XXXXXXX BAY. Xxxxxxx Bay was established as a National Estuarine Research Reserve in 1980 and is the only estuarine reserve in Washington State. The 11,000 acres in the reserve are managed by WDOE. Currently, Xxxxxxx Bay is a shallow bay with exposed mudflats on out-going tides. Sloughs deliver fresh water to the bay, and these sloughs have numerous water quality problems. The land use in the Xxxxxxx Bay Watershed is mostly agriculture (65 percent). Two concerns are sediment toxicity and the potential for eutrophication. The potential for eutrophication is of concern due to increased nutrient flow to Xxxxxxx Bay from the sloughs. The presence of contaminated sediments is documented in Xxxxxxx Bay. The inner bay has elevated phenols and has failed three different toxicity tests, while the outer bay has elevated phenols and phthalates, but did not fail any toxicity tests. A significant loss of both estuarine and freshwater wetland habitat has occurred in the Xxxxxxx Bay Watershed. Diking, draining, and filling have removed nearly all of the salt xxxxx. Only a fringe of salt xxxxx remains. An estimated 454 wetlands have been identified in the Xxxxxxx Bay Watershed, but most of these no longer have contact with streams that either provide or directly connect to salmonid habitat. A coarse estimation of shoreline modifications indicates that most of the east and south sides of Xxxxxxx Bay have extensive modifications. Landfill (dikes) comprises the greatest number of feet of shoreline modifications, with riprap as the second greatest. Several sections of the Xxxxxxx Bay shoreline also have less than 10 percent overhanging riparian vegetation. Xxxxxxx Bay has one of the largest intertidal eelgrass beds in the western United States. It is believed that Xxxxxxx Bay eelgrass beds may have increased in area due to the diversion of fresh water (Skagit River) away from the bay.
