Untold numbers of hatchery fish may be dying from exposure to tire-contaminated runoff, according to a new study. When it was first identified in 2020, the deadly tire chemical 6PPD-quinone (6PPDQ) was seen mostly as a threat to adult coho salmon. Fish returning in the fall were found disoriented and gasping shortly after entering creeks […]
December 30, 2025
Where mountain lions and people do or do not mix
Occasionally, this space includes reports and essays from guest writers on the subject of Puget Sound ecosystem recovery. Today we look inland at our mountains and forests where top predators like cougars remind us that nature is still wild and — often — unpredictable. PSI staff writer Eric Wagner has this look at a new […]
December 14, 2023
Survey looks at public knowledge of estuaries
“An estuary is a partially enclosed, coastal water body where freshwater from rivers and streams mixes with salt water from the ocean.” – U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Think of it as Puget Sound’s secret recipe. Fill a large glacier-carved basin with salt water from the ocean. Add fresh water from some adjoining rivers. Stir vigorously. […]
September 29, 2023
2022 Salish Sea toxics monitoring synthesis: A selection of research
A new report from the Puget Sound Ecosystem Monitoring Program takes a comprehensive look at some of the greatest dangers posed by toxic chemicals in the Salish Sea. The report was produced with support from the UW Puget Sound Institute, and brings together recent findings on PCBs, CECs, PFAS, 6PPD-Q, and other toxics of concern. It […]
June 28, 2023
Examining the link between low summer stream flows and climate
A 2023 paper in the Journal of the American Water Resources Association says future low flows in Puget Sound streams could be lower than are projected by climate models that do not reliably account for multidecadal climate variation. The paper is co-authored by Nicholas Georgiadis and Joel Baker of the Puget Sound Institute. When rains […]
July 24, 2022
PSI monthly roundup: July 2022
VIEW THE FULLY FORMATTED NEWSLETTER in your browser Low-oxygen problems to be scrutinized in talks about research, modeling efforts For decades, researchers have been advancing their understanding of what causes the harmful and sometimes deadly low-oxygen problems afflicting some areas of Puget Sound. A series of 10 workshops on the subject will begin Tuesday, July […]
March 31, 2022
Recent papers from our group: 6PPD-Q updates and the ongoing hunt for contaminants
New papers this month 6PPD-Quinone: Revised Toxicity Assessment and Quantification with a Commercial Standard A 2022 article in the journal Environmental Science & Technology Letters revises previous findings on the environmental concentration and toxicity of 6PPD-Quinone, a novel compound lethal to coho salmon. The paper reports that 6PPD-Quinone, a chemical resulting from tire wear particles, […]
September 27, 2021
Conference highlights latest findings on toxic chemical in tires
The International Conference on Emerging Contaminants (EMCON), hosted virtually this month by the University of Washington, focused on newly identified threats from chemicals and microplastics in the environment. The conference provided an opportunity to hear the latest research on the discovery of a tire-related compound deadly to Puget Sound’s coho salmon. The cause of what scientists […]
March 4, 2021
Are summer low flows increasing in Puget Sound streams?
Update: A pdf of slides from the presentation is now available. Adequate stream flows are critical to Puget Sound’s endangered salmon and are one of the state’s ‘Vital Sign’ indicators of ecosystem health. Earlier data suggests that summer stream flows have been on the decline, but new analysis shows that gauging these flows may be […]
December 3, 2020
Could tire discovery go beyond impacts on coho?
Scientists have suspected for several years that chemicals from tire wear particles are to blame for the deaths of thousands of coho salmon that have returned to spawn in Puget Sound’s urban streams. Sometimes referred to as “pre-spawn mortality” or “urban runoff mortality syndrome,” these deaths typically occur in streams near roads, and scientists have […]