concerning crude oil be highly important for marine birds, salmonids, ti-ansportation systems in the State of Washington. In macroinverteb rates, and marsh plants. Thus, it could addition, three NOAA scientists and five other Project- be adversely affected by construction activities and oil sponsored scientists provided expert testimony at spills if they occurred nearby. Washington State EFSEC hearings in Olympia con- The MESA Puget Sound Project, in concluding this cerning the Northern Tier Pipeline Company's applica- environmental assessment, leaves behind many tech- tion to build a crude oil terminal at Port Angeles and nical reports, papers, special publications, and pro- pipeline over and under Puget Sound. ducts which have contributed to a greater understand- Still, because of time and budgetary constraints, ing of the marine environment of this biologically rich many questions remain either partially or totally and sensitive region. This knowledge has been the unanswered. We hope that future projects and related foundation for discussion of environmental impacts research will build upon this basic endeavor. PRODUCTS Products refer to special Project studies and publica- 1. physical and chemical properties of the Puget tions, technical reports, professional papers, and Sound journal articles. Some products were directed toward 2. geolo ic setting of the Puget Sound basin keeping the public informed on the activities of the 3. shore.?ine processes in the Puget Sound region Project and the NOAA products and services available 4. plankton populations of Puget Sound 5. finfish populations Gf Puget Sound in the Puget Sound region. Another product, the 6. environments and habitats bordering Puget Sound "Sensitivity of Coastal Environments to Spilled Oil - 7. marine mammals and waterbirds of Puget Sound Strait of Juan de Fuca and Northern Puget Sound", will 8. recreational uses of Puget Sound be a valuable guide to those responsible for directing 9. commercial harvesting of fish, shellfish, and sea- the protection of coastal resources and the cleaning up weeds of Puget Soun of oil spills. Some products were aimed at organizing 10. demographic patterns of the Puget Sound region and storing the large amount of scientific data 11. jurisdictions, management, and control of Puget Sound resources collected; this permitted rapid analyses and intercom- 12. industrial and municipal waste disposal in the parison of various data sets. Other products were Puget Sound region designed to assist and guide Project scientists by 13. transportation and related facilities in Puget Sound providing comprehensive listings of historical and 14. history of Puget Sound as a resource current research in the Puget Sound region. The purpose of all these products is to provide environ- Two volumes will be published in 1981 followed by the mental and ecological information to resource mana- remaining volumes in 1982. gers, decision-makers, and concerned citizens in a format useful for management purposes. Publication Availability: Books will be available from the University of PUGET SOUND BOOKS: A Washington Press. WASHINGTON SEA GRANT Price: To be determined PUBLICATION SERIES Nearing completion, the Puget Sound Publication DES 'CRIPTION OF RESEARCH Series will be 14 definitive volumes on the environment ACTIVITIES by the MESA Puget Sound Project, and resources of Puget Sound. The objectives of the January 1980 series are (1) to provide environmental and ecological information to regional resource managers and deci- The Description of Research Activities is what its title sion-makers in a format useful for management implies. Activities sponsored by the MESA Puget purposes; (2) to develop public awareness of Puget Sound Project, both in the Strait of Juan de Fuca and northern Puget Sound areas, as well