| Niawiakum River | |
|---|---|
  Location of the mouth of the Niawiakum River in Washington Show map of Washington (state) Niawiakum River (the United States) Show map of the United States | |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Washington |
| County | Pacific |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | Willapa Hills |
| • coordinates | 46°37′35″N123°51′46″W / 46.62639°N 123.86278°W /46.62639; -123.86278[1] |
| Mouth | Willapa Bay |
• coordinates | 46°37′48″N123°56′3″W / 46.63000°N 123.93417°W /46.63000; -123.93417[1] |
• elevation | 0 ft (0 m)[1] |
| Length | 6 mi (9.7 km)[2] |
TheNiawiakum River is a short river in theU.S. state ofWashington. It is approximately 6 miles (9.7 km) long.[2]
The Niawiakum River originates in the hills of the southwestern part ofWashington. It flows generally west, emptying intoWillapa Bay nearBay Center and the mouth of thePalix River. The river's entire length is only a few miles. The lower half of the Niawiakum River is a broadestuary andtidalmarshland.U.S. Route 101 crosses the river near its mouth.
The name "Niawiakum" derives from theLower Chehalis name for the river.[3]
838 acres (339 ha) of the lower river is a protected land preserve called the Niawiakum RiverNatural Area Preserve, yet most of the land is controlled byWeyerhaeuser which has resulted in significant clearcut logging and damage to the forest and river ecosystems. Two of the largestWestern Red Cedar trees in the world, the Niawiakum Giant and the Seal Slough Cedar, sit on Weyerhaeuser land,[4] however, surrounding clearcuts have nearly killed the Seal Slough Cedar. The river estuary and its tidal salt marsh vegetation is among the highest quality of the entire Washington and Oregon coasts.[5][6] There are ongoing efforts to protect more of the Niawiakum estuary along with the nearbyBone River estuary.[7]
The lower Niawiakum River shows traces of the1700 Cascadia earthquake and associatedtsunami. Field trips to the river have been part of a Certificate Program in Tsunami Science and Preparedness offered by theUniversity of Washington (UW) in cooperation with theNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The program was the first offered by the International Tsunami Training Institute, set up by NOAA in response to theIndian Ocean tsunami of 2004.[8]