fresh water resources

Whether it's the lake where we fish and swim, the rain that nourishes our forests, the wetlands that filter our runoff or simply the glass of water we drink, fresh water resources are essential to our well-being.

Ten thousand years ago, Puget Sound was covered by ice up to a mile thick. When the glaciers melted, runoff "supercharged" the area with groundwater, including the San Juan Islands. The melting glaciers also left the wetlands, ponds and lakes whose remnants we see today.

Unlike mainland counties, the San Juan Islands have no rivers that bring water in from elsewhere. We have no seasonally melting snow pack. What we do have are surface and ground waters that increasingly are being tapped for human use. We also have the distinction of being one of the fastest growing counties in the state. Almost 40% of the county’s population depends on surface water (Trout Lake for the Town of Friday Harbor; Briggs Lake for Roche Harbor; Cascade and Mountain Lakes which supply Rosario, Doe Bay, and Olga; and Purdue Lake, which serves Eastsound); the other 60%, including all those who live in rural and shoreline areas, depends on wells.

We all need water. We currently have 15,190 people living in the county year round and an economy dependent to a great extent on a yearly visitor season. This ‘season’ happens to correspond to low rainfall months, during which our daily population bulges in some areas 500% of the winter population (2004 WS Ferry ridership data Anacortes to San Juan, 2004 Port of Friday Harbor overnight stays).

Within the last 100 years, human activity has altered the previous balance of the water cycle. Two factors are significantly impacting our water supply: increasing human use of water and decreasing recharge due to vegetation removal, soil compaction, clogging by erosion, and impervious surfaces. In short, we’re taking more and more out, and there is less and less going in. Water can be considered a limiting natural factor. We must have it and there is only so much to go around. Its availability must be considered when planning for sustainability.

Fresh Water Resources - What Can You Do?

When San Juan County’s population began a steep climb in the 1970s heavy demands began to be placed on water resources. Today more than 15,000 people call the islands home, but the amount of available fresh water remains the same.
Every year water problems become more evident. Dry wells in summer force residents to install expensive desalinization plants or to haul water to their property. Seawater is contaminating many wells. How do we protect and maintain fresh water resources for the benefit of all?

Tips for the Water Savvy

Urge decision makers to consider water resources when planning for growth management. Offer comments during public sessions about expanding development.
Participate in voluntary well-monitoring to help discover your aquifer’s characteristics and capabilities.
Get acquainted with your water meter. Set a family goal to decrease monthly usage.
Contact your community water system manager for information on your system. Contact information for all systems is available from the Department of Health and Community Services, 360-378-4474.
Conserve water in the house with water-miser fixtures and appliances. Consider dripping faucets an emergency needing immediate attention.
Contact the San Juan County Conservation District, 360-378-6621, for information on choosing native plant species that need little or no water. The District sponsors an annual spring native plant sale.
Use a soil moisture indicator. Irrigate only when, and as much, as necessary. Install drip irrigation with timers.
Capture rainwater, at least for outdoor use.

Why Care About Wetlands?

Wetlands play an important role in protecting the water quality of fresh water resources for drinking, recreation and fish and wildlife habitat. All wetlands, small or large, are essential to a properly functioning watershed. With over 400 miles of shoreline and just 175 square miles of land area in San Juan County wetlands also provide important benefits to our marine resources. Wetlands provide invaluable environmental services to humans, fish and wildlife, including:

Water quality - Wetlands protect water quality by trapping sediments and retaining excess nutrients and other pollutants, such as heavy metals. These functions are especially important when a wetland is connected to groundwater or surface water sources (such as rivers and lakes) that are in turn used by humans for drinking, swimming, fishing, or other activities.

Fish and Wildlife Habitat - Hundreds of species of birds, fish, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians rely on wetland habitat for breeding, foraging, and cover. Wetlands provide unique habitat for species that cannot survive elsewhere. For example, many endangered and threatened animal species require wetlands during part of their life cycle, as do many migratory birds.

Flood Protection - Wetlands act like sponges, absorbing excess runoff after a storm and releasing it slowly. Wetlands help regulate the quantity of water moving through a watershed by retaining water during wet periods and releasing it during dry periods. Because San Juan County watersheds are generally small, even the smallest wetland can play an important role in regulating watershed hydrology.

Shoreline Stabilization - Wetlands that occur along lakes, streams or salt water help protect the shoreline from erosive forces of waves and currents. Wetland plants slow the water’s energy and trap sediment.

Groundwater Recharge and Streamflow Maintenance - Aquifers and groundwater are "recharged," that is, replenished with water, by precipitation that seeps into the ground and by surface waters. Wetlands that are connected to groundwater systems or aquifers are important areas for groundwater exchange. They retain water and provide time for infiltration to occur.

Are there wetlands on my property?

Freshwater wetlands are defined by analysis of three factors: water, soils and the presence of water-loving vegetation. For an area to be considered a wetland, water must be present for at least one week during the growing season. Soils and plants exposed to these wet conditions are known for different regions, so wetlands can be determined even if standing water is not present at the time of the field investigation.

Not all wetlands are easily identifiable. In San Juan County, wetlands often occur in active farm pastures or heavily forested environments and don’t conform to the easily identifiable ‘standing water, lots of cattails’ mental image of wetlands.

Local wetland and soils scientist Scott Rozenbaum offered tips for identifying local wetlands. He stressed that the help of an expert might be necessary to determine the kind and boundaries of a wetland, but that in San Juan County the presence of a few plant species made determining a wetland easy. For example, in San Juan County if you are looking at skunk cabbage, you are looking at a wetland.

Two other plants that always occur in wetlands are common cattails and hard-stem bulrush (also called tule or tuley reed). In another example, if you are in San Juan County and looking at broad swaths of reed canary grass (that tall, wide-bladed grasses you see in the wet pastures), you are looking at a wetland. In other parts of the Northwest, and even of Washington State, that have wetter year-round climates reed canary grass might be a clue to a wetland, but the site would require additional investigation of soils, hydrology and other vegetation to confirm. A combination of vegetation, water and hydric (waterlogged, anaerobic) soils defines wetlands.

Other ways to find out if you have a wetland include contacting the county planning department or visiting the on-line, interactive parcel map available on the county’s website. Keep in mind that even if the maps do not show a wetland on your property, you may still have one. For example, many of the county’s maps are based on aerial photos, not site-specific data, and often miss smaller wetlands or wetlands in forested areas.

More Information about Wetlands and Fresh Water Resources can be found in the FRIENDS Summer 2005 newsletter and on the Policy & Law Water Resources Page.

Mission
To protect the land, water, sea and livability of the San Juan Islands through science, education, policy, law and citizen action.

PO Box 1344, Friday Harbor, WA 98250
Phone: (360) 378-2319, Fax: (360) 378-2324