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Curtis L. DeGasperi

Science and Technical Support Section

Department of Natural Resources and Parks

201 South Jackson Street MS KSC-NR-0560
Seattle, WA 98104-3855
phone: (206) 477-4677

Research Interests

Water Quality Criteria for Fresh, Brackish and Marine Waters. Human Health and Ecological Risk Assessment. Watershed Approach to Water Quality and Ecosystem Protection. Biological Monitoring and Assessment Tools.

Education

M.S., University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 1987, Environmental Engineering and Science
B.S., University of Rochester, Rochester, NY, 1983, Biology-Geology, Cum Laude

Independent Study, West Indies Laboratory, St. Croix, USVI, 1983

Professional Affiliations

Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography
American Water Resources Association
Society of Environmental Chemistry and Toxicology
North American Lake Management Society
Washington State Lake Protection Association

King County Shiny App Links

King County large lake water quality trends
King County large lake data browser
King County lake profiling buoy data browser
King County routine streams data browser

Favorite Links

Bike Works Columbia City
Climate Impacts Group
King County Hydrologic Information Center
King County Lake Buoys
King County Marine Buoys
King County Recycled Water
National Weather Service - Seattle
Puget Sound Partnership
Puget Sound Stream Benthos Database
Regional Water Supply Planning
Sightline Institute
USACOE - Seattle District Reservoir Control Center
USGS Washington Water Science Center
Washington State Department of Ecology
Columbia River Bi-State Studies 1990-1996

Previous Work Experience

Reports and Publications

Schuilien, J.A., T.. Code, C. DeGasperi, D.A. Beauchamp, A.Tonus Tonus, and A.H. Litt.  2023. Annual and interannual variability in the diffuse attenuation coefficient and turbidity in urbanized Washington lake from 2013 to 2022 assessed using Landsat-8/9. Remote Sensing 15:5055 https://doi.org/10.3390/rs15205055

Georgiadis, N., K. Bogue, and C. DeGasperi.  2023. Distinguishing climate change impacts from development impacts on summer low flows in Puget Sound streams. Puget Sound Institute, University of Washington, Tacoma, Washington. Link to report

DeGasperi, C. and W. Hobbs.  2022. Lake Washington 2020 Coring Study. Science and Technical Support Section, Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, Washington. Link to report

DeGasperi, C.  2022. Synthesis Report on Impacts to Puget Sound from West Point Flooding Event in 2017. Science and Technical Support Section, Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, Washington. Link to report

DeGasperi, C., R. Gravon, and J. Bower.  2022. Lake Sammamish Water Quality and Kokanee. Science and Technical Support Section, Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, Washington. Link to report

Urgenson, L., J. Kubo, and C. DeGasperi.  2021. Synthesis of Best Available Science: Temperature and Dissolved Oxygen Conditions in the Lake Washington Ship Canal and Impacts on Salmon. Prepared for the Lake Wasington, Cedar, Sammamish Watershed (WRIA 8) Salmon Recovery Council. Seattle, Washington. Link to report

DeGasperi, C.  2021. King County Rivers Flood Frequency Update with an Emphasis on the 2020 Floods. Science and Technical Support Section, Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, Washington. Link to report

Woolway, R.I., S. Sharma, G.A. Weyhenmeyer, A. Debolskiy, M. Golub, D. Mercado-Bettín, M. Perroud, V. Stepanenko, Z. Tan, L. Grant, R. Ladwig, J. Mesman, T.N. Moore, T. Shatwell, I. Vanderkelen, J.A. Austin, C.L. DeGasperi, M. Dokulil, S. La Fuente, E.B. Mackay, S.G. Schladow, S. Watanabe, R. Marcé, D.C. Pierson, W. Thiery, E. Jennings. 2021. Phenological shifts in lake stratification under climate change. Nature Communications 12, 2318. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-22657-4

