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Science and Technical Support Section

Monitoring and data

The Science Section is responsible for most monitoring of our natural resources.

Freshwater. We monitor water quality of streams, small lakes, and large lakes, and a set of large lake bouys also collect water quality data. We monitor the water quality and tempterature of swimming beaches. The Hydrologic Information Center provides flow and temperature data for our streams and rivers.
Bugs. Our benthic macroinvertebrate monitoring program takes our scientists to stream sites all over King County each summer to sample them for stream bugs, which are indicators of stream health. Several studies use this "BIBI" method to determine a stream's health. PugetSoundStreamBenthos.org houses the data we collect.
CAO. The Critical Areas Ordinance package was passed by King County Council in 2003. Our science group leads the effort at monitoring the effectiveness of the CAO regulations.
Marine. And last but not least, King County conducts marine monitoring to identify sources of water pollution, provide water quality information for management decisions, and evaluate status and trends of marine waters within King County.