Transcript Slide 1
WATER M ONITORING 101
A GENDA
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Watersheds 101
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Water Monitoring 101
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Importance of study design and site selection
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Volunteer Monitoring
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Activity
WATERSHED I NTRO
W HAT
IS A WATERSHED ?
TOPOGRAPHY IS THE KEY WATERSHED
DELINEATOR
WATERSHEDS S CALE
8-digit HUC
11-digit HUC
14-digit HUC
S TREAM O RDER
R IVER C ONTINUUM
C ONCEPT
Headwaters Streams
heavily shaded, leaf litter is
important
shredders / collectors are
abundant
Mid-order Streams
less shaded, algae more
important
grazers abundant
Large Rivers
not shaded, phytoplankton
present
collectors important
W HAT IS THE CONNECTION BETWEEN
LAND USE AND WATER QUALITY ?
WATER
QUALITY
• Regulated through Clean Water
Act (1972)
• Waters of U.S. must be
“fishable and swimmable” by
1983
• Eliminate all pollution discharge
to waters by 1985
Cuyahoga River, June 22 1969
http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2009/06/cuyahoga_river_fire_40_years_a.html
T HERE IS NO SINGLE DEFINITION OF
CLEAN WATER .
H OW
DO WE USE WATER ?
• Beneficial uses:
Drinking water
Agriculture
Industry
Recreation
Fisheries and
other aquatic life
Aesthetics
H OW
DO YOU KNOW IF
YOU HAVE CLEAN WATER ?
P OINT S OURCE P OLLUTION
• 25% of pollution in the U.S.
• Direct discharge from industry,
sewage treatment plants, etc.
• Easier to identify due to “end of
pipe”
N ONPOINT S OURCE P OLLUTION
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75% of Pollution in the US
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General runoff of water contaminated by poor land
use, homes, streets, air, etc.
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Difficult to identify
W HY D O W E WANT TO I MPROVE
WATER Q UALITY ?
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Maintain the natural habitat for wildlife, native plants,
and your community
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Support designated uses of waterbody
Fishable
Swimmable
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Protect and maintain cultural significance
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Protect drinking water (public health)
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Esthetically pleasing
W HAT M EASURES ARE PART OF
WATER Q UALITY E VALUATIONS ?
C HEMICAL A SSESSMENT
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Dissolved Oxygen
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E. coli and general coliforms
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pH
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Biochemical Oxygen Demand 5-day
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Water Temperature Change
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Phosphates
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Nitrates and Nitrites
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Turbidity/Transparency
Temp
BOD
Gulf of Mexico’s
“dead zone”
P HYSICAL A SSESSMENT –
L ET ’ S TALK HABITAT …
Some critters aren’t suited for
certain situations and know when
to get out!
C ITIZENS Q UALITATIVE
H ABITAT E VALUATION I NDEX
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The following all contribute to habitat and combine to
give a final score:
Substrate
Fish Cover
Stream shape and human alterations
Riparian area and local land use
Depth/Velocity
Riffles/Runs
H ABITAT E VALUATIONS
T HE R OLE
OF
F LOW …
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Helps provide clues to interpret water quality data
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Channelization
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Amount of impervious surfaces
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Affect on pollutant loads & erosion
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If pollutant increases in high flow, then guess NPS because
concentration increases with runoff
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If pollutant decreases with high flow, then guess PS because it
is being diluted
B IOLOGICAL A SSESSMENT
B ENTHIC M ACROINVERTEBRATES : W HY
THEM ?
