Spokane River: Contaminants and Health

• Chemicals and Heavy Metals1. PCBs2. PBDEs3. Dioxins/Furans4. Metals

• Biological Hazards

Public Health Risks

1. PCBs (Polychlorinated Biphenyls)

• Spokane River does not meet WA human health criteria for PCBs in edible fish tissue

• Sources and pathways to the Spokane River– City of Spokane stormwater (44%)– municipal and industrial discharges (20%)– and Little Spokane River (6%)– PCB loading from Idaho at the state line (30%)

2. PBDEs (Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers)

• Chemical additives used in everyday household products as flame retardants

• Sources and pathways to the Spokane River– Can leach out of manufactured items and enter

the air, soil and water– Has been detected in sediment, storm water, and

sewage from residential and industrial sources

3. Dioxins/Furans• Can be released into the air, soil, and water.

Fish tissue sampling in the Spokane River showed elevated levels

• Sources and pathways to the Spokane River– Byproduct of burning municipal waste, sludge,

medical waste, and wood and cement kilns– Byproduct of manufacturing herbicides and

pulp/paper products

4. Metals• Lead, arsenic, cadmium and zinc are released

as part of mining, milling and ore processing• Sources and pathways to the Spokane River

– An estimated 100 million tons of mine wastes released in river from the Upper Coeur d’Alene Basin in Idaho.

– Contaminants traveled downstream, moved through Lake Coeur d’Alene and deposited in the Spokane River.

Intestinal MicroorganismsShown to cause gastroenteritis from recreational water*reportable

• Giardia*• Cryptosporidium*• Shigella*• Salmonella*• Hepatitis A*• Coxackie A and B• Norwalk virus• E.coli 0157:H7* (also Leptospirosis)

Other MicroorganismsFound in the environment which cause infections or diseases*reportable

• Pseudomonas aeruginosa• Schistosome cercarial• Staphylococcus sp.• Legionella sp.*• Naegleria fowleri• Mycobacterium sp.• Vibrio sp.*

Spokane River Clean Up and Restoration

Completed sitesPending sitesCompleted PCB Sites

Environmental Public Health1101 West College Avenue, Spokane

(509) 324-1560 | TDD 324-1464

Michael LaScuola324-1574

mlascuola@spokanecounty.org

www.srhd.org