Putting one’s arms around the state of the local environment within the constraints of this column is perilous. So I won’t try. Benton-Franklin Trends offers many measures that one can find here for those who want to explore the topic. 

Air quality, water quality, land use, electricity consumption, water use and local wildlife all appear in the Trends data. In this column, we will focus on air and water quality. 

First, the bad news. The water quality of the Yakima River, as measured at Kiona, has deteriorated over the past two decades.  

The Washington Department of Ecology has created a comprehensive index of surface water quality that the Trends compiles for the Yakima, Snake and Columbia rivers, with measures taken at points within the boundaries of the two counties.  

The index is composed of many attributes such as temperature, turbidity, phosphorous levels, fecal coliform bacteria presence, heavy metals and dissolved oxygen.  

The index values run from 0 to 100, with the latter value as optimal. Any score between 80 and 100 indicates “of lowest concern,” 40-79 “marginal concern,” and those between 40 “of highest concern.”  

The two big rivers that flow through the Tri-Cities appear in good shape. The index value for the Columbia measured at Umatilla for the latest year (2022) was 92. Over two decades ago that was its average value. The index value for the Snake River at Pasco for the latest year was 88. Two decades ago, it was in the mid-80s. 

The same cannot be said for the Yakima River’s health. In 2022, its water quality value was 51 at Kiona. Over two decades ago, it was in the mid-60s.  

As the accompanying indicator’s graph makes clear, the trend over time has been downward. This is not new news to many public officials, state and local, but it is troubling nonetheless to observe the trend. If it continues, the water quality of the Yakima will likely slip below 40 within two decades. 

Benton-Franklin Trends

Air quality 

The (relatively) good news: Air quality in the area has declined, as seen in Trends data, but not as severely as Yakima River water quality has declined.  

This measure counts the number of “good” air quality days, as defined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This assessment also rests on an index composed of five parts: ground level ozone, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter.  

The EPA defines thresholds that allocate the 365 days of the year into “good,” “moderate,” “unhealthy for certain groups” and “unhealthy.”  

For both counties, the number of good air quality days has slipped a bit over the past decade. For example, the three-year average at the start of the period measured (2012-14) for Benton County was 316 good air quality days.  

Most recently, the three-year period average (2022-24) of good air quality days was 300. 

Franklin County’s air quality also experienced a decline over the same period, but by not quite as much: an average of 307 decreasing to an average of 301. 

On the other hand, air quality in the two metro areas identified in this indicator as benchmarks has improved.  

For Yakima County, the average number of good air quality days at the start and end of the measurement period moved from 248 to 249. The improvement in Spokane County was much more pronounced, rising from an initial three-year average of 271 to an ending average of 285. 

Clearly, the metro area has some work to do with air quality and water quality, especially the smallest of the three rivers that helps to define the identity of the greater Tri-Cities. 

D. Patrick Jones is the executive director for Eastern Washington University’s Institute for Public Policy & Economic Analysis. Benton-Franklin Trends, the institute’s project, uses local, state and federal data to measure the local economic, educational and civic life of Benton and Franklin counties.