PORT ANGELES — Streamkeepers, Clallam County’s volunteer stream monitoring program, will sample bugs in the Quillayute River basin if county commissioners approve an interlocal agreement with the Quileute tribe next week.
“The tribe has asked for our help in collecting bugs,” Ed Chadd, Streamkeepers coordinator, told the three county commissioners at their Monday work session.
Streamkeepers’ “intrepid bug sorting team” will help process the samples, which will save time and lab costs, Chadd said.
“We’re happy about this because currently we don’t have funding available to do our own bug sampling,” he added. “They’ve got a fairly ambitious plan to cover a lot of sites, both this year and next year.”
The tribe is using a grant from the federal Environmental Protection Agency to sample benthic macroinvertebrate, or stream bugs, at up to 15 sites.
The bugs are important players in the food chain and help scientists assess water quality.
Under the teams of the interlocal agreement, the tribe will pay the county $6,300 for bug collection and sampling through Sept. 30.
A similar interlocal agreement will likely come forward in 2014.
“It’s great you’re getting outside funding,” Commissioner Mike Doherty told Chadd.
Streamkeepers has more than 100 volunteers. It recently resurrected monitoring of the Dungeness River and its neighboring streams to identify the sources of pollution.
Samples are tested for nutrients, bacteria, temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, conductivity, salinity and turbidity.
Streamkeepers will hold an introductory training course for new volunteers June 11 in the Clallam County Courthouse EOC training room.
Meanwhile, commissioners today will consider three land purchase agreements for the widening of Old Olympic Highway between Gunn Road and McDonald Creek.
The segment is a continuation of the county’s multi-year effort to widen the major collector to 40 feet. Construction of the $1.26 million segment is planned for early next spring.
“We’ve passed the halfway mark on the right of way process,” Assistant County Engineer Joe Donisi said.
Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5072, or at rollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
