Popular Whatcom Co. shellfish site could see restrictions lifted as water quality improves

Of Washington’s 115 shellfish harvest areas, only five saw their water quality improve, according to new pollution data released April 25 by the state’s Department of Health. One of them is in Whatcom County.

Portage Bay, located in Lummi Nation territory, saw enough improvement in its water pollution levels to cause the state to reconsider the shellfish harvest restrictions currently in place in the area. The DOH currently considers butter clams and varnish clams in the area not safe to eat due to high levels of toxins. As part of an initiative to clean up shellfish harvest areas, the department has awarded $7 million to local pollution and waste management programs across 2023 and 2024.

The bay serves as an important source of shellfish for Lummi Nation, which has put in substantial efforts to reduce pollution in recent years.

“We are pleased with the improvements in water quality and extensive actions by our water quality partners to find and fix pollution sources in the Portage Bay watershed. The western portion of Portage Bay has seen reduction in fecal bacteria levels during the closure season (September to December),” a DOH spokesperson said in an email to the Bellingham Herald.

Fifteen areas that are currently approved for shellfish harvesting saw their water quality drop enough that the DOH is considering a seasonal or long-term closure. That number is consistent with patterns for this time of year, as snow melts and carries pollutants into the oceans, according to the DOH.

None of those are in Whatcom County, with the Skagit Bay South harvest area being the closest. Over in the San Juan Islands, Upright Channel is also being re-evaluated after DOH recorded high levels of pollution there.

Shellfish feed on whatever particles are in the surrounding waters, according to the DOH. Sometimes this means they ingest particles that are toxic to humans. While these particles aren’t harmful to the shellfish themselves, the toxins stay in their system, making them unsafe for people to eat.

When fecal waste isn’t disposed of properly, rain and snow runoff picks it up and carries it into the bay.

“As rainfall or snowmelt moves over the ground, the runoff picks up and carries with it fecal bacteria from failing septic systems, improperly managed animal waste from agricultural operations or other pollution sources into marine waters,” a DOH spokesperson explained.