Doubek, J.P., Anneville, O., Dur, G., Lewandowska, A.M., Patil, V.P., Rusak, J.A., Salmaso, N., Seltmann, C.T., Straile, D., Urrutia-Cordero, P., Venail, P., Adrian, R., Alfonso, M.B., DeGasperi, C.L., de Eyto, E., Feuchtmayr, H., Gaiser, E.E., Girdner, S.F., Graham, J.L., Grossart, H.-P., Hejzlar, J., Jacquet, S., Kirillin, G., Llames, M.E., Matsuzaki, S.-I.S., Nodine, E.R., Piccolo, M.C., Pierson, D.C., Rimmer, A., Rudstam, L.G., Sadro, S., Swain, H.M., Thackeray, S.J., Thiery, W., Verburg, P., Zohary, T. and Stockwell, J.D. 2021. The extent and variability of storm-induced temperature changes in lakes measured with long-term and high-frequency data. Limnology and Oceanography. 66: 1979-1992. https://doi.org/10.1002/lno.11739

Jane, S.F., G.J.A. Hansen, B.M. Kraemer, P.R. Leavitt, J.L. Mincer, R.L. North, R.M. Pilla, J.T. Stetler, C.E. Williamson, R.I. Woolway, L. Arvola, S. Chandra, C.L. DeGasperi, L. Diemer, J. Dunalska, O. Erina, G. Flaim, H-P. Grossart, K.D. Hambright, C. Hein, J. Hejzlar, L.L. Janus, J-P. Jenny, J.R. Jones, L.B. Knoll, B. Leoni, E. Mackay, S-I.S. Matsuzaki, C, McBride, D.C. Müller-Navarra, A.M. Paterson, D. Pierson, M. Rogora, J.A. Rusak, S. Sadro, E. Saulnier-Talbot, M. Schmid, R. Sommaruga, W. Thiery, P. Verburg, K.C. Weathers, G.A. Weyhenmeyer, K. Yokota, K.C. Rose. 2021. Widespread deoxygenation of temperate lakes. Nature 594, 66-70. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-03550-

DeGasperi, C., T. Clark, D. Wilson, R. Jack, and W. Tafesh,  2020. Existing Lake Washington Water Quality Conditions. Science and Technical Support Section, Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, Washington. Link to report

DeGasperi, C., R. Sheibley, B. Lubliner, C. Larson, K. Song, and L. Fore,  2018. Stormwater Action Monitoring Status and Trends Study of Puget Lowland Ecoregion Streams: Evaluation of the First Year (2015) of Monitoring Data. Prepared for Washington Department of Ecology Stormwater Action Monitoring program. Prepared by King County in collaboration with the Washington Department of Ecology, U.S. Geological Survey, and the Puget Sound Partnership. Science and Technical Support Section, Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, Washington. Link to report

DeGasperi, C. 2017. Green-Duwamish River 2015 Temperature Data Compilation and Analysis. King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA. Link to report  

DeGasperi, C. 2016. Flood Frequency Analysis of King County Rivers with an Emphasis on the January 2009 Floods. King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA. Link to report  

DeGasperi, C. and D. White. 2016. Review of King County's 2015 Environmental Monitoring Activities. King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA. Link to report  

DeGasperi, C. and S. Stolnack. 2015. Monitoring for Adaptive Management: Status and Trends of Aquatic and Riparian Habitats in the Lake Washington/Cedar/Sammamish Watershed (WRIA 8). King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA. Link to report    Link to WRIA 8 Status and Trends  of Wadeable Streams Study

DeGasperi, C.L. and C. Gregersen. 2015. Stream Benthos and Hydrologic Data Evaluation for the City of Bainbridge Island. King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA. Link to report

DeGasperi, C., J. Colton and C. Greyell. 2014. Development of Lake Washington PCB Fate and Bioaccumulation Models. King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA. Link to report    Link to Lake Washington PCB/PBDE Loading Study

