intro getting your feet wet: intro to different types of monitoring
TRANSCRIPT
GETTING YOUR FEET WETINTRODUCTION TO DIFFERENT TYPES OF MONITORING
Erin Stretz -- StreamWatch Program Coordinator
How do you start a water monitoring program?
WHOWHATWHENWHER
EWHYHOW
will monitor?
will you test?
will you sample?
are your monitoring sites?
do you want to monitor?
will you conduct your tests?
Common Reasons to Start Water Monitoring Track the baseline conditions Compare different waterways Identify a problem Educate youth and the public Determine the efficacy of restoration site Affect changes in local/regional/state/national policy Check for regulatory compliance Determine if waters are safe for swimming/boating Respond to emergencies
Establish your GOALS early and often to stay focused.
This will help guide WHAT you want to monitor.
Why do YOU want to start monitoring?
Intended Use of Data Can indicate the required quality of the data to
be collected
NJDEP-Approved Quality Assurance Project Plans Long-term baseline study Project-specific monitoring Restoration monitoring
Why not just collect as much data as possible?
VisualComposition and quality of aquatic
and riparian habitats
PhysicalMeasurements related
to the composition and quality of aquatic
and riparian habitats
Chemical
Composition of and
constituents in water
MacroBiologic
alAbundance and/or type of insects,
crustaceans, fish,
reptiles, amphibians,
aquatic plants, riparian plants
MicroBiologic
alAbundance and/or type of bacteria, zooplankton
, phytoplankt
on
VISUAL Monitoring Parameters and Methods
Visual Monitoring In-stream habitat characteristics:
tell us how well organisms can survive in the aquatic ecosystems Benthic substrate Depth-flow regimes Aquatic vegetation
Water characteristics: can indicate the presence of a pollutant Color Odor
Visual Monitoring PracticeBenthic Substrate Characterization % Bedrock
% Boulders
% Sand
% Gravel
% Cobble
% Clay
% Silt
Visual Monitoring Riparian Habitat has a
huge impact on stream habitat and water quality Land use Riparian buffer width
and vegetation type Wildlife Erosion Outfall pipes
Visual Monitoring Practice
Riparian Buffer Vegetation Types % Hardwood trees
% Softwood trees
% Herbaceous
% Shrubs
% Grasses
% Bare
Visual Data Collection Methods
Aerial mapping Photography Drive-bys Walk stream segments Kayak/Canoe Drones
PHYSICAL Monitoring Parameters and Methods
Physical Monitoring
Water volume: flood or drought? Width
Bankfull? Depth Stream flow (cfs)
Cross-sectional Profile
Physical Monitoring
Temperature: organisms have very specific temperature requirements
Water clarity: measurements include sedimentation, plankton, or anything floating in the water Turbidity Total Suspended Solids
Visual and Physical Monitoring
Least expensive form of monitoring, but still delivers valuable information
Can lead to more intensive monitoring
Help to interpret chemical and biological data
Educate the public Select monitoring sites (or
areas for future studies) Identify potential sources
of pollution Locate restoration sites
Great for Newer Monitoring Groups! Uses of Visual and Physical Data
Measure turbidity of a water sample
PHYSICAL Monitoring Practice
TURBIDITY Lamotte Test Instructions
MACROBIOLOGICAL Monitoring Parameters and Methods
Macrobiological Monitoring Community/population vs.
Indicators
Benthic macroinvertebrates Long(er) term residents of a
stream or lake Stationary Easy to collect Have assigned Pollution Tolerance
Values Inform us about ecosystem health and potential pollutants
Taxonomy
KingdomPhylumClass
Order Family
GenusSpecies
Who Am I??
Kingdom: Phylum: Class: Order: Family:Genus:Species:
Animalia Arthropoda Insecta Ephemeroptera Heptageniidae
Send your samples to the pros!
Macroinvertebrate Sampling
Macroinvertebrates are generally the next step up from visual/physical monitoring
Easy to start sampling
Less expensive for volunteer-identified organisms, but lower-quality data
More expensive to send samples to a lab, but you can obtain genus/species level data
Another great option for newer groups Data quality is variable
Macroinvertebrates
MACROBIOLOGICAL Monitoring Display
Other Bioindicators Algae
Can grow in many different conditions
Respond rapidly to environmental changes
Fish Different species have very
different habitat requirements
MICROBIOLOGICAL Monitoring Parameters and Methods
Microbiological Monitoring
Total coliforms
Fecal coliforms
Escherichia coli
• E. coli is the most specific of the fecal coliform bacteria for freshwater
Enterococci
Streptococcus
• Enterococci is used as an indicator for estuarine and marine systems
Microbiological Monitoring
Public health Evaluate ecosystem
health
Sample collection with lab analysis
Coliscan Easygel Colisure/IDEXX
Best Uses Sample Methods
IDEXX & Quanti-tray/Colisure
MICROBIOLOGICAL Monitoring Demonstration
CHEMICAL Monitoring Parameters and Methods
Chemical Monitoring Dissolved Oxygen Biological Oxygen Demand
(BOD)
pH Alkalinity
Chemical Monitoring
Salinity Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) Conductivity/Specific Conductance
Arsenic
Chemical Monitoring Nitrogen
Total Nitrogen Nitrate Nitrite Ammonia
Phosphorus Total Phosphorus Orthophosphate
Chemical Monitoring: Requires Lab Analysis
Pesticides Volatile organic
compounds (VOCs) Heavy metals Dry cleaning
PCE Solvents
Benzene, TCE PCBs
Pharmaceuticals Wastewater systems
cannot remove these before discharge to streams
PAHs Asphalt, motor oil
Industrial/Commercial Discharges Emerging Contaminants
Chemical Monitoring
6 $$ 6 Precision/accuracy Easy to use in the field
5 Precision/accuracy 5 $$ More analyte options
Volunteer Kits Laboratory Analysis
Try out a Lamotte pH Test
CHEMICAL Monitoring Practice
Once you establish your WHYs, WHATs, and HOWs...
Nail down your study design/QAPP with as much detail as possible Who will monitor? When to sample? Where are your monitoring sites?
Check in with your goals to make sure you are still monitoring what you need to for your intended data use(s).
Manage your data well… and share it!
Questions?
Click icon to add picture
Contact Erin Stretz at [email protected] or 609-737-3735 ext.17.
Online ResourcesStreamWatch Volunteer Water Quality Monitoring Program:
thewatershed.org/science/stream-watch
Watershed Institute Water Monitoring Information Clearinghouse: thewatershedinstitute.org/resources/wqmresources
National Water Quality Monitoring Council(including National Environmental Methods Index and Water Quality Portal)
acwi.gov/monitoring
For more information…