Stream bed sediment and fish tissue were collected from 26 streams on the island of Oahu to assess the occurrence and distribution of trace elements and hydrophobic organic compounds.  Bed sediment was analyzed for 45 trace elements, 32 organochlorine compounds, 79 semi-volatile organic compounds, and organic, inorganic, and total carbon.  Fish tissue was analyzed for 22 trace elements and 28 organochlorine compounds.  All samples were analyzed at the U.S. Geological Survey's National Water-Quality Laboratory in Denver, Colorado.

NAWQA bed-sediment and fish-tissue studies evaluate trace elements and hydrophobic organic compounds in two stages. First, an occurrence survey is completed at a limited number of sites representing the various land uses within the study area to determine which constituents are important to water-quality conditions. Then, a spatial distribution survey is done to increase the geographic coverage with particular emphasis on the assessment of priority constituents identified in the occurrence survey.

An occurrence survey was conducted at 6 sites during the summer of 1998 and a spatial distribution survey was conducted at 24 sites during the summer of 2000. 

U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet 140-00 Occurrence of Organochlorine Pesticides in Stream Bed Sediment and Fish From Selected Streams on the Island of Oahu, Hawaii, 1998 is available online.