Contaminants Monitoring
OUR PROJECT
Monitor contaminants for a safe environment
The Kootenai Tribe Environmental Department continues to monitor water chemistry in order to understand how mining pollutants, including selenium and nitrate, are impacting the Kootenai/y River in Ktunaxa Territory.
These mine-derived contaminants are transported downriver and bioaccumulating throughout the Kootenai/y River ecosystem, and are negatively impacting the Kootenai/y River’s native fish populations.
There are concerns that the transported selenium will negatively impact the Tribe’s habitat restoration projects, which include recently connected wetlands. These wetlands are vital to supporting a productive river environment for juvenile fish.
Why It Matters?
Continuing to monitor water chemistry will allow the Tribe to use its own data to guide management decisions about the wetlands, habitat restoration and conservation strategies.
The robust dataset generated from the Tribe’s proposed activities will also compliment the US EPA’s goal of “protecting and restoring waterbodies and watersheds” by providing the data to Tribes, watershed boards, managers, and other partners and governments to make scientifically justifiable management decisions regarding the health of the Kootenai River ecosystem.
Project Overview
Since 2003, the Tribe has implemented a contaminants monitoring plan. These sites, located throughout the Kootenai/y River basin, were selected for strategic reasons, one of which is a basin-wide approach for long-term trend analysis.
Existing sites will continue to be monitored for nitrogen, phosphorous, sulfate, and selenium. The Tribe will also continue to conduct targeted fish tissue analyses on the native Kootenai River fish, including burbot, Kootenai River white sturgeon, and mountain whitefish.
