Water quality results – January to March 2022 (Q1)

Summary of water quality at select Order Stations

Average Monthly Selenium Concentration (ug/L)

Order Station	Limit	January	February	March
Fording River Downstream of Greenhills Creek	63	70	69	67
Elk River Upstream of Grave Creek	23	17	21	19
Elk River Downstream of Michel Creek	19	12	13	14
Koocanusa Reservoir Downstream of the Elk River	2	1.8	2.2	1.8

Average Monthly Nitrate Concentration (mg/L)

Order Station	Limit	January	February	March
Fording River Downstream of Greenhills Creek	14	19	16	17
Elk River Upstream of Grave Creek	4	3.9	4.6	4.6
Elk River Downstream of Michel Creek	3	2.4	2.5	2.7
Koocanusa Reservoir Downstream of the Elk River	3	0.41	0.50	0.42

Average Monthly Sulphate Concentration (mg/L)

Order Station	Limit	January	February	March
Fording River Downstream of Greenhills Creek	429	304	279	291
Elk River Upstream of Grave Creek	429	105	110	116
Elk River Downstream of Michel Creek	429	95	103	105
Koocanusa Reservoir Downstream of the Elk River	308	45	46	42

Notes:

Cells highlighted yellow denote where the concentration exceeds the limit. Non-highlighted cells do not exceed the limit.
Sites in the table represent a range of conditions in the Elk Valley from the Fording River downstream to the Elk River and finally Koocanusa Reservoir. Click the site name to view the entire datasets for these sites back to 2014 or visit the Water Quality Data Dashboard to view data from additional sites.

Highlights

The January through March period in the Elk River and its tributaries is typically the period of low winter streamflow.

This is typically accompanied by the poorest water quality (highest concentrations of substances) of the year because of low streamflow resulting in low dilution.
Koocanusa Reservoir follows a similar seasonal trend. Water quality in the reservoir is also heavily influenced by the flow and quality of the Kootenay River which is the other main water source for the reservoir. Operations at Libby Dam in the United States further affect water levels and flows in the reservoir. The highest concentrations in the reservoir often occur in the early spring.

The water quality results from January – March 2022 followed the expected seasonal pattern.

Water quality limits were exceeded in the Fording River. Nitrate limits were also exceeded in the Elk River at the Upstream of Grave Creek Order Station. These exceedances were predicted by Teck’s latest models and are expected to be reduced in the coming years as more water is treated.
The selenium limit was also exceeded in Koocanusa Reservoir in February.
- The monthly average result was based on a single measurement recorded on February 7th, at a single depth. Monthly average results are ideally calculated from measurements recorded at multiple depths on multiple days.
- This result is higher than expected based on the measured flow and selenium concentrations in the Elk, Kootenay and Bull Rivers at the time. This suggests the high result was likely influenced by incomplete mixing between the Elk and Kootenay Rivers at the measurement location, and so the water sample was likely more representative of Elk River water and not a mixture of both rivers.
- The reservoir was also drawn down to the lowest February level since the selenium limit was established, which likely helped create the poor mixing conditions at the monitoring location.
Like with the Fording River and Elk River, selenium exceedances in Koocanusa Reservoir will be reduced as water treatment increases.

Visit the Water Quality Dashboard for current and historical water quality data at all Compliance Points, Order Stations and Trend Sites.

The potential for impacts resulting from water quality conditions are carefully monitored. Minor and temporary exceedances of water quality limits are not expected to cause impacts in the river ecosystems. Results of the monitoring programs are summarized each year in the Aquatic Ecosystem Health Annual Update.

View previous quarterly snapshots.