as the Puget Sound ecosystems, especially the major marine pro- Sound region, are described. Each entry contains, cesses and resources; and (3) to develop public where appropriate, the title of the study, principal awareness of humankind's impact on Puget Sound investigators, Project Office contacts, start and end ecosystems. Topics include the following: dates, the, purpose, research components, sampling 27 methods, and location maps. Publications and availabil- SENSITIVITY OF COASTAL ity are given. ENVIRONMENTS TO SPILLED OIL - Publication Availability: STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA AND National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NORTHERN PUGET SOUND by Erich R. Office of Marine Pollution Assessment Gunlach, Charles D. Getter, and Miles 0. Hayes, June 7600 Sand Point Way N.E., Tower Building 1980. 76 pp. BIN C15700 Seattle, WA 98115 This study was prepared by the Research Planning Institute, Inc., Columbia, S.C. A shoreline assessment Price: Free technique was used to determine the susceptibility of the shoreline of the Strait of Juan de Fuca and northern COMPENDIUM OF CURRENT Puget Sound to oil spill impacts. MARINE STUDIES IN THE PACIFIC An Environmental Sensitivity Index was defined for NORTHWEST by the Oceanographic Institute of the study area which depicts shoreline sensitivity to oil Washington spills on a scale of 1 to 10, with higher numbers indicating more sensitive environments. These values, The 1980 Compendium contains descriptions of 867 indicated on 36 U.S. Geological Survey topographic NOAA and non-NOAA research projects under way in maps covering the study area, can be used for pre-spill the marine waters of Washington, Oregon, and British contingency planning and spill response activities to Columbia. Project summaries, arranged in 14 major protect important resource areas. The index combines research categories are indexed by investigator, sub- oil residence time (geological sensitivity) with antici- ject, geographic area, and both sponsoring and pated biological inputs. Areas of special biological and performing organizations. Data availability and publica - socioeconomic significance are indicated on the maps. tions information also are included. The following marine science disciplines are included in the Com- Publication Availability: pendium: fisheries, pollution and water quality, marine Maps and reports can be viewed at: biosystems, ecology, engineering, coastal zone man- NOAA/OMPA - Pacific Office agement, and physical, chemical, biological, and geolo- 7600 Sand Point Way N.E. gical oceanography. Tower Building, Room 120 Seattle, WA 98115 Publication Availability: Distribution copies not available. No longer available from the Oceanographic Institute of Washington. Contact NOAA/OMPA - DATA CATALOG FOR THE MARINE Pacific Office regarding availability. ECOSYSTEMS ANALYSIS PUGET SOUND PROJECT: DISTRIBUTION PUGET SOUND MARINE AND SUMMARIZATION OF DIGITAL ENVIRONMENT: AN ANNOTATED DATA by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric BIBLIOGRAPHY by Eugene E. Collias and Administration, Environmental Data Information Svetlana 1. Andreeva, A Washington Sea Grant Service, National Oceanographic Data Center Publication, Seattle, 1977. 