Skagit Valley's Warming Waters
Keep our Skagit wild and cool
A photo taken by a drone looking down at a hazy blue stream meandering towards the bottom of the frame where it empties into the Puget Sound. The water has carved a main channel through the green, flat and scrubby marsh while various smaller channels are visible to each side.
A graphic depiction of water shows a gradient from blue to red, indicating the change in water temperature from 50 degrees Fahrenheit to 70 degrees Fahrenheit.
A group of children stoops down to touch and look closely at a stream with inquisitive expressions on their faces.
Puffy white clouds and a bright blue sky loom over a calm river and a stand of mature trees growing beside it.
An illustrated cross-cut of blue water shows a large number of fish in it while a mountain with a large amount of snow on it hovers above the water. The graphic is blue and white to indicate that the water is cool.
An illustrated cross-cut of three different water scenarios shows the blue to red color gradient indicating that the first scenario is coldest, the second scenario is warmer, and the third scenario is warmest. The first scenario is blue and shows a high level of water, a large number of fish and a large amount of snow on the mountain. The third scenario is red and shows a low level of water, almost no fish and a very small amount of snow on the mountain. The second scenario shows the transition between the two extremes, and is in the middle.
An eagle in flight holds a medium sized silver fish underneath its body with both of its talons.
Trees surround both sides of a swift moving stream in autumn, full of crisp, cold water. In the background the forested foothills are peaking out of whispy white clouds and the scene looks cold.
A map zoomed in to the area that contains the lower Skagit tributaries highlights the five primary creeks of concern where water temperature problems have been confirmed.
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A shallow stream flows across the picture with a thick stand of healthy, young conifers growing on one of the banks, beginning to cast shade across the water on a sunny day.
A smiling group of adult volunteers from the community that have been planting trees next to a stream, hold their shovels with one hand and wave at the camera with the other hand.
A busy group of volunteers works together to plant trees and shrubs next to a small stream flowing through a private property.
A small group of volunteers works together to dig into the dark brown earth and plant a young cedar tree next to a stream. The wind is blowing their hair as they work.
A proud looking group of volunteers poses and smiles for the camera with their pitchforks and shovels in hand. The planting project they are working to maintain is behind them.
A red Skagit barn glows in the sunset behind rows of trellised fruit in an orchard. Mt Baker peaks out in the distance.
Please email Michelle Quast at Washington State Department of Ecology with any questions about this website: michelle.quast@ecy.wa.gov
