The Boise Creek Bacterial Source Tracking Study: 2012 Summary of Findings reports findings for Boise Creek, a tributary to the White River near Enumclaw.  The creek has a history of bacterial contamination, and this report describes the study and findings from the second year of investigation into contamination sources along the creek and its tributaries, as well as continuing work toward solving the problem. The primary objective was to discriminate among the potential sources of bacteria and group them according to human or agricultural origin to more effectively inform cleanup strategies.

Fecal coliform bacteria are the basis for the State water quality standard. However, because they are found in the intestinal tracts of all warm blooded animals, they are not very helpful in discriminating among sources. This study employed a number of different approaches being developed jointly by the King County Science Section and the Environmental Lab in the effort to determine sources of microbial contamination. The approach uses multiple organisms that have varying degrees of specificity to both human and ungulate hosts.

The Boise Creek Bacterial Source Tracking Study: 2012 Summary of Findings is available in Adobe Acrobat format. For help using Acrobat files, please visit our Acrobat help page.

Download here:

• Boise Creek Bacterial Source Tracking Study: 2012 Summary of Findings (828 Kb)

For information about the Boise Creek Bacterial Source Tracking Study, please contact Mason Bowles, Senior Ecologist, King County Watershed and Ecological Assessment Unit.

Related information

• Agriculture in King County, Washington
• Streams water quality data 
• Salmon Habitat Limiting Factors for the Puyallup River Basin - WRIA 10

Related agencies

• Dept. of Natural Resources and Parks
• Water and Land Resources Division