392 pp. The Environmental Data and Information Service The bibliography contains 1980 annotated refer- (EDIS) of NOAA processes and archives biological, ences to literature on the Puget Sound marine chemical, and physical data in standardized formats environment published prior to January 1977. Entries (file types). More than 600 individual files representing cover all the oceanographic sciences as well as topics 14 data types have been archived on magnetic tape for such as pollution, history, planning and management, the Project. EDIS has prepared a catalog which demography and socioeconomics, and transportation, summarizes the digital data sets acquired by the MESA industrial, and petroleum activities. Entries are indexed Puget Sound Project and shows the locations where according to (1) oceanographic regions, (2) river the data were collected. Supplemental information is drainage basins, (3) water and land usage, and (4) provided by a listing of Project-sponsored publications subject. The entries are arranged in the volume in for the Puget Sound area. alphabetical order using the first author's last name. Publication Availability: Publication Availability: NOAA University of Washington Press Environmental Data and Information Service 7600 Sand Point Way N.E., Tower Building Price: $10.00 BIN C15700 Seattle, WA 98115 Price: Free 28 BIBLIOGRAPHY OF Cannon, G. A., N. P. Laird, and T. L. Keefer, 1979. Puget Sound circulation: final report for FY 77-78. MESA PUGET SOUND NOAA Technical Memorandum ERL MESA-40, Marine Ecosystems Analysis Program, Boulder, PROJECT-SPONSORED Colorado, 55 pp. Charnell, R. L. and G. A. Krancus, 1976. A processing PUBLICATIONS system for Aanderaa current meter data. NOAA Technical Memorandum ERL PMEL-6, Pacific Ma- rine Environmental Laboratory, Seattle, Washing- ton, 50 pp. Chester, A. J., 1978. Microzooplankton in the surface Baker, E. T., J. D. Cline, R. A. Feely, and J. Quan, waters of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. NOAA 1978. Seasonal distribution, trajectory studies, and Technical Report ERL 403-PMEL 30, Pacific Marine sorption characteristics of suspended particulate Environmental Laboratory, Seattle, Washington, 26 matter in the northern Puget Sound region. DOC/ PP. EPA Report EPA-600/7-78-126, U.S. Environmental Chester, A. J., D. M. Damkaer, D. B. Dey, G. A. Her- Protection Agency, Washington, D. C., 140 pp. on, J. D. Larrance, 1980. Plankton of the Strait of Brown, D. D., A. J. Friedman, D. G. Burrows, G. R. Juan de Fuca, 1976-1977. DOC/EPA Report EPA- Snyder, B. G. Paten, W. E. Ames, L. S. Ramos, P. G. 600/7-80-032, U.S. Environmental Protection Agen- Prohaska, D. D. Gennero, D. D. Dungan, M. Y. cy, Washington, D. C., 64 pp. Uyeda, and W. D. MacLeod, Jr., 1979. Investigation Chester, A. J., D. M. Damkaer, D. B. Dey, and J. D. of petroleum in the marine environs of the Strait of Larrance, 1977. Seasonal distributions of plankton in Juan de Fuca and northern Puget Sound (1979). the Strait of Juan de Fuca. NOAA Technical DOC/EPA Report EPA-600/7-79-164, U.S. Environ- Memorandum ERL MESA-24, Marine Ecosystems mental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., 107 Analysis Program, Boulder, Colorado, 71 pp. PP. Cox, J. M., C. C. Ebbesmeyer, and J. M. Helseth, Brown, D. W., A. J. Friedman, P. G. Prohaska, and 1978. Surface drift sheet movements observed in the W. D. MacLeod, Jr., 1981. Investigation of petroleum inner Strait of Juan de Fuca, August 1978. NOAA in the marine environs of the Strait of Juan de Fuca Technical Memorandum ERL MESA-35, Marine and northern Puget Sound. Part 11 (Second-year Ecosystems Analysis Program, Boulder, Colorado, continuation). NOAA Technical Memorandum 104 pp. OMPA-7, Office of Marine Pollution Assessment, Cox, J. M., C. C. Ebbesmeyer, J. M. Helseth, and C. Boulder, Colorado, 35 pp. A. Coomes, 1980. Drift card observations in north- Cannon, G. A., 1977. Puget Sound physical oceano- western Washington along portions of two proposed graphy. In: Recommendations for baseline research oil pipeline routes. DOC/EPA Report EPA-600/7-80- in Washington and Oregon relative to offshore 186, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Wash- resource development. Report to BLM by Research ington, D. C., 185 pp. Triangle Institute, North Carolina. Cross, J. N., 1981. Structure of a rocky intertidal fish Cannon, G. A. (Editor), 1978. Circulation