Transcript Water Monitoring

Water Monitoring
What/Why?
Water testing
•Identifying water content
•Allows scientists to have a full understanding of
what is affecting their stream or river.
How?
•Physical Tests
•Chemical Tests
1: pH Level:
•
The pH level tells us how
acidic or basic our water.
•
The pH range is 0 to 14
with 7 being neutral.
•
While a range of 6.5 to 8.2
is optimal for most
organisms
How to test the pH
1. Fill the test tube to the 10ml line.
2. Add one pH tablet.
3. Cap the tube and mix to dissolve tablet.
4. Compare the color of the sample to the pH color chart.
5. Record result as pH.
pH 4
1 poor
pH 5
1 poor
pH 6
3 good
pH 7
4 excellent
pH 8
3 good
pH 9
1 poor
pH 10 1 poor
pH 11 1 poor
2. Temperature
•How hot or cold the water is
•Colder water can hold more dissolved oxygen
than warmer water.
How to take the Temperature
1. Place the thermometer 4 inches below the
surface of the water for 1 minute. (in a river)
2. Remove the thermometer and record the
results in degrees Celsius.
3: Dissolved Oxygen
•The oxygen amount in the water.
•Used by fish and other organisms
to breathe
•Fast moving water has more
dissolved oxygen than slow,
stagnant water
How to test the Dissolved Oxygen
1. Fill the test tube to the top of the tube
with sample water.
2. Add two Dissolved Oxygen tablets to
the test tube.
3. Cap the tube. Make sure no air
bubbles are in the sample.
4. Invert until the tablets dissolve (4
minutes)
5. Wait 5 minutes
6. Compare the color of the sample to the
Dissolved Oxygen chart.
7. Record result in units ppm (parts per
million).
Dissolved Oxygen and Temperature chart
Dissolved Oxygen
0 ppm 4 ppm 8ppm
2C 0
29
58
4C 0
31
61
6C 0
32
64
8C 0
34
68
10 C 0
35
71
12 C 0
37
74
14 C 0
39
78
16 C 0
41
81
18 C 0
42
84
20 C 0
44
88
22 C 0
46
92
24 C 0
48
95
26 C 0
49
99
28C 0
51
102
30 C 0
53
106
Dissolved Oxygen % saturation score
91-110% 4 excellent, 71-90% 3 good,
51-70% 2 fair,
<50% 1 poor
4: Turbidity
•Turbidity is the measure of
how clear the water is.
•Caused by suspended
sediments such as clay, silt,
organic and inorganic matter.
(Turbidity should not be
confused with color since
darkly colored water can still
be clear and not turbid).
Tributary of Goose Creek, May 13,
2008
How to test the Turbidity of the water
1. Fill the turbidity tube to the line.
2. Place the base of the tube on the outline on the
Turbidity Chart.
3. Look down through the sample water at the Secchi
disk icon under the tube.
4. Compare the appearance of the Secchi disk icon under
the tube to the gray Secchi disk on either side of the
tube to determine the turbidity.
5. Record the units in JTU (Jackson Turbidity Units)
JTU
Score
0
4 excellent
0 to 40
3 good
40 to 100 2 fair
>100
1 poor
Secchi Disk
5: Phosphates
Phosphorus is a nutrient
that acts as a fertilizer
for marine plants.
•Over half of the
phosphates in lakes,
streams, and rivers
comes from detergents.
How to test for Phosphates
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Fill the test tube to the 5ml line.
Add one Phosphorus tablet.
Cap the tube and mix until the tablet has disintegrated.
Wait 5 minutes.
Compare the color of the sample to the Phosphate color
chart.
6. Record result in Phosphate ppm.
Phosphate ppm
1
2
4
Score
4 excellent
3 good
2 fair
6: Coliform Bacteria (Feces!)
•Fecal Coliform Bacteria is
naturally present in the
human digestive tract but is
rare in unpolluted waters.
•Its presence in water
serves as an indication of
sewage contamination.
How to test for Coliform Bacteria
1. Fill the tube to the 10 ml line.
2. Replace the cap.
3. Stand the tube upright, with tablet flat on the bottom of the
tube.
4. Incubate the tube upright at room temperature for 48
hours. Store out of direct sunlight.
5. Compare the contents of the tube to the Coliform Bacteria
Color Chart.
Test Results
Score
Negative
3 good
Positive
1 poor
7: Nitrogen Content
•Nitrogen is a nutrient that acts as a
fertilizer for aquatic plants.
•Nitrogen enters the water from human
and animal waste, decomposing organic
matter, and lawn and crop fertilizer runoff.
How to test the Nitrogen content
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Fill the test tube to the 5 ml line.
Add one #1 nitrate tablet.
Cap the tube and mix until the tablet has disintegrated.
Add one #2 nitrate tablet.
Cap the tube and mix until the tablet has disintegrated.
Wait 5 minutes.
Compare the color of sample to the Nitrate Color Chart.
Record the result as ppm Nitrate (parts per million)
If reaction is yellow record 0 ppm.
Nitrate (ppm)
5
20
40
Score
2 fair
1 poor
1 poor
Invertebrates
•Invertebrates (animals without backbones) are a
natural and important part of any natural water
body.
•By identifying which species are found, we can
accurately determine the overall health of a
stream or river.
Water Monitoring Results
Dissolved
Oxygen
0-8
pH
0-14
Phosphates
0-4
Nitrogen
0-40
Turbitidy
0-100
Colliform
Bacteria
+ or -
Pond
1.5
6.5
2
2.5
0
Yes
Ches.
Bay
2
6
3
3
20
Yes
Potomac
2
8
4
2
0
Yes
South
Riding
0
8
2
3
0
Yes
Water Monitoring ResultsDissolved
Oxygen
0-8
pH
0-14
Phosphates
0-4
Nitrogen
0-40
Turbitidy
0-100
Colliform
Bacteria
+ or -
Shenandoah
2
7.5
4
2
0
Yes
Goose
Creek
2
8
3
1
10
Yes
South
Riding 2
0
8.5
4
3
100
Yes
Bull Run
0
8
4
1
0
Yes
Sources:
http://www2.lakecountyohio.org/soil/Construction%20pages/Monitoring.JPG
http://www.swimfix.co.uk/data/uploads/860.JPG
http://h2o.enr.state.nc.us/nps/images/Cow's%20in%20stream%20.jpg
http://www.orau.org/ptp/collection/consumer%20products/fertilizer.jpg
http://www.epa.gov/gmpo/archive/wwmonitor/images/hancock-4.jpg
http://www.epa.gov/gmpo/archive/wwmonitor/images/hancock-4.jpg
http://www.epa.gov/history/images/p10b.gif
http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/foci/ice07/imagesOfTheDay/Benthic-invertebrates.jpg
http://www.epa.gov/reg3wapd/nps/education/equipment.htm