DeGasperi, C. 2014. Quartermaster Harbor Nitrogen Management Study: Final Report.King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA. Link to report    Link to Quartermaster Harbor Nitrogen Management Study

DeGasperi, C. 2013. PCB/PBDE Loadings for the Greater Lake Washington Watershed. King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA. Link to report    Link to Lake Washington PCB/PBDE Loading Study

DeGasperi, C. 2013. Development of a Stormwater Retrofit Plan for Water Resources Inventory Area 9: SUSTAIN Model Pilot Study. King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA. Link to report    Link to WRIA 9 Stormwater Retrofit Study

DeGasperi, C. 2012. Quartermaster Harbor Benthic Flux Study. King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA. Link to report    Link to Quartermaster Harbor Nitrogen Management Study

DeGasperi, C. and E. Ferguson. 2012. Quartermaster Harbor Nearshore Freshwater Inflows Assessment. King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA. Link to report    Link to Quartermaster Harbor Nitrogen Management Study

DeGasperi, C. and E. Ferguson. 2012. Mileta Creek Nitrogen Source Tracking Study. King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA. Link to report    Link to Quartermaster Harbor Nitrogen Management Study

Coffin, C., S. Lee, and C. DeGasperi. 2011. Green River Temperature Total Maximum Daily Load: Water Quality Improvement Report. Washington Department of Ecology, Northwest Regional Office, Bellevue, WA. Link to report    Link to Water Quality Improvement Project Green River and Newaukum Creek Area: Temperature Page

DeGasperi, C. 2011. Trilogy and Redmond Ridge Urban Planned Development (UPD)Monitoring Report: Final Stream and Wetland Hydrologic Monitoring Assessment. King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA. [Several reports under one cover] Link to report    Link to Trilogy/Redmond Ridge UPD Study Page

DeGasperi, C. and J. Burkey. 2010. Working Draft. Preliminary Estimates of Summer Environmental Restoration Flow Targets for Basins in King County with Declines in Summer Low Flows. King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA. Link to report

DeGasperi, C. and J. Burkey. 2010. Working Draft. Identification of Streams with Declining Summer Flows. King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA. Link to report

DeGasperi, C. 2010. Climate Change Impacts on River Flooding: State-of-the-Science and Evidence of Local Impacts. King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA. Link to report

DeGasperi, C. 2010. Initial Assessment of Nutrient Loading to Quartermaster Harbor. King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA. Link to report    Link to Quartermaster Harbor Nitrogen Management Study

DeGasperi, C. 2009. Development of a Water Quality Model of the Sammamish River. King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA. Link to report

DeGasperi, C., H.B. Berge, K.R. Whiting, J.J. Burkey, J.L. Cassin, and R.R. Fuerstenberg. 2009. Linking hydrologic alteration to biological impairment in urbanizing streams of the Puget Lowland, Washington, USA. Journal of the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) 45(2):512-533. Link to publication

DeGasperi, C. 2008. Development of a 3-Dimensional Hydrodynamic Model of Lake Sammamish. King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA Link to report

DeGasperi, C. 2007. Major Lakes Continuous Temperature Study: Interim Progress Report. King County Water and Land Resources Division, Seattle, WA Link to report

DeGasperi, C. 2005. Sammamish River Diel pH and Dissolved Oxygen Study. King County Water and Land Resources Division. Seattle, Washington. Link to report

DeGasperi, C. 2005. Riparian Shade Characterization Study. King County Water and Land Resources Division. Seattle, Washington. Link to report

T. Khangaonkar, Z. Yang, C. DeGasperi, and K. Marshall. 2005. Modeling hydrothermal response of a reservoir to modifications at a high-head dam. Water International 30:378-388. Link to abstract

DeGasperi, C. 2004. Major lakes phytoplankton study: Comparison of composite sampling techniques. King County Water and Land Resources Division. Seattle, Washington. Link to report