in the Strait assemblage. Ph.D. Thesis, College of Fisheries, of Juan de Fuca - some recent oceanographic University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, 259 observations. NOAA Technical Report ERL 399- PP. PMEL 29, Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, Cross, J. N., K. L. Fresh, B. S. Miller, C. A. Simenstad, Seattle, Washington, 49 pp. S. N. Steinfort, and J. C. Fegley, 1978. Nearshore Cannon, G. A. and C. C. Ebbesmeyer, 1978. Winter fish and macroinvertebrate assemblages along the replacement of bottom water in Puget Sound. In: B. Strait of Juan de Fuca including food habits of the Kjerfve (Editor), Estuarine Transport Processes, common nearshore fish. NOAA Technical Memor- University of South Carolina Press, Columbia, S.C., andum ERL MESA-32, Marine Ecosystems Analysis pp. 229-238. Program, Boulder, Colorado, 188 pp. Cannon, G. A. and N. P. Laird, 1976. Wind effects on Ebbesmeyer, C. C. and C. A. Barnes, 1980. Control of tidally averaged current profiles in a fjord Estuary a fjord basin's dynamics by tidal mixing in embracing (abstract only). Presented at special session, Estua- sill zones. Estuarine and Coastal Marine Science, 11, rine and Nearshore Physical Processes, AGU fall pp. 311-330. meeting, San Francisco. Ebbesmeyer, C. C., J. M. Cox, and J. M. Helseth, Cannon, G. A. and N. P. Laird, 1978. Variability of 1978. Surface drifter movements observed in Port currents and water properties from year-long obser- Angeles harbor and vicinity, April 1978. NOAA vations in a fjord estuary. In: J.C.J. Nihoul (Editor), Technical Memorandum ERL MESA-31, Marine Hydrodynamics of Estuaries and Fjords, Elsevier, Ecosystems Analysis Program, Boulder, Colorado, Amsterdam, E. Oceanogr., Series 23, pp. 515-535. 200 pp. Cannon, G. A. and N. P. Laird, 1980. Characteristics Ebbesmeyer, C. C., J. M. Cox, J. M. Helseth, L. R. of flow over a sill during deep water renewal. In: H. J. Hinchey, and D. W. Thomson, 1979. Dynamics of Freeland, D. M. Farmer, and C. Levings (Editors), Port Angeles harbor and approaches. DOC/EPA Fjord Oceanography, NATO Conference Series, Report EPA-600/7-79-252, U.S. Environmental Pro- Series IV, Marine Sciences, pp. 549-556. tection Agency, Washington, D. C., 107 pp. 29 Ebbesmeyer, C. C., J. M. Helseth, and J. M. Cox, Holbrook, J. R. and D. Halpern, 1976. Near-surface 1977. Surface drifter movements observed in outer circulation studies in the Strait of Juan de Fuca. In: Strait of Juan de Fuca, July 1977. NOAA Technical Proceedings of the Fifth Technical Conference on Memorandum ERL MESA-22, Marine Ecosystems estuaries of the Pacific Northwest. Analysis Program, Boulder, Colorado, 77 pp. Holbrook, J. R. and D. Halpern, 1976. Observations of Everitt, R. D., 1980. Populations of harbor seals and near-surface currents in the Strait of Juan de Fuca other marine mammals: northern Puget Sound. M.S. during February-May 1976. Transactions of the Thesis, College of Forest Resources, University of American Geophysical Union, 57 (Poster Presenta- Washington, Seattle, Washington, 283 pp. tion). Everitt, R. D, C. H. Fiscus, and R. L. DeLong, 1979. Holbrook, J. R. and D. Halpern, 1977. Observations of Marine mammals of northern Puget Sound and the near-surface currents, winds and temperature in the Strait of Juan de Fuca - a report on investigations Strait of Juan de Fuca during November 1976- November 1, 1977-October 31, 1978. NOAA Techni- February 1977. Transactions of the American Geo- cal Memorandum ERL MESA-41, Marine Ecosystems physical Union, 53, p. 1158. Analysis Program, Boulder, Colorado, 191 pp. Holbrook, J. R., R. D. Muench, and G. A. Cannon, Everitt, R. D., C. H. Fiscus, and R. L. DeLong, 1980. 