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Chemistry – just a snapshot in time
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Macroinvertebrates:
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DO WE MONITOR
Not very mobile
Spend extended period in the water
Have different levels of tolerance to pollution
Macroinvertebrates provide idea of water quality over
extended period of time
5 W’ S OF WATER Q UALITY
M ONITORING
5 W’ S
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Why
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What
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Where
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When
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Who
W HY W E M ONITOR
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Identify pollutants and sources
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Establish baseline data
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Document changes and trends
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Measure effectiveness
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Inform stakeholders
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Assess use attainment
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Provide information and data to support modeling
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Characterize watershed
M ONITORING C HALLENGES
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Failure to evaluate data regularly
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Lack of collateral information
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Poor institutional integration
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No planned study design
WATERSHED I NVENTORY
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Research
Maps and Aerial Photos
Reports & Surveys
Field Inventory
What are the Land Uses?
In-stream Conditions
Color
Odor
Appearance
W HAT W E M ONITOR
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Determine sampling goals/objectives
Environmental
Community
Educational
What chemical and/or field samples are taken depends
on objective and budget
If interested in algae blooms; sample for nutrients and collect
representative algae samples for id
W HERE TO M ONITOR ?
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Based on sampling goals/objectives
Upstream / downstream
At bottom of watershed
Multiple sites
Physical location
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Safety
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distance/convenience
and access/property rights
roadside parking, rocky inclines, high flow conditions, bacteria consideration
Best habitat available
should be characteristic of stream reach, yet should aim to ‘level the playing
field’ between sites
W HEN TO M ONITOR
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Based on sampling goals/objectives
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Before and After
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Monitoring before and after a large rain
Useful for determining types of pollutants washed into stream
after rain and reveal changes that occurs as result of new land
use
Change Over Time
Monitoring the same site twice each year for period of 5 years
Useful in identifying trends and picking up unusual situations
W HO M ONITORS
• Federal Agencies
(O THER DATA SOURCES )
• Universities
EPA
• Counties
USGS
• Municipalities
Forest Service
• Tribes
NOAA
• Regulated Communities
Fish and Wildlife
• Advocacy Organization
• States
Nature Conservancy
IDEM
• Sporting Organizations
DNR
• Watershed Organizations
Health Department
Drinking Water Agencies
• Schools, 4-H
U PPER W HITE R IVER WATERSHED
W HY W ORK W ITH V OLUNTEER
M ONITORS
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Source of credible data
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More comprehensive data
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Greater monitoring frequency
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Larger # of sites monitored
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Local knowledge
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Enhances local stewardship
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Gain support for your efforts
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Cost effective (not cost free)
C HARACTERISTICS OF S UCCESSFUL
V OLUNTEER M ONITORING
P ROGRAMS
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Well-organized
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Sound scientific basis
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Report results
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Strong institutional support
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Make a difference
Q UALITY A SSURANCE /Q UALITY
C ONTROL
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Quality Assurance is a broad plan for maintaining
quality in all aspects of a program
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Quality Control methods are established to control
errors
Follow protocol
Repeated Measurements
Modified from a presentation given by Linda Green, Rhode Island Watershed Watch
ACTIVITY
X
• Place x on high and low
points
HW
• Place arrow pointing in
direction of flow
• Mark waterfall
• Label
CON
MR
FALLS
DR
X
Headwater
Confluence
Midriver
Falls
Downriver
L OOK AT YOUR SITE
G ROUPS
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Headwaters
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Confluence
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Midriver
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Falls
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Downriver
H EADWATERS
H EADWATERS
G ROUPS
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Seasons
January – Blue
April – Green
July – Yellow
October - Orange
JANUARY
JANUARY
S UMMARY
U PCOMING W ORKSHOPS
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www.dnr.in.gov/nrec
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Healthy Water Healthy People
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March 4, Ft. Harrison SP Indianapolis, IN
Hoosier Riverwatch
April 9, Indianapolis and South Bend
April 16, Jasper and Lake County
April 23, Gene Stratton Porter
April 30, Lake County
TAKE
HOME THOUGHTS
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Everything is connected
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Use long-term thinking
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Look for the big picture and relationships
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Focus on object observations, not on blame
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Consider how pre-existing and popular opinions inform
decisions
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Gather all the data that you can
Q UESTIONS ?