Trends in Water Quality - Environmental Trends in British Columbia 2002, State of Environment Reporting, Strategic Policy, Planning and Intergovernmental Relations Branch, British Columbia Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection

Monitoring Stations Showing Improving Water Quality
Location of monitoring station (Years)	Water Quality Indicators	Cause of Trend	Water Use at Risk	Action
Lower Mainland Region
Fraser River at Hope (1979-97)	AOX, Chloride	Waste abatement at pulp mills.	Aquatic life and human and wildlife consumption of aquatic life.	Monitoring continues.
Southern Interior Region
Salmon River at Salmon Arm (1985-97)	Fecal coliforms	Agricultural non-point source abatement.	Recreation, irrigation and livestock watering.	Continued abatement and monitoring.
Thompson River at Spences Bridge (1985-1997)	Chloride (indicator of chlorinated organics), Dioxins & furans in fish	Pulp mill waste abatement.	Aquatic life and human and wildlife consumption of aquatic life.	Continued abatement and monitoring.
Similkameen River near US Border (1979-97)	Arsenic	Unknown	Aquatic life and drinking water.	Continued monitoring.
Omineca-Peace Region
Fraser River at Stoner (1990-1997)	AOX	Pulp mill waste abatement.	Aquatic life, wildlife and their human consumers	Monitoring continues.
Skeena Region
Salmon River near Hyder, Alaska (1990-1997)	Cyanide	uncertain	Aquatic life and wildlife.	None required. Monitoring continues.
Vancouver Island Region
Pyrrhotite Creek (Tsolum River) (1985-98)	Copper	Mine reclamation	Aquatic life	Continued reclamation and monitoring.
Stocking Lake (1985-95)	Phosphorus	Unknown	Drinking water	Monitoring continues.
Maxwell Lake (1985-95)	Phosphorus	Unknown	Drinking water	Monitoring continues.
Shawnigan Lake (1976-98)	Phosphorus	Unknown	Drinking water, aquatic life and recreation.	Monitoring continues.
Lizard Lake (1985-95)	Phosphorus	Unknown	Aquatic life and recreation.	Monitoring has resumed.
Old Wolf Lake (1985-95)	Phosphorus	Unknown	Aquatic life and recreation.	Monitoring continues.
Langford Lake (1979-98)	Phosphorus	Lake aeration and unknown	Aquatic life and recreation.	A lake stewardship group has been formed and additional monitoring is being done. Aeration and basic monitoring are continuing.
Kootenay Region
Kootenay River at Fenwick Station (1991-96)	Zinc	Waste abatement	Aquatic life	Continued waste abatement and monitoring.
Columbia River at Birchbank (1983-97)	Iron, aluminum	Dams/reservoirs	Drinking water, aquatic life	Abatement for total dissolved gases is being planned. Monitoring continues.
Columbia River at Waneta (1983-96)	Cadmium, chromium, iron, lead, zinc, fluoride, sulphate, phosphorus	Waste abatement	Aquatic life, drinking water, irrigation, recreation	Continued waste abatement for cadmium, chromium, copper, zinc, and total dissolved gases. Monitoring continues.
Cariboo Region
Fraser River at Marguerite (1985-96)	AOX, Chloride and Fecal coliforms	Pulp mill waste abatement and improved sewage treatment	Aquatic life, wildlife and their human consumers. Drinking water, recreation and irrigation	Further monitoring and investigation will be done.

Deteriorating Trends in Water Quality by Region
Location of Monitoring Section (years)	Water Quality Indicators	Cause of Trend	Water Use at Risk	Action
Lower Mainland Region None
Southern Interior Region
Salmon River at Salmon Arm (1988-2000)	Turbidity	Agriculture and forestry non-point sources	Aquatic life and recreation	Continued abatement and monitoring.
Omineca-Peace Region None
Skeena Region None
Vancouver Island Region
Quinsam River (1986-2000)	Sulphate & other major ions	Coal mining	Aquatic life - potential effects no direct threats at present.	Investigation underway at coal mine. Continued monitoring.
Quamichan Lake (1973-2001)	Fecal coliforms	Waterfowl	Recreation (swimming)	Remediation plan, expanded monitoring and stewardship needed. Basic monitoring continues.
Kootenay Region
Elk River (1984-2000)	Selenium Nitrogen	Coal mining Coal mining	Aquatic life Recreation	Studies are underway. Monitoring continues.
Kootenay River at Creston (1979-2000)	Phosphorus	Dam/reservoir	Aquatic life (declining Kootenay Lake fish production).	Fertilization of Kootenay Lake since 1992. Monitoring continues.
Cariboo Region None