1980. Seasonal observations of low-frequency atmo- Northern Puget Sound marine mammals. DOC/EPA spheric forcing in the Strait of Juan de Fuca. In: H. J. Report EPA-600/7-80-139, U.S. Environmental Pro- Freeland, D. M. Farmer and C. Levings (Editors), tection Agency, Washington, D. C., 134 pp. Fjord Oceanography. NATO Conference Series, Feely, R. A. and M. F. Lamb, 1979. A study of the Series IV, Marine Sciences, pp. 305-318. dispersal of suspended sediment from the Fraser and Holbrook, J. R., R. D. Muench, and G. A. Cannon, Skagit Rivers into northern Puget Sound using 1980. Vertical structure of fluctuating currents in the LANDSAT imagery. DOC/EPA Report EPA-600/7- Strait of Juan de Fuca. In: H. J. Freeland, D. M. 79-165, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Farmer and C. Levings (Editors), Fjord Oceano- Washington, D. C., 46 pp. graphy. NATO Conference Series, Series IV, Marine Frisch, S., 1980. HF radar measurements of circula- Sciences, pp. 319-328. tion in the eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca near Holbrook, J. R., R. D. Muench, D. G. Kachel, and C. Protection Island (July, 1979). DOC/EPA Report Wright, 1980. Circulation in the Strait of Juan de EPA-600/7-80-129, U.S. Environmental Protection Fuca: Recent oceanographic observations in the Agency, Washington, D. C., 133 pp. eastern basin (1980). NOAA Technical Report ERL Frisch, S. and J. R. Holbrook, 1979. An intercompari- 412-PMEL 33, Pacific Marine Environmental Labora- son of near-surface currents measured by CODAR tory, Seattle, Washington. system and moored VACMS (abstract only). Pre- Laird, N. P., G. A. Cannon, and J. R. Holbrook, 1978. sented at AGU fall meeting, San Francisco. Winter intrusions of coastal water into the Strait of Frisch, S. and J. R. Holbrook, 1980. HF radar mea- Juan de Fuca (abstract only). Presented at special surements of circulation in the eastern Strait of Juan session, Dynamics of Shallow Seas, American de Fuca (August, 1978). DOC/EPA Report EPA- Geophysical Union spring meeting, Miami. 600/7-80-096, U.S. Environmental Protection Agen- Long, E. R., 1980. Physical processes and critical bio- cy, Washington, D. C., 267 pp. logical areas in the vicinity of a proposed petroleum Frisch, S. and B. L. Weber, 1981. Circulation and transfer facility. Conference Record Oceans '80: trajectory calculations in the eastern Strait of Juan Ocean Engineering in the '80s. Seattle, Washington, de Fuca using a CODAR system. DOC/EPA Report Sept. 9-10, 1980. IEE Pub. No. 80CH1572-7, pp. 489- EPA-600/7-81-089, U.S. Environmental Protection 497, Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, Agency, Washington, D. C., 19 pp. New York. Harris, H. S., 1977. Puget Sound research-making Long, E. R. (Editor), 1981. A synthesis of biological results available. In: Proceedings of the Symposium data from the Strait of Juan cle Fuca and northern on the Use, Study, and Management of Puget Sound, Puget Sound. DOC/EPA Report. U.S. Environ- March 23-25, 1977, University of Washington, Seat- mental Protection Agency. In press. tle, Washington. MacLeod, W. D., Jr., D. W. Brown, R. G. Jenkins, Harris, H. S., 1977. Remarks, panel on research needs and L. S. Ramos, 1976. Intertidal sediment hydro- and opportunities. In: Proceedings of the Confer- carbon levels at two sites on the strait of Juan de ence on Petroleum Transfer Systems on Puget Fuca. Symposium of Fate and Effects of Petroleum Sound, September 14-15, 1977, University of Wash- Hydrocarbons in Marine Ecosystems and Orga- ington, Seattle, Washington. nisms, Nov. 11, 1976, Seattle, Washington. Hirsch, K. V., 1980. Winter ecology of sea ducks in the MacLeod, W. D., Jr., D. W. Brown, R. G. Jenkins, L. inland marine waters of Washington, M.S. Thesis, S. Ramos, and V. D. Henry, 1977. A pilot study on College of Forest Resources, University of Washing- the design of a petroleum hydrocarbon baseline ton, Seattle, Washington, 92 pp. investigation for northern Puget Sound and the Strait Holbrook, J. R., S. Frisch, and A. Ages, 1979. Obser- of Juan de Fuca. DOC/EPA Report EPA-600/7-77- vations of coastal forcing during summer in the Strait 098. