Drift Creek @ Gorton Road

Lincoln City, Oregon

Managed by Salmon Drift Creek Watershed Council

Salmon Drift Creek Watershed Council Launches new online service for Water Quality Data

This sinuous section of Drift Creek rolls through the floodplain near head of tide. Sample site is in an agrarian landscape just upstream of a section of the important Siletz Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

"Established in 1991 with a donation of 46 acres of tidal salt marsh, the purpose of this refuge is to protect and enhance estuarine fish and wildlife resources and their habitats.

"Now encompassing 568 acres, Siletz Bay features salt marsh, brackish marsh, tidal sloughs, mudflats, and coniferous and deciduous forestland. The refuge provides nursery grounds for Coho and Chinook Salmon, Steelhead and Cutthroat Trout, and other anadromous species. The primary ecological goal for the refuge is to allow the salt marsh to return to its natural state of twice-daily tidal inundation."

Learn More at: https://www.fws.gov/refuge/siletz_bay/

WATER QUALITY

No data available
Historical Status
This status is based on the latest sample, taken on August 14th, 2018. Salmon Drift Creek Watershed Council updates the status of this beach as soon as test results become available. These results were posted to Swim Guide on at

For water quality icon legend, click:

Report Pollution

MONITORING FREQUENCY

SOURCE INFORMATION

The outfall for each of these water bodies is ultimately the Pacific Ocean, and thus impacts to the beach water quality may be a result of upstream activities.
Water samples are collected by the Watershed Council with the help of volunteers. The Water Quality Program Manager oversees and coordinates with all the volunteers, and provides training to new volunteers.

Samples are processed using the IDEXX system. The water at the bathing beaches are tested for E.coli, as well as dissolved oxygen, temperature, pH, specific conductance, and turbidity.

The monitoring program is variable based on funding and resources. As results become available they are shared on Swim Guide.

Water Quality Data are compared to state and federal standards as part of a baseline monitoring program. SDCWC does not issue any advisories, but information is available for public's use.

Monitoring Status
SDCWC follows Oregon’s standard for the monitoring of its recreational waters. The 30 day standard is > 126 cfu / 100 ml or any one sample (STV) at > 406 cfu /100ml. Effectively a swim site will be posted based on the single sample criteria of 406 E.coli/100ml. The 90 day segment is still only proposed and has not to my understanding been adopted.

E. coli
A beach is marked Green when two consecutive single sample results are under an STV of 406 cfu per 100 mL (and where applicable, a geometric mean of 126 cfu per 100 mL)

A beach is marked Red when five consecutive single sample results in a 30 day period are equal to or above an STV of 406 cfu per 100 mL (and where applicable, a geometric mean of 126 cfu per 100 mL)

A beach is marked Grey if there is no current results or no available information.

SDCWC is currently supported by the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, Surfrider Blue Water Task Force, and Neighbors For Kids in Depoe Bay, Oregon where their bacteria lab resides.

WATER QUALITY GRAPH