Water Quality

USGS scientists partnered with the Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership (LCEP) to assess toxic contaminant levels at 10 sites within the Lower Columbia River. Our strategy is to compare current toxic contaminant levels to the results collected previously at these sites to identify temporal changes.

In response to the catastrophic fires of 2020 in Oregon, the ORWSC teamed up with the Water Mission Area’s Water Availability - Impacts of Extreme Events study to see the water quality effects in severely burned watersheds. In Oregon, four basins were selected to monitor the quality of the water in streams with continuous sensors and discrete water quality sampling.

USGS scientists have partnered with local groups to learn about the processes affecting turbidity in Malheur Lake. Located in southeastern Oregon, Malheur Lake and the surrounding refuge provide critical habitat to birds migrating along the Pacific Flyway.

The USGS is monitoring water-quality above, within, and below Middle Fork Willamette and the South Santiam River dams to understand how reservoir drawdowns influence downstream water-quality conditions.

What could happen to nutrient loads in the Klamath River if water from the Klamath Straits Drain is recirculated into the Ady Canal? USGS scientists investigate.