Module 4 and 5 Stream Ecology

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Module 4 and 5Stream Ecology

• Detecting Nutrient Impacts on Stream Water
  QualityCase Study- Cape Fear River, North
  Carolina

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Module 4/5 Stream Nutrients Cape Fear River

• Background These slides present
• 1 . background information on the Cape Fear
  River, N.C. and Tischer Creek, Duluth, MN for the
  purpose of discussing stream nutrient chemistry
  analysis in lab (only Cape Fear as of 5-16-03)
• 2. Specific techniques for students to review in
  or out of class (packaged as separate slide file
  from Modules 8/9 and 10/11 that cover Lab
  techniques for lake and stream surveys)
• 3. Note There will be accompanying information
  in the form of
• pdf, rtf and .doc files of a lab lesson
  handout(s) and supporting info
• pdf, rtf and .doc files of analytical methods for
  a suite of water quality parameters (see notes on
  slides for further information)

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• Features
• Largest NC river system 9000 sq. mi.
• Importance industry, transportation,
  recreation,drinking water, aesthetics
• Estuary nursery for fish crabs, shrimp
• gt1.5 million people

• Water Resource / Quality Issues
• human wastewater
• swine and poultry wastewater
• logging
• row crop agriculture
• industrial wastewater
• gt280 permitted point sources
• urban stormwater

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• Lower Cape Fear R. in SE N. Carolina
• Major river system
• 1995-2002 monthly data available at
• www.uncwil.edu/cmsr/aquaticecology/lcfrp
• full Annual WQ reports also on web with
  interpretation by UNC-Wilmington scientists

• River Run DVT
• animates date either as a time series for 1 site
  (out of 15) or upstream to downstream at one date
  
• T, DO, pH, salinity, EC, turbidity, fecals, NO3,
  NH4, TN, ortho-P, TP, chlorophyll-a

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• salinity 0 30 ppt
• variable DO, fecals, NH4-N, TP,
• many dramatic events in Aug-Sep

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Hurricane Bonnie STORM EFFECTS
September 1998 Some things went up and some
went down
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Hurricanes ! Bonnie in Sept 98
Other hurricanes or gales
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A closer look at early September 1998 Hurricane
Bonnie hit on Aug 26, 1998
DO colored
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Another look at the DO record straddling
Hurricanes Fran, Bonnie and Floyd
Bonnie
Fran
Floyd
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END