Low pesticide levels found near salmon, study says

Published 11:21 am Thursday, March 18, 2010

YAKIMA — A three-year state study has detected low pesticide concentrations, generally below levels that violate state or federal water quality standards, in five Washington watersheds where salmon are found.

The study by the state departments of Ecology and Agriculture analyzed 1,194 samples for more than 160 pesticides and other chemical products between 2006 and 2008. The analysis detected 74 pesticides or chemicals, with nearly all at low concentrations.

Six insecticides, as well as DDT, were periodically found at levels that do not meet water quality standards.

DDT has not been registered for use in the U.S. since 1972 but persists in the environment.

Seattle’s Thornton Creek, the Skagit Delta, the lower Yakima Valley and the Wenatchee and Entiat basins were analyzed in the study.