Arhonditsis, G.B, M.T. Brett, C.L. DeGasperi, and D.E. Schindler. 2004. Effects of climatic variability on the thermal properties of Lake Washington. Limnol. Oceanogr. 49(1):256-270. Link to publication

DeGasperi, C. 2002. Refinement of the Sammamish River CE-QUAL-W2 model and application to long term simulations. Appendix B. Sammamish River Corridor Action Plan. King County Water and Land Resources Division. Seattle, Washington. Link to report    Link to plan

Yang, Z., T. Khangaonkar, S. Breithaupt, C. DeGasperi, and K. Marshall. 2001. Temperature stratification and water quality modeling for Lake Simtustus, Oregon. pp. 765-782 In: Estuarine and Coastal Modeling Conference Proceedings, ASCE Link to abstract

Yang, Z., T. Khangaonkar, C. DeGasperi, and K. Marshall. 1999. Three-dimensional modeling of temperature stratification and density-driven circulation in Lake Billy Chinook, Oregon. pp. 411-425 In: Estuarine and Coastal Modeling Conference Proceedings, ASCE Link to paper

DeGasperi, C., T. Khangaonkar, Z. Yang and K. Marshall. 1999. BETTER Temperature Model of Lake Billy Chinook, Oregon. In: Water Resources into the New Millennium: Past Accomplishments, New Challenges. R. Walton and R.E. Nece (eds). American Society of Civil Engineer's International Water Resource Engineering Conference, August 8-12, 1999, Seattle, WA. Link to paper

DeGasperi, C.L. and T. Khangaonkar. 1996. A steady-state model of the Willamette River: Implications for flow control of dissolved oxygen and phytoplankton biomass. pp. 163-172. In: River Quality: Dynamics and Restoration. A. Laenen and D. A. Dunnette (eds). CRC Press, Inc., Boca Raton, FL. Related Willamette River Basin Study reports

DeGasperi, C.L., D.E. Spyridakis, and E.B. Welch. 1993. Alum and nitrate as controls of short-term anaerobic sediment phosphorus release: An in vitro comparison. Lake and Reservoir Management 8:49-59. Link to paper

Welch, E.B., C.L. DeGasperi, and D.E. Spyridakis. 1988. Sources for internal P loading in a shallow lake. Verh. Internat. Verein. Limnol. 23:307-314.

Welch, E.B., C.L. DeGasperi, D.E. Spyridakis, and T.J. Belnick. 1988. Internal phosphorus loading and alum effectiveness in shallow lakes. Lake and Reservoir Management 4:27-33. Link to paper

DeGasperi, C.L. 1987. Sources of phosphorus to phytoplankton in a shallow eutrophic lake: the importance of sediments vs. macrophytes. M.S. thesis. University of Washington, Seattle, WA. Link to thesis

Welch, E.B., C.L. DeGasperi, and D.E. Spyridakis. 1986. Effectiveness of alum in a weedy, shallow lake. Water Resources Bulletin 22:921-926. Link to abstract

