Determining how to best allocate dreissenid mussel early detection monitoring effort across the Columbia River Basin (CRB) to address both inter-jurisdictional and regional priorities has been identified as an immediate need by multiple regional partnerships, including DOI’s “Safeguarding the West from Invasive Species” Initiative. An initial step toward optimal allocation of early detection resources across the CRB is to develop a regional strategy for assessing how water quality affects dreissenid mussel establishment risk. We will address issues identified in regional forums surrounding the use of water quality data to assess dreissenid mussel establishment risk. Project deliverables include: (1) Development of criteria for assessing the relevance of water quality data (e.g., based on how, when and where data were collected) for dreissenid mussel risk assessments across the CRB; (2) Development of a ranking scheme for water quality metrics relevant to dreissenid mussel establishment in the CRB; (3) Discussion of the benefits and drawbacks of various strategies currently used to assign dreissenid mussel risk rankings based on water quality across the CRB; and (4) Display the application of water quality relevance criteria and risk assessment rankings to water bodies in the Upper Snake River subbasin (FY19) and the remainder of the Columbia River Basin (FY20) in a georeferenced format that will be accessible by stakeholders.