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Wash- of Juan de Fuca (abstract only). Presented at AGU ington, D. C., 53 pp. fall meeting, San Francisco. 30 Manuwal, D. A., T. R. Wahl, and S. M. Speich, 1979. Pizzo, J. T., T. L. Johnson, and G. W. Harshman, The seasonal distribution and abundance of marine 1976. Washington State refineries: petroleum, petro- bird populations in the Strait of Juan de Fuca and leum derivatives and wastewater effluent character- northern Puget Sound in 1978. NOAA Technical istics. DOC/EPA Report EPA-600/7-78-040, U.S. Memorandum ERL MESA-44, Marine Ecosystems Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D. Analysis Program, Boulder, Colorado, 391 pp. C., 169 pp. Marine Ecosystems Analysis Program Office, 1976. An Schoener, A. and F. B. DeWalle, 1981. Effects of assessment of the meteorological stations along the petroleum on selected uniform substrates: A feasibil- Strait of Juan de Fuca. NOAA Technical Memor- ity study. NOAA Technical Memorandum OMPA- . andum ERL MESA-12, MESA Program Office, Office of Marine Pollution Assessment, Boulder, Boulder, Colorado, 31 pp. Colorado. In press. Marine Ecosystems Analysis Program Office, 1977. Simenstad, C. A., W. J. Kinney, B. S. Miller, 1980. The Puget Sound Project, FY 76 annual report. Epibenthic zooplankton assemblages at selected Environmental Research Laboratories, Boulder, Co- sites along the Strait of Juan de Fuca. NOAA lorado, 17 pp. Technical Memorandum ERL MESA-46, Marine Marine Ecosystems Analysis Program Office, 1978. Ecosystems Analysis Program, Boulder, Colorado, The Puget Sound Project, FY 77 annual report. 73 pp. Environmental Research Laboratories, Boulder, Co- Simenstad, C. A., B. S. Miller, J. N. Cross, K. L. lorado, 18 pp. Fresh, S. N. Steinfort, and J. C. Fegley, 1977. Miller, B. S., C. A. Simenstad, J. N. Cross, K. L. Nearshore fish and macroinvertebrate assemblages Fresh, and S. N. Steinfort, 1980. Nearshore fish and along the Strait of Juan de Fuca including food habits macroinvertebrate assemblages along the Strait of of nearshore fish. NOAA Technical Memorandum Juan de Fuca including food habits of the common ERL MESA-20, Marine Ecosystems Analysis Pro- nearshore fish. DOC/EPA Report EPA-600/7-80-027, gram, Boulder, Colorado, 144 pp. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, Simenstad, C. A., B. S. Miller, C. F. Nyblade, K. D. C., 211 pp. Thornburgh, and L. J. Bledsoe, 1979. Food web Nyblade, C. F., 1978. The intertidal and shallow sub- relationships of northern Puget Sound and the Strait tidal benthos of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, spring of Juan de Fuca. DOC/EPA Report EPA-600/7-79- 1976-winter 1977. NOAA Technical Memorandum 259, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Wash- ERL MESA-26, Marine Ecosystems Analysis Pro- ington, D. C., 335 pp. gram, Boulder, Colorado, 156 pp. Smyth, C. S., 1978. Report on FY 1977 numerical Nyblade, C. F., 1979. The Strait of Juan de Fuca inter- modeling in Puget Sound. NOAA Technical Memor- tidal and subtidal benthos, second annual report, andum ERL MESA-30, Marine Ecosystems Analysis spring 1977-winter 1978. DOC/EPA Report EPA- Program, Boulder, Colorado, 47 pp. 600/7-79-213, U.S. Environmental Protection Agen- Stewart, R. J. and C. H. Pease, 1980. A comparison of cy, Washington, D.C., 129 pp. the MESA-Puget Sound oil spill model with wind and Overland, J. E., M. H. Hitchman, and Y-J. Han, 1979. current observations from August 1978. DOC/EPA A regional surface wind model for mountainous Report EPA- 600/7-80-168, U.S. Environmental Pro- coastal areas, NOAA Technical Report ERL 407- tection