Adventure Scientists

  • Home
    • About Us >
      • Mission and Values >
        • EIJ Resources
      • Annual Reports and Financials
      • Contact
    • Our Team >
      • Staff
      • Board and Advisors
      • Science Advisory Board
      • Join our Team
      • Our Partners
    • Press >
      • COVID-19 Updates
      • Films
      • Writing
      • Audio
  • For Scientists
    • Our Services >
      • Project Design & Feasibility
      • Project Build
      • Volunteer Recruiting & Screening
      • Full Project Management
    • Scientific Partners
    • Project Reports and Scientific Publications
    • Access Data Sets
  • For Adventurers
    • Volunteer Basics
    • Current Projects >
      • Wildlife Connectivity
      • Timber Tracking
      • Wild and Scenic Rivers
  • Our Impact
    • Past Projects
  • Blog
  • Donate
  • Home
    • About Us >
      • Mission and Values >
        • EIJ Resources
      • Annual Reports and Financials
      • Contact
    • Our Team >
      • Staff
      • Board and Advisors
      • Science Advisory Board
      • Join our Team
      • Our Partners
    • Press >
      • COVID-19 Updates
      • Films
      • Writing
      • Audio
  • For Scientists
    • Our Services >
      • Project Design & Feasibility
      • Project Build
      • Volunteer Recruiting & Screening
      • Full Project Management
    • Scientific Partners
    • Project Reports and Scientific Publications
    • Access Data Sets
  • For Adventurers
    • Volunteer Basics
    • Current Projects >
      • Wildlife Connectivity
      • Timber Tracking
      • Wild and Scenic Rivers
  • Our Impact
    • Past Projects
  • Blog
  • Donate

Welcome to Field Notes

When the Well Runs Dry

8/5/2015

 
A Puyallup River Journey
Picture
Photos and Writing by Ken Campbell
ASC Microplastics Adventurer

I don’t know my watershed as well as I thought I did. Although I sit on a local environmental education committee and work on projects for the Puyallup Watershed Initiative, I lack a solid understanding of the route of the river and the wilderness, farms and communities that line its banks.

So I've decided to travel the length of the river, from its source on the western flanks of Mount Rainier to its confluence with Puget Sound.
I’ll be taking an up-close look at the Puyallup, from its first drops off the glacier’s edge to the salt waters of the Puget Sound. Traveling with friends via mountain bike, on foot and by canoe, I will explore the health of the river and the changes that this time of low water has brought with it.
A river is the report card for its watershed. 
                                          Alan Levere

This year in Washington, it’s all about the water, or more precisely, the lack thereof. Is the 5 percent snowpack level in the Cascades going to be the new normal that comes with climate change? How will it impact farmers, climbers, salmon and those others who depend on the river? This is a story of receding glaciers, lower-than-average rainfall and summer temperatures that are continually breaking records. 
Picture
As has been the case on my previous expeditions, science and data collection will be integral. I will be sampling for the ASC Microplastics Project in several locations along the river, as well as conducting stream surveys to document the amount of plastic waste present. Eighty percent of marine plastic debris comes from sources on land and much of that begins higher up in the watersheds. These efforts will help to raise awareness of some of the sources of plastic pollution and how we can begin to address the issue of our environmental impact.

The distance is about 50 miles, and although I don’t yet know the lessons the river will teach me, I expect to come away from this adventure with a greater understanding of this part of my world.

Learn more by watching Ken's video about the path of the Pullayup River:

Learn more about the Microplastics Project and other ASC projects on our website, 
the Field Notes blog, and our Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Google+ pages. 

Comments are closed.

    Read the Landmark Notes blog:

    Picture

    Archives

    January 2021
    November 2020
    October 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    July 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    June 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011

Donate Now
STAY IN TOUCH
Picture
Adventure Scientists®
​PO Box 1834, Bozeman, MT 59771
406.624.3320 info@adventurescientists.org