Water Analysis: Freshwater Creek Misconceptions

Through our research we aimed to determine if there were any differences in water quality of both the north and south forks of Strawberry Creek. As time progresses and the environment changes it is important to keep track of how certain species are being impacted by these features, and how they cope with change. We hypothesized that due to the lack of pollution, the south fork will promote a greater diversity of macroinvertebrates. This was due to the fact that there was less runoff and trash that could be introduced to the water in the south fork, than there was in the north fork. We gathered data by analyzing the different organisms living in both forks. We collected a total of fifty vials composed of five organisms from each fork, and inspected them under microscopic view. After gathering data and identifying the different kinds of organisms living in the different forks we assessed whether the organisms from the samples could live in high or low resolution water. We also took a t-test to assess the probability of these differences being due to relevant factors or by chance. Our major findings suggest that organisms in the south fork showed a higher demand to living in cleaner water indicating that our hypothesis was correct.

John (44) and Mary (43) Winchester were high school sweethearts and have been married for 18 years. They have two teenage boys; Dean (17) and Sam (15). The Winchester family has come to therapy seeing assistance for various issues. Since his return, John has been distant and with drawn. He has is verbally abusive toward Mary and the boys and has developed a drinking problem. His behavior has started to have a serious impact on his relationship with Dean, Sam, and Mary. They have expressed a fear for their safety as well as John’s.

Introduction & Background The Conodoguinet Creek flows through Cumberland and Franklin counties of Southcentral Pennsylvania. From the Horse Valley next to Kittatinny Mountain at an elevation of 1680 feet, the Conodoguinet Creek flows 104 miles through the fertile Cumberland Valley of Pennsylvania, joining the Susquehanna River near Harrisburg. As it meanders north-eastwardly across a broad plain between Blue Mountain on the north and South Mountain on the south, the Conodoguinet flows through Buchanan State Forest and State Game Lands No. 76 then flows into Letterkenny Reservoir and changes course to a southeasterly flow.

At the beginning of the Tertiary, there is a layer of andesite breccia -a fast cooling extrusive rock that has not traveled far from its original deposition. This indicates a volcanic depositional environment. This formation was then intruded by intrusive slower cooling rocks that create a noncomformity between it and the Walker formation. The tuff breccia in the Walker formation is consistent with the same depositional environment as the andesite breccia formation as they are both extrusive rocks. It is possible that there was an eruption from a volcano that deposited the highly viscous andesite rocks followed by slower falling ash, which was then

On a still, warm morning our class set out on a hike to collect water and soil samples to explore. Our water sample was collected from the first portion of Sycamore Creek located on the Los Penasquitos Trail in Sorrento Valley. Collecting 6 in. deep into the creek, we wanted to ensure that the sample in the plastic test tube included soil, algae and vegetation from the floor. The sample was allowed to sit uncapped and covered with a layer of film for 24+ hours before microscopic observation occurred.

Overall the objective of this lab exercise was to introduce students to watershed ecology and the ecological factors that affect water quality. Students used biotic (macroinvertebrates ) and abiotic indicators to asses the quality of water in a freshwater body. Specifically students collected water chemistry data (hardness, nitrate/phosphate concentrations, dissolved O2 and pH) to asses the quality of water. Additionally macroinvertebrates from the benthic environment of a respective field site were collected, analyzed as well as catalogued. Collectively the results indicated that a greater species diversity was indicative of greater water quality(Lenat). Likewise within a freshwater ecosystems a negative correlation was found to exist between fluctuating abiotic factors,species diversity and water quality. It can be concluded that amongst the three field sites the ranking of water quality from highest to lowest is as follows; Great Brook Farm, Russell Mill pond, Lawrence Street Stream.

On Thursday, October 6th, 2016 I studied the Conodoguinet Creek in Cumberland County, PA. I went to the creek to study the health of the creek itself (Phosphate levels, Nitrate levels, Dissolved Oxygen levels, pH levels, and Alkalinity levels). My hypothesis was: If I test the Conodoguinet Creek for signs of acid rain, eutrophication, or other types of pollution, then the tests will reveal that the creek is healthy and has very low levels of pollution. Eutrophication, is the excessive richness of nutrients in a lake or other bodies of water, frequently due to runoff from the land, which causes a dense growth of plant life and death of animal life due to lack of dissolved oxygen. Dissolved Oxygen (or DO), is the microscopic bubbles

Groundwater is an important natural resource that many communities, companies, and ecosystems depend on. Although, it is classified as a renewable resource, its supply is not unlimited. Groundwater has a yearly recharge rate that varies around an average from year to year. Having an idea or estimate of the recharge rate is necessary to define the limits of what can be withdrawn from an aquifer without causing an unacceptable decrease in long-term discharge rates. The objective of this study is estimate the recharge and discharge rates of the West Nose Creek Watershed and determine how groundwater extraction through pumping affects these