Agency, Washington, D. C., 54 pp. PMEL 32, Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, Vanderhorst, J. R., J. W. Blaylock, P. Wilkinson, 1979. Seattle, Washington, 34 pp. Research to investigate effects from Prudhoe Bay Parker, B. B., 1977. Tidal hydrodynamics in the Strait crude oil on intertidal infauna of the Strait of Juan de of Juan de Fuca-Strait of Georgia. NOAA Technical Fuca, first annual report, NOAA Technical Memor- Report NOS 69, Office of Marine Surveys and Maps, andum ERL MESA-45, Marine Ecosystems Analysis Rockville, Maryland, 56 pp. Program, Boulder, Colorado, 38 pp. Pashinski, D. 1. and R. L. Charnell, 1979. Recovery Vanderhorst, J. R., J. W. Blaylock, P. Wilkinson, M. record for surface drift cards released in the Puget Wilkinson, and G. Fellingham, 1980. Recovery of Sound-Strait of Juan de Fuca system during calendar Strait of Juan de Fuca intertidal habitat following years 1976-1977. NOAA Technical Memorandum experimental contamination with oil (second annual ERL PMEL-14, Pacific Marine Environmental Labo- report fall 1979- winter 1980). DOC/EPA Report ratory, Seattle, Washington, 30 pp. EPA-600/7-80-140, U.S. Environmental Protection Pease, C. H., 1980. An empirical model for tidal cur- Agency, Washington, D. C., 73 pp. rents in Puget Sound, Strait of Juan de Fuca, and Vanderhorst, J. R., J. W. Blaylock, P. Wilkinson, M. Southern Strait of Georgia. DOC/EPA Report EPA- Wilkinson, and G. Fellingham, 1981. Effects of 600/7-80-185, U.S. Environmental Protection Agen- experimental oiling on recovery of Strait of Juan de cy Washington, D. C., 31 pp. + microfiche Appendix. Fuca intertidal habitats. DOC/EPA Report EPA- Pease, C. H., R. J. Stewart, and J. E. Overland, 1979. 600/7-181-088, U.S. Environmental Protection Agen- Report on FY 78 numerical modeling in the Strait of cy, Washington, D. C., 129 pp. Juan de Fuca and Puget Sound. NOAA Technical Wahl, T., R., S. M. Speich, D. A. Manuwal, K. V. Memorandum ERL MESA-38, Marine Ecosystems Hirsch, and C. Miller, 1981. Marine bird populations Analysis Program, Boulder, Colorado, 32 pp. of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Strait of Georgia and 31 adjacent waters in 1978 and 1979. DOC/EPA Report Westlake, D.W.S. and F. D. Cook, 1980. Petroleum EPA-600/7-81-156. U.S. Environmental Protection biodegradation potential of northern Puget Sound Agency, Washington, D. C. In press. and Strait of Juan de Fuca environments. DOC/EPA Webber, H. H., 1979. The intertidal and shallow sub- Report EPA-600/7-80-133, U.S. Environmental Pro- tidal benthos of the west coast of Whidbey Island, tection Agency, Washington, D. C., 133 pp. spring 1977 to winter 1978, first year report. NOAA Westlake, D.W.S., F. D. Cook, and A. M. Jobson, Technical Memorandum ERL MESA-37, Marine 1978. Microbial degradation of petroleum hydrocar- Ecosystems Analysis Program, Boulder, Colorado, bons. DOC/EPA Report EPA-600/7-78-148, U.S. 108 pp. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D. Webber, H. H., 1980. Whidbey Island intertidal and C., 65 pp. shallow subtidal benthos. DOC/EPA Report EPA- Zeh, J. E., J. P. Houghton, and D. C. Lees. Evaluation 600/7-80-167, U.S. Environmental Protection Agen- of existing marine intertidal and shallow subtidal cy, Washington, D. C., 91 pages + microfiche biologic data. DOC//EPA Report EPA-600/7-81-036, Appendix. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washing- Webber, H. H., 1981. Growth rates of benthic algae ton, D. C. In press. and invertebrates in Puget Sound: 1. Literature review, and 11. Field studies on Laminaria and Nereocystis. NOAA Technical Memorandum OMPA-4, Office of Marine Pollution Assessment, Boulder, Colorado, 45 pp. 32 GPO-1982-576-666 STAI OF CO '-@"ATES Of U. S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of Marine PolLution Assessment 3 6668 14102 1156