HOOD CANAL, Washington (14 Mar 2005) -- Sparkling water and mountain views make Hood Canal look like paradise. But this winter's unusual sunshine and warm weather have a downside: Algae thrive in it. By summertime, thick mats of the stuff will clog canal shores. Later in the season, as the algae rot, they will use up oxygen that fish need to breathe. It is an aquatic nightmare. What was once a vibrant ecosystem has become a death trap for fish and other critters. "If this were in the air and birds were falling out of the sky, people would go crazy. But because it's under the water, people kind of ignore it," said U.S. Rep. Norm Dicks, who owns a home along the south side of the canal near Belfair, Mason County. For the past couple of years, Dicks has been among the most outspoken advocates for attention to what plagues the canal, a narrow hook-shaped channel that extends about 60 miles south from its mouth. So far, nearly $4.5 million in state and federal money has been budgeted or spent on studies, recommendations, prevention activities and pilot projects, including $2.8 million that Dicks got from Congress. More spending is likely. A team of researchers coordinated by University of Washington oceanographer Jan Newton has begun what is planned as three years of research and analysis that could cost $4.5 million. Jerry Ehrlich of Olympia welcomes the focus on Hood Canal, where he has scuba-dived for 30 years. It is a magnet for recreational divers who appreciate the easy access to deep water. He and fellow divers enjoy looking at animals other people see only in captivity, such as the octopus, said to be the world's smartest invertebrate. To Ehrlich, they're magical creatures. Octopuses were among about 50,000 fish and marine animals that washed ashore near Potlatch State Park in June 2003. Also included were perch, sea stars, sand lance, sea urchins and sea cucumbers. It was after three such massive fish kills in 2002 and 2003 that government officials permanently banned fishing for about 50 species and began to put together a plan to restore Hood Canal. But their first step is to figure out how the canal got into this condition in the first place. 'Basically a dead sea' Technically a fjord, Hood Canal is more than 500 feet deep in some places and quite shallow in others. It serves as an estuary to five river systems. About 54,000 people live in the surrounding area. Near the southern terminus west of Belfair, the canal is surrounded by steep banks and closely packed homes on tiny lots that hug the shore. Along the south shore, residents enjoy water and Olympic Mountain views. In summer, people swim there. The shallow end of the canal shares many of the characteristics of a lake. And like some lakes, the lower canal suffers from excessive algae growth, a phenomenon called eutrophication. In summer, thick blankets of algae cover the canal surface. When the algae die, the decomposition consumes oxygen, leaving too little for fish. The lack of oxygen – a condition called hypoxia in living things – causes fish to suffocate and die. "It's heart-wrenching to see," said Ehrlich, the Olympia diver who described watching an oxygen-starved octopus try to save her babies. The mother octopus crawled out of her cave, then reached back to aerate the clustered strands of eggs that hung from the ceiling. Despite her attentions, the eggs didn't survive. Neither did the octopus. Hood Canal has always been sensitive. Informal reports of Hood Canal fish kills date back as far as 75 years. Scientists have been aware of oxygen deficits for at least 30 years. In 1991, as the human population boomed around the canal, scientists speculated that people were to blame for the troubles. Since then, the lack of dissolved oxygen – once intermittent and seasonal – has become more persistent. "It's basically a dead sea, but a person who had never seen it 30 years ago wouldn't even think that," said Earl Sande, vice president of the Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group. Sande, 50, is an avid fisherman and hunter who grew up in Tahuya, Mason County, on the canal's north shore. "We lived right on the water. I used to fish with my grandfather," said Sande, who recalled catching an 18-pound winter blackmouth – a young chinook salmon – at age 6. Sande now lives between Belfair and Bremerton and repairs boat engines for a living. He blames population growth and excessive fishing for destruction of what was once a highly diverse Hood Canal marine ecosystem. | | He isn't the only one who has noticed the disappearance of large schools of herring that once spawned in the canal. The eelgrass beds they depended on also have vanished, as have many of the ducks and geese that preyed on the fish, said Henry Minch, a 76-year-old retiree who has lived near the canal since 1987 and also blames population growth for its decline. Problems caused by people Last spring, a group of state and local officials issued a preliminary report on Hood Canal that focused on pollution and identified ways that people contribute to the dissolved oxygen deficit. Authors of the action plan estimated that about 60 percent of the pollution in the canal comes from human sewage. Ordinary septic systems, designed to limit the spread of pathogens, aren't required to control nutrients such as nitrogen. And because housing lots are small and close to the water, officials think nitrogen leaks into the canal. Kathy Fletcher, executive director of the environmental group People for Puget Sound, says runoff from septic systems and other pollution has reached a crisis and serves as a "harbinger of things to come in the rest of Puget Sound." State officials also said other kinds of pollution blight the canal's waters, in part by adding to the burden of rotting organic material at the bottom. Other people-caused insults to Hood Canal water quality include: - Farm manure, often carried into the canal by seasonal river flooding.
- Unwanted chum salmon carcasses dumped by fishermen.
- Stormwater runoff from roads.
Tribal fishing practices have been a particularly sticky issue. The Skokomish Tribe operates a lucrative chum salmon fishery. But tribal fishermen would toss hundreds of thousands of worthless carcasses back into the canal after harvesting the eggs. They halted that practice this winter, thanks to a pair of government grants and a tribal ban. Still, some Skokomish tribal members believe they have been unfairly blamed for a problem that they attribute to runaway growth and septic systems. "We all got to work at it, but sometimes I feel we get the short end of the stick. It's everybody – it's not just the Indians," Pat LaClair said as he fished one day in November with two sons, a grandson and his daughter-in-law. "It's pretty messed up how they blame us for it when 60 percent is sewers," said his daughter-in-law, Tamela Warren. Although pollution likely contributes to the dissolved oxygen problem, scientists aren't sure how much. They'd like to know what tips the balance. Scientists already know that the character of Hood Canal differs from other parts of the Sound in a couple of significant ways. Because the canal is so narrow and long, water doesn't circulate as rapidly as in other parts of Puget Sound. A shallow spot, or sill, south of the Hood Canal bridge confines the flow. Whereas elsewhere in the Sound, flushing takes weeks or months, in the Hood Canal it takes months to a year, said Newton, the UW oceanographer. Her research also has proved that the canal is extremely sensitive to nitrogen, one of the nutrients that stimulates algae growth. She found that additional nitrogen can triple the amount of algae, probably because canal water is so calm. At this point, no one can say whether people cause 80 percent of the dissolved oxygen problem or 20 percent, Newton said. "A lot of things could be causing this," she said. "All of them make sense." Some people, like Congressman Dicks, say the solution might include building sewer systems in some Hood Canal communities, which would be expensive. Ehrlich, the recreational diver, is among those who believe the cause is worthwhile. "This is a problem that affects all of us," he said. "We are all going to have to help fix it. We can't leave it on the backs of the landowners." Fishing Bans To help protect Hood Canal, state officials have permanently banned fishing for about 50 species, including bottomfish, herring, smelt, squid, octopus and sea cucumbers. Salmon, crab, shrimp, clams and oysters are unaffected. |