Presentations

DeGasperi, C.L. 2022. Lake Washington: ~12,000 years of decreasing solitud. May 3, 2022 presentation to Snohomish County lake volunteers, Virtual. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C. and W. Hobbs. 2022. The Lake Washington Sediment Record Revisited Long-term Trends in Lake Eutrophication Indicators. Presentation given to the 35th Annual Washington Lake Protection Association (WALPA) conference in Richland, Washington, October 21, 2022. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2020. Flow-Ecology Relationships and Applications to Stormwater Management. April 2020 presentation to University of Washington Hydraulic Design in Environmental Engineering class. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2020. Lake Sammamish Stream Flooding Presentation - May 26, 2020. Presentation given to the Kokanee Work Group regarding peak flows in Lake Sammamish tributaries with an emphasis on the February 2020 flooding event. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2020. Spring fever revisited. Relationships among Lake Sammamish thermal stratification, anoxia, and phosphorus. Presentation by Curtis DeGasperi (virtual) on October 14, 2020 at the 33rd annual Washington Lake Protection Association conference. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2018. Lake Union and Intended Consequences. Presentation to University of Washington Civil and Environmental Engineering Capstone Class on April 11, 2018. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2017. Stormwater Action Monitoring Puget Lowland Ecoregion Streams Status & Trends. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2016. Review of King County's Lake Buoy Monitoring System. Presentation to National Water Quality Monitoring Conference, Tampa, FL, May 5, 2016. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2016. Review of King County's Continuous Lake Temperature Monitoring Data. Presentation to National Water Quality Monitoring Conference, Tampa, FL, May 6, 2016. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2016. WRIA 9 Temperature TMDLs and Riparian Restoration "Rules of Thumb" For Temperature Management. Presentation to WRIA 9 Salmon Recovery Technical Workgroup, October 21, 2015. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2016. WRIA 9 Temperature TMDLs and Riparian Restoration "Rules of Thumb" For Temperature Management. Presentation to WRIA 9 Salmon Recovery Technical Workgroup, October 21, 2015. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C., J. Colton, and R. Jack. 2014. Lake Washington PCB/PBDE Study Estimates of loading from major pathways. Presentation to Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference, May 1, 2014. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. and G. Pelletier. 2014. The Lake Washington PCB/PBDE Study: Development and testing of a PCB fate model. Presentation to Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference, May 1, 2014. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2013. Thermal conditions for Lake Sammamish

DeGasperi, C.L. 2013. Thermal conditions for Lake Sammamish kokanee. Historical and future projections. Presentation at the October 2013 King County WLRD Science Seminar, Seattle, WA. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2013. Relationship between stream flow and stream benthos. Presentation at the Kitsap County Watershed Health Seminar, Seattle, WA. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2013. WRIA 9 Stormwater Retrofit SUSTAIN Pilot Study. Presentation for WRIA 9 Stormwater Retrofit Study link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2011. The Quartermaster Harbor Nitrogen Management Study: Project overview and preliminary nitrogen loading. Presentation at the October 2011 Salish Sea Conference, Vancouver, BC. link to presentation    link to abstract

DeGasperi, C.L. 2011. Trends in summer low flows in King County rivers and streams: How low will they go? Presentation at the October 2011 Salish Sea Conference, Vancouver, BC. link to presentation    link to abstract

DeGasperi, C.L. 2011. Climate Change Impacts on King County Rivers – Trends and Projections for Fall Flooding and Low Summertime Flow. November 1, 2011 presentation at Preparing for Climate Change Impacts – a new King County Brownbag Seminar Series, Seattle, WA. Link to video of presentation. -- Link to King County Preparing for Climate Change brownbag series.

DeGasperi, C.L. 2011. Stormwater in the Puget Sound region. It's the hydrology... May 12, 2011 presentation at Stormwater Forum sponsored by the UW student chapter of AWWA and WEF, Seattle, WA. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2010. How low will they go? Trends in summer low flows in King County rivers and streams. Presentation at the October 2010 King County WLRD Science Seminar, Seattle, WA. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2010. Identification of King County Streams with Declining Summer Flows. Presentation to the 2010 UCOWR/NIWR Conference: HydroFutures: Water Science, Technology, and Communities, Seattle, WA. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2009. Freshwater Flow to Puget Sound is Declining. Why? Presentation to the American Water Resources Association Annual Water Resources Conference, Seattle, WA. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2009. What is up (and down) with King County River Flows? Presentation at the May 2009 King County WLRD Science Seminar, Seattle, WA. WA. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2008. What If We Built an Environmental Indicator and Nobody Came? Presentation at the May 2008 King County WLRD Science Seminar, Seattle, WA. WA. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L., R. Taira, T. Georgiana, and K. Dorow. 2007. Integrated Modeling of Surface Water in WRIA 8: An Application of the Integrated Water Resource Modeling System (IWRMS). Presentation at the March 2007 Georgia Basin Puget Sound Research Conference, Vancouver, BC. need correct link to presentation    link to abstract