No Changes in Water Quality - Other Water Quality Concerns by Region
Location of monitoring station (Years)	Water Quality Indicators	Cause of Trend	Water Use at Risk	Action
Lower Mainland Region
Southern Interior Region
South Thompson River at Kamloops (1987-2000)	Suspended solids, turbidity	Agricultural, forestry and residential non-point sources.	Drinking water, aquatic life and recreation	Continued abatement and monitoring. Alternative drinking water sources and treatment options are being evaluated.
Salmon River near Salmon Arm (1988-99)	Phosphorus Water temperature	Elevated loadings to Shuswap Lake High in summer	Recreation Aquatic life	Continued abatement and monitoring.
North Thompson River at North Kamloops (1987-96)	Fecal coliforms	Exceeded objective at times	Drinking water	Monitoring is continuing and objective will be re-evaluated.
Nicola River at Spences Bridge (1992-97)	Phosphorus	Agricultural non-point sources of pollution.	Aquatic life	Remediation of non-point sources is encouraged. Monitoring continues.
Kettle River at Midway (1980-95)	-	None at present	-	Monitoring continues.
Kettle River at Carson (1980-95)	-	None at present	-	Monitoring continues.
Okanagan River at Oliver (1980-97)	Water temperature	High in Summer	Coldwater aquatic life	Monitoring continues.
Similkameen River at Princeton (1989-97)	-	None	-	Monitoring continues.
Omineca-Peace Region
Liard River at Upper Crossing (1983-94)	-	None	-	Monitoring continues.
Liard River at Fort Liard (1984-95)	-	None	-	Monitoring continues.
Peace River above Alces River (1984-94)	Turbidity, suspended solids, metals	High levels during spring freshet.	Aquatic life, drinking water, recreation.	Monitoring is continuing to assess the effects.
Fraser River at Red Pass (1985-94)	-	None	-	Monitoring continues.
Fraser River at Hansard (1985-94)	-	None	-	Monitoring continues.
Nechako River at Prince George (1985-95)	-	None	-	Monitoring continues.
Skeena Region
Salmon River near Hyder, Alaska (1990-97)	selenium	Often exceeded guidelines. May be natural or due to old mines.	Aquatic life	Survey of selenium sources will be done. Monitoring continues.
Iskut River below Johnson River (1981-94)	-	None	-	Monitoring continues.
Skeena River at Usk (1985-94)	-	None	-	Monitoring continues.
Vancouver Island Region
Tsolum River 500 m downstream from Murex Creek (1989 - 97) Tsolum River at Farnham (1987 - 94) Murex Creek at Duncan Main (1986-97)	Copper	Drainage from mine on Mt. Washington is toxic to fish.	Aquatic life	Tsolum River Task Force is leading remediation. Monitoring continues.
Elk Lake (1983-98)	Phosphorus, dissolved oxygen, algae	Eutrophication	Aquatic life and recreation	Basic monitoring is continuing. Watershed planning, remediation and expanded monitoring are desirable.
Glen Lake (1981-98)	Phosphorus, dissolved oxygen, fecal coliforms	Eutrophication Fecal contamination	Aquatic life and recreation	Basic monitoring is continuing. Watershed planning, remediation and expanded monitoring are desirable. The lake aerator needs to be replaced.
St. Mary Lake (1974-98)	Phosphorus	Eutrophication	Drinking water, aquatic life and recreation	Basic monitoring is continuing. Watershed planning, remediation and expanded monitoring are desirable.
Cusheon Lake (1974-98)	Phosphorus	Eutrophication	Drinking water, aquatic life and recreation	Basic monitoring continues. Ministry of Water, Land & Air Protection supports the local stewardship group in monitoring and watershed management planning.
Prospect Lake (1980-98)	Phosphorus Fecal coliforms	Eutrophication Fecal contamination	Drinking water, aquatic life and recreation	Watershed planning is underway. Monitoring continues.
Kootenay Region
Kickinghorse River above field (1987-95)	-	None	-	Monitoring continues.
Kootenay River at Kootenay Crossing (1987-95)	-	None	-	Monitoring continues.
Beaver River in Glacier National Park (1987-95)	-	None	-	Monitoring continues.
Illecillewaet River in Glacier National Park (1987-95)	-	None	-	Monitoring continues.
Pend D'Oreille River at Waneta (1980-95) Second station started 1997.	Total dissolved gases	Dams have caused levels that are harmful to fish.	Aquatic life	Means of reducing total dissolved gases are being investigated. Monitoring continues.
Cariboo Region None

SOURCE: Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection, 2001. NOTES: These data were collected as part of the Canada – British Columbia Water Quality Monitoring Agreement. The trend analysis for the majority of stations is based on ten years of data collected from about the middle of the 1980s to the middle of the 1990s (the exact dates differ for each station). Although data continue to be collected the trends have not been analysed. The five stations listed as deteriorating are an exception and have been updated to 2000.