Scientist holding an adult Pacific lamprey collected at Bonneville Dam. The dam is on the Columbia River between the states of Oregon and Washington.
Elena Nilsen
Elena Nilsen is a research chemist in the USGS Oregon Water Science Center
Elena Nilsen is a Research Chemist and Team Lead at the U.S. Geological Survey Oregon Water Science Center in Portland, OR. She studies contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) and other threats to aquatic foodwebs in rivers, estuaries, and coastal ocean habitats. Elena has worked extensively on methods development and refinement in collaboration with the USGS National Water Quality Laboratory. She completed a Bachelor of Science degree in biology at UC San Diego and a Doctorate in marine geochemistry at UC Santa Cruz. She started with the USGS as a Mendenhall Post-doctoral Fellow with the USGS Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center in the San Francisco Bay Area studying impacts of contamination on estuarine ecology and geochemistry. She has been with the Oregon Water Science Center since 2007.
Research Interests
Contaminants of emerging concern (CECs); sediment and tissue chemistry; endocrine disruption; contaminant impacts on First Food species, e.g., Pacific lamprey, white sturgeon, salmonids, shellfish; primary productivity, foodweb dynamics; biomarkers; synergistic effects; ocean acidification, ocean anoxia, and climate change
Professional Experience
Research Chemist, U.S. Geological Survey, 2006 – present
Mendenhall Postdoctoral Research Fellow, U.S. Geological Survey, Menlo Park, CA 2004–2006
Graduate Student Research Assistant, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 1999–2004
Biology Research Assistant, private biotechnology industry, Silicon Valley, CA 1996–1999
Education and Certifications
University of California, San Diego, Biology, B.Sc., 1996
University of California, Santa Cruz, Ocean Sciences, Ph.D., 2004
U.S. Geological Survey, Pacific Coastal and Marine Geology, Menlo Park, CA, Mendenhall Post-Doctoral Fellow in Organic Geochemistry, 2004–2006
Science and Products
Per-and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) Integrated Science Team
PFAS Transport, Exposure, and Effects
Ecosystem Effects of Increased Coal Transport Across the Pacific Northwest
Columbia River Contaminants and Habitat Characterization Study
Contaminants Affecting Pacific Lamprey in the Columbia River
Pesticides, Flame Retardants, and Mercury in Tissues from Columbia Basin Pacific Lamprey
Contaminants in larval, juvenile, and adult Pacific lamprey (Entosphenus tridentatus), Oregon, 2017-2021
Uptake and bioaccumulation of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in fish in the Columbia Slough, Portland, Oregon: 2019-2020
A Baseline Assessment of Contaminant Concentrations in Sediment and Biota in Proximity to Coal Transport Tracks in the Pacific Northwest (2014)
Chemicals of emerging and legacy concern in tissues of white sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) in the Columbia River near Hanford, WA (2009)
Scientist holding an adult Pacific lamprey collected at Bonneville Dam. The dam is on the Columbia River between the states of Oregon and Washington.
Target and suspect per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in fish from an AFFF-impacted waterway
Organohalogenated contaminants in multiple life stages of the Pacific lamprey (Entosphenus tridentatus), Oregon, USA
Assessment of persistent chemicals of concern in white sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) in the Hanford Reach of the Columbia River, southeastern Washington, 2009
Exploring biophysical linkages between coastal forestry management practices and aquatic bivalve contaminant exposure
Contaminant concentrations in sediments, aquatic invertebrates, and fish in proximity to rail tracks used for coal transport in the Pacific Northwest: A baseline assessment
Critical review: Grand challenges in assessing the adverse effects of contaminants of emerging concern on aquatic food webs
Prioritization framework for ranking riverine ecosystem stressors using example sites from the Tualatin River Basin, Oregon
Spatial and temporal variability of contaminants within estuarine sediments and native Olympia oysters: A contrast between a developed and an undeveloped estuary
Year-round monitoring of contaminants in Neal and Rogers Creeks, Hood River Basin, Oregon, 2011-12, and assessment of risks to salmonids
Reconnaissance of contaminants in larval Pacific lamprey (Entosphenus tridentatus) tissues and habitats in the Columbia River Basin, Oregon and Washington, USA
Sedimentary organic biomarkers suggest detrimental effects of PAHs on estuarine microbial biomass during the 20th century in San Francisco Bay, CA, USA
Health status of Largescale Sucker (Catostomus macrocheilus) collected along an organic contaminant gradient in the lower Columbia River, Oregon and Washington, USA
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Science and Products
Per-and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) Integrated Science Team
PFAS Transport, Exposure, and Effects
Ecosystem Effects of Increased Coal Transport Across the Pacific Northwest
Columbia River Contaminants and Habitat Characterization Study
Contaminants Affecting Pacific Lamprey in the Columbia River
Pesticides, Flame Retardants, and Mercury in Tissues from Columbia Basin Pacific Lamprey
Contaminants in larval, juvenile, and adult Pacific lamprey (Entosphenus tridentatus), Oregon, 2017-2021
Uptake and bioaccumulation of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in fish in the Columbia Slough, Portland, Oregon: 2019-2020
A Baseline Assessment of Contaminant Concentrations in Sediment and Biota in Proximity to Coal Transport Tracks in the Pacific Northwest (2014)
Chemicals of emerging and legacy concern in tissues of white sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) in the Columbia River near Hanford, WA (2009)
Scientist holding an adult Pacific lamprey collected at Bonneville Dam. The dam is on the Columbia River between the states of Oregon and Washington.
Scientist holding an adult Pacific lamprey collected at Bonneville Dam. The dam is on the Columbia River between the states of Oregon and Washington.
Target and suspect per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in fish from an AFFF-impacted waterway
Organohalogenated contaminants in multiple life stages of the Pacific lamprey (Entosphenus tridentatus), Oregon, USA
Assessment of persistent chemicals of concern in white sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) in the Hanford Reach of the Columbia River, southeastern Washington, 2009
Exploring biophysical linkages between coastal forestry management practices and aquatic bivalve contaminant exposure
Contaminant concentrations in sediments, aquatic invertebrates, and fish in proximity to rail tracks used for coal transport in the Pacific Northwest: A baseline assessment
Critical review: Grand challenges in assessing the adverse effects of contaminants of emerging concern on aquatic food webs
Prioritization framework for ranking riverine ecosystem stressors using example sites from the Tualatin River Basin, Oregon
Spatial and temporal variability of contaminants within estuarine sediments and native Olympia oysters: A contrast between a developed and an undeveloped estuary
Year-round monitoring of contaminants in Neal and Rogers Creeks, Hood River Basin, Oregon, 2011-12, and assessment of risks to salmonids
Reconnaissance of contaminants in larval Pacific lamprey (Entosphenus tridentatus) tissues and habitats in the Columbia River Basin, Oregon and Washington, USA
Sedimentary organic biomarkers suggest detrimental effects of PAHs on estuarine microbial biomass during the 20th century in San Francisco Bay, CA, USA
Health status of Largescale Sucker (Catostomus macrocheilus) collected along an organic contaminant gradient in the lower Columbia River, Oregon and Washington, USA
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.