Chopawamsic Creek Study

Outline

Introduction
Methods
Results

Biological Data

Chemical/Physical Data

Water Quality Findings
Management Recommendation
References
Chopawamsic Creek Study

Introduction

Chopawamsic creek national park is found in Virginia. It is a tributary of the Potomac River and is formed by the confluence of south and north branches Chopawamsic Creek. This paper analyses the results from the river to determine its suitability to sustain living organisms. To achieve this, an index of biotic integrity, pH, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, and fecal coliform bacteria will be used.

Method

The method used to analyses various organisms and the sustainability of the river was sampling. Various biological organisms, macroivertebrate was done to provide evidence. Two sites were sampled from which, various organisms were identified which helped in the analysis of the quality of water.

Results

Different results were attained through various tests conducted.

An index of biotic integrity

The tests were carried out because of the quest to test the suitability of water from Chopawamsic Creek to determine its level of pollution. The water is a habitant for living organisms such as fish and micro-invertebrate. There is also likelihood that the populations in the area can contaminate the water from the river. Therefore, these factors combined make the study viable and appropriate.

PH results

The PH results for site 1 were 6.55 while site 2 was 6.81. Therefore, the water PH has no wide variations. PH measures the hydrogen concentration (Bates, 1973), and in this case, the PH result shows that the water is acidic because it is below 7.

Turbidity

Turbidity is a measure used to measure the quality of water. Turbidity is the haziness or cloudiness of water that is caused by individual particles. The instrument used in measuring this is called nephelometric Turbidity Unit (NTU). The first site had 5.13 NTU while the second had 5.11 NTU. This indicates that the water is highly polluted and has many particles.

Dissolved oxygen

Dissolved oxygen tests are used in determining the amount of oxygen present in the aqueous solutions. The level of dissolved oxygen at site one was 4.3 gm/l while that at site 2 was 6.1 mg/l. The lower the concentration of oxygen dissolve the higher the stress to aquatic organisms.

Fecal coliform bacteria

Fecal coliform bacteria are visible through microscope. These bacteria are found in human and animal excretion (United States Environmental protection Agency (EPA), 2012). Site one sample A had 8 colonies/100 ml while site 1 sample B had 4 colonies/100 ml. Site 2 sample A had 2 colonies/100 ml while site 2 Sample B had 1 colony/100 ml. Therefore, the biological data presented plays a significant role in the interpretation of quality of water and the possibility of the river to sustain life or not. This data can be stored and traced in digital format. Physical data/ chemical data such as the PH levels and turbidity of water help to enhance understanding of the chemical composition of water.

Water quality

From this data, the quality of water at site 1 is not advisable or recommended for human consumption because it is highly polluted with fecal coliform bacteria compared to site 1 at sample B that has only 1 colony/100 ml. Site 1 PH is more acidic and it has low concentration of dissolved oxygen hence it is not safe for human consumption.

Management recommendation

Therefore, the manager should recommend that the water is unsuitable for human use. It is highly polluted with fecal coliform bacteria, it is also acidic hence should not be used directly by the people in the area.

References

Bates, R. (1973). Determination of pH: theory and practice. Wiley,

Chopawamsic Creek National Park Water Quality Monitoring Program

United States Environmental protection Agency (EPA) (2012). Water: monitoring and assessment: Fecal bacteria. Retrieved from: http://water.epa.gov/type/rsl/monitoring/vms511.cfm