DeGasperi, C.L. 2006. The Ultimate Answer to Life, the Universe, and Hydrologic Index Development. Presentation at the November 2006 King County WLRD Science Seminar, Seattle, WA. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2006. Climate change impacts on Lake Washington. Presentation at the Pacific Northwest Regional Lake Protection Conference (Washington Lake Protection Association-Oregon Lakes Association), Portland, Oregon. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2005. Sammamish River YSI. Presentation to the Washington Hydrologic Society. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2004. Development of 3-D hydrodynamic and water quality models for Lake Sammamish. Presentation at the November 2004 King County WLRD Science Seminar, Seattle, WA. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L. 2002. Development of 2-D water quality model of the Sammamish River. Presentation at the 2002 King County WLRD Science Seminar, Seattle, WA. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L., T. Khangaonkar, S. Breithaupt, and K. Marshall. 2000. Design of Optimum Selective Withdrawal Operation for Temperature Management at Round Butte Dam, Lake Billy Chinook, Oregon. Presented to the Water Environment Federation (WEF)73rd Annual Conference and Exposition on Water Quality and Wastewater Treatment, October 18, 2000, Anaheim, CA. link to paper   link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L., T. Khangaonkar, and K. Marshall. 2000. A Water Quality Model of Lake Billy Chinook: Application to Issues Associated with Anadromous Fish Passage and Bull Trout. Presentation to the Washington Lakes Protection Association (WALPA), April 13, 2000, Seattle, WA. link to presentation

DeGasperi, C.L., T. Khangaonkar, Z. Yang, and K. Marshall. 1999. BETTER temperature model of Lake Billy Chinook, Oregon. Presented to the American Society of Civil Engineers' (ASCE) Water Resources Conference, October 9, 1999, Seattle, WA. Link to paper

DeGasperi, C.L., T. Khangaonkar, S. Breithaupt, John Koch, and Rick Andrews. 1998. A model of sediment recontamination following cleanup of the Norfolk Site, Duwamish River, Seattle, WA. Presentation to the Pacific Northwest Pollution Control Association Annual Conference, October 27, 1998, Portland, OR. link to presentation

Panels/Committees/Technical Workgroups/Colaborations

Benedict, C. and J. Shaw. 2013. Agricultural Waterway Buffer Study Whatcom County, Washington, 2012. Whatcom County Extension, Washington State University, Bellingham, WA. Link to report    Link to ag study website

Lake Washington Ship Canal Water Quality Science Panel. 2012. Final Recommendations Report to US Army Corps of Engineers - Seattle District. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Seattle district, W912DW-07-D-1002. Task Order 0017.

Puget Sound Partnership Phase I Indicators Technical Workgroup. 2008. Environmental Indicators for the Puget Sound Partnership:A Regional Effort to Select Provisional Indicators (Phase 1). Summary Report- December 2008. link to report

Posters

DeGasperi, C.L. 2009. Connecting hydrologic alteration to biological impairment in urbanizing streams of the Puget Lowland. Poster presentation to the February 2009 Puget Sound-Georgia Basin Conference, Seattle, WA. link to poster

DeGasperi, C.L. 2003. Development of 3-dimensional hydrodynamic and water quality models of Lake Washington and Lake Sammamish. Poster presentation to the April 2003 Washington State Lake Protection Association's 16th Annual Conference, Chelan, WA. link to poster

Ellis, S.E. and C.L. DeGasperi. 1993. The lower Columbia River Bi-State Program 1991 reconnaissance survey. Poster presentation to the North American Lake Management Society 13th Annual Symposium, December 2, 1993, Seattle, WA. Related Columbia River Bi-State Program reports