The water quality of the U-High creek is excellent. However, not all creeks, rivers, or bodies of water have excellent water quality. One way humans pollute water is through the fertilization of crops. Farmers use fertilizers on their plants to help them grow. These fertilizers and pesticides can be washed away from the fields when it rains, causing them to end up in rivers. When large amount of fertilizers end up in a river or creek, the amount of nitrate and phosphate in the water increases. The increases of these chemicals affect algae growth since algae uses these substances to grow. A massive amount of algae growth, which is known as eutrophication, causes pollution. When the algae die and break down, the amount of dissolved oxygen in the water decreases. Algae must use dissolved oxygen in order to break down, thus removing large amount of it from the water. (Lenntech BV,

In the Case of the University High School Creek, the water quality is excellent. However, the quality of water is not excellent in all cases. In some areas, the water is polluted, even by humans. One way that Humans can pollute water is by using certain farming chemicals (such as nitrogen and phosphorus) and putting too large amounts of these chemicals on crops. Excess chemicals can run off into the creeks, causing a buildup of nitrates in the water. (River Water Quality and Pollution, 1998) This will cause too much algae to grow, which will take up all of the dissolved oxygen in the water. This means that there will be less dissolved oxygen for organisms to breathe, causing them to die. As well as runoff, Humans can dump chemical waste into

On October 6 of 2017, I arrived at the Conodoguinet creek with a mission of solving a question that burned inside all of my fellow students' minds. Was the creek polluted? If so, heavily polluted or only slightly? How would this affect the organisms that lived off of the creek? These were all questions that would hopefully be answered by myself today, and if not by myself then by my peers. A big reason that the water may not be at its best is because of eutrophication, which is too many nutrients in the water. This can occur because the creek has many farms and sewage plants that runoff into the water. With the creek being over 100 miles long, it is also made up of 682 tributaries. The name ‘Conodoguinet’ is Indian, and it means “a long way

The question researched was, what is the water quality of the U-High creek based on aquatic invertebrates found in the water? The purpose of the lab was to find out the creek’s water quality. Data collection was done by collecting invertebrates in the U-High creek. Data collection was also done by keeping track of the types and numbers of the invertebrates found. The prediction of the creek water quality was fair. The hypothesis was rejected the water quality was excellent. There were many different types of organisms found in the water including, 6 pollution sensitive organism types, these organisms include Caddisfly larva and a Snipe larva. Therefore the water quality is excellent because pollution sensitive organisms were living in the creek. They were able to live because there weren't any pollutants found in the creek . If there were pollutants found in the creek then the pollution sensitive organisms would most likely die first. Based on

Around 70% of the world is covered in water, and over time water tends to change. Oxygen levels can rise, temperatures may decrease, and different environmental changes may be introduced. Naturally, water stands to be at a pH level of 7, that being neutral in acidity. However, due to the changes in water over time it seems, that too is changing over time. Even more so changes come from multiple sources outside of the environment, this includes cities and agricultural lands. In fact, a small percentage of water bodies are near agricultural areas, which also may influence a change in the water, with the introduction of nitrates and phosphates, from agricultural runoffs. Nitrates and phosphates are known to have high oxygen levels, which will affect bodies of water further. On an ecological scale, such changes put the aquatic inhabitants in danger. With this being known groups of scientist went to investigate the changes in water bodies by measuring the nitrate and phosphate levels in comparison to the dissolved oxygen levels, as well as the pH, temperature, and turbidity to see if any real significant changes have occurred.

I would like to phrase the question in another way, which is how would I determine the representative sample and then accordingly what the constituents to be sampled?. As representative sample would be the least number of data points required to give way a statistically precise picture of the water body being analyzed. The chemistry and physic of either river or lake is a function of the substances that contact with either in-flowing or still water and how long been there with their exposure to the sunlight or wind. The constituents from varied sources that are entering or leaving (river/lake) can be a function of the hydrology and topography system. Water from sources such as direct/indirect precipitation, surface runoff from snowmelt, or storm water from exposed rock or packed soil, or groundwater inflow from the aquifer will react with the soil or bed/sedimentary rock and dissolved them (as the phenomena knowns weathering condition).Therefore these variable sources can add a critical deposit into the river or lake (surface water) constituents. For instance, many lakes and rivers sensitive to acidification due to the acid precipitation/ mine drainage, or to the atmospheric inputs such as (dust, SO4, NO3, Cl) leaving no time for neutralization before reaching lakes and rivers. Further, seasonally variation for the snowmelt, dry period, runoff, discharge can be explained by a plot of chemistry versus time or discharge depending upon the site. Major cations such as H+ from pH

Dissolved oxygen is essential for the aquatic life and vegetation. The warmer the temperature, the less amount of oxygen dissolved in the water. Dissolved oxygen also decreases with the increase of decomposition of organic material. Dissolved oxygen levels below 6 mg/L can be detrimental to aquatic life, causing risk for fish kills. The measured DO level is 4 mg/L, meaning the water temperature may be too high or there are algal blooms.