Water Quality Research

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Water Quality Research

• Cymone Morris, Tyler Lannon, Rickea White, and
  DaNesha Curry

Burroughs Wellcome Fund August 17, 2007
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Problem

• The causes and impacts of water pollution in and
  around Elizabeth City.

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Outline

• I. Introduction
• A. Problem
• B. What is water quality?
• II. Hydrosphere
• A. Surface Runoff
• B. Diseases found in poor water quality
• C. Impact of water level
• III. Lithosphere
• A. Impacts of elevation
• B. Speed of Runoff
• C. Soil
• IV. Atmosphere
• A. Acid Rain
• B. Thermal Pollution
• C. Atmospheric Changes

V. Biosphere A. Death of animals
and plants B. Oil spills
C. Things that are hazardous to water
quality VI. Conclusion A. Suggestions B.
Reflections C. Acknowledgments D. References
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What is water quality?

• Water quality is determined by the physical,
  chemical, and biological characteristics of water.

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Surface Runoff and its effect on water quality

• What is surface runoff?

• Surface runoff is the flow of water, rain and
  snow (hydrosphere). It is also a main component
  of the water cycle.

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Causes and effects of runoff

• When the water runs along the ground it picks
  up soil contaminations, (man-made chemicals)
  petroleum, (crude oil) pesticides (bug
  preventions, and fertilizers. These contaminants
  then go into our water causing its quality to
  decline

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Does Elevation Influence the amount and Speed of
Runoff?

• In areas of high elevations such as mountains,
  runoff effects can be more apparent in the form
  of flash floods and mudslides.
• Areas around the Pasquotank are already at a low
  elevation.
• Runoff carries sediment, raising the bed level
  which causes increased flooding.

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Does the Speed of Runoff have an Impact on Water
Quality?

• The speed of runoff has a great impact on water
  quality. This is because if the Runoffs speed
  picks up, it can pick up more sediment and
  man-made chemicals such as fertilizer and
  pesticides.
• Forests and Swamps are much more capable of
  slowing water than farmlands and grasslands.
• Impervious surfaces such as parking lots and
  roads increase the speed of Runoff because there
  is nothing to slow it down.

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ELEVATION AROUND PASQUOTANK RIVER
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Does the type of soil have an Impact on Water
Quality?

• The soil acts as a natural filter when water
  percolates down into the groundwater.
• Soil type has a significant effect as well as
  soil depth, and how clean the soil is, and
  surrounding vegetation.
• Different types of soil have different rates of
  percolation. For example, water percolates
  through sand much faster than clay (this is
  because of the size of the soil particles sand
  has much larger particles than clay).

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What diseases are found in water of poor quality?

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The impact of water level on water quality

• High Water Levels

• When the precipitation builds up it causes an
  area to flood. Flooding washes materials from
  land (lithosphere) into the water, often causing
  a decline in water quality.

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About Acid Rain

• Acid rain is a term used to describe how acidic
  materials build up in the atmosphere and return
  to earth in the form of precipitation.
• Cause The burning of fossil fuels creates nitric
  acid and sulfuric acid.

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Effects of acid rain

• Acid rain has a negative effect on the quality of
  water. Low pH levels in water kills plants,
  diminishes oxygen and increases bacteria growth,
  furthermore decreasing water quality.

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Thermal Pollution

• A sudden change in water temperature
• Cause Rainfall flows on asphalt and becomes
  heated and is then deposited into nearby water.
• Effects Increased temperature results in the
  reduction of dissolved oxygen causing rapid
  growth of algae and bacteria, which in turn
  decreases water quality.

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Atmospheric changes and water quality
Negative Effects
Increased amounts of sulfur and nitric oxides
result in acid rain or dry deposition of these
acidic particles Increased atmospheric
temperatures can contribute to thermal pollution
by raising water temperatures Storms that occur
in the atmosphere can provide the soil with more
water than it can absorb or result in increased
flooding and runoff
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How does the death of animals effect the
Pasquotank River?

• Animals such as herring, white perch, and catfish
  live in the Pasquotank River.
• If one animal from the food chain dies, other
  animals will die because each animal lives off
  each other.
• When the animal decompose in the water their body
  begins to decay making the water contaminated
  making it unsuitable for humans to use.

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How does the death of plants effect the
Pasquotank River?

• Just like animals, plants have a big impact on
  the Pasquotank River. Plants in the river
  provide oxygen to the animals as well as a home .
  So if the plant begin to die off then that will
  cause the animals to die off also. Leaving the
  water contaminated.

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What are the effects of oil spills on water
quality?

• Oil pollution is a growing problem, that
  particularly devastates coastal wildlife.
• Most man-made oil pollution comes from land based
  activity such as factories, ships, and oil
  tankers.
• When oil starts to leak into the river it harms a
  numerous amount of things such as the oceanic
  habitat and the animals living in the river, and
  it contaminates the water which provides the us
  with less drinking water.

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What is hazardous to the water quality of the
Pasquotank River?

• There are many things known to cause the decline
  of water quality such as runoff from farms which
  includes fertilizers, animal waste, and
  chemicals.
• Dissolved oxygen occurs when organic waste
  consumes oxygen making it harder for animals to
  live.
• Large amounts of hazardous substances like nitric
  acid can kill vegetation and destroy an animals
  habitat.

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Conclusion

• Through the Earth System Science (ESS), our team
  was able to discover the ways that the four
  spheres interact and impact our water quality.
• For example, the atmosphere releases
  precipitation which forms runoff (hydrosphere)
  causing erosion (lithosphere) and damages the
  biosphere.

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Suggestions

• Properly dispose of hazardous materials such as
  detergents and paints.
• Use organic fertilizers
• Save Water!!! Dont leave the water running when
  youre not using it!
• Recycle and dispose of trash properly
• The use of BMP (Best Management Practices) would
  greatly help the situation in the Pasquotank
  River

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Acknowledgments

• Mrs. Julie Stamper
• Dr. Leon Pringle
• Dr. Thomas Rossbach
• Dr. Jim Botti
• Dr. Liz Noble
• Dr. William Porter

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References

• http//ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/acidrain.html
• http//www.mbgnet.net/fresh/pollute.htm
• http//www.pollutionissues.com/Te-Un/Thermal-Pollu
  tion.html
• http//www.answers.com/topic/acid-rain?cathealth
• http//www.eoearth.org/article/Acid_rain
• http//www.windows.ucar.edu/earth/Atmosphere/water
  _watersheds.backup_CopyrightChange
• http//ga2.er.usgs.gov/peachtree/droughtsqa.cfm

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• http//www.chesapeakebay.net/air_pollution.htm
• http//www.learnnc.org/lp/pages/544
• http//h2o.enr.state.nc.us/basinwide/chapter_2.htm
  
• http//www.umich.edu/gs265/society/waterpollution
  .htm
• http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_pollution
• http//www.fws.gov/contaminants/Issues?waterQualit
  y.cfm

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• http//www.ecsu.edu/ECSU/AcidDept/Geology/pruqp.ht
  m_To452353485
• http//www.ncfisheries.net/habitat/chppdoc4/E_SAV.
  pdf
• http//wikipedia.org/
• http//www.aacounty.org/SevernRiver/pollution1.cfm
  
• http//www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/fenlewis/Waterqua
  lity.html
• http//www.fivecreeks.org/monitor/do.html

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Reflections

• These two weeks have been wonderful! Weve
  learned how to apply our knowledge to the events
  that occur in real life. Weve been to The Great
  Dismal Swamp, where we learned why it is
  important to protect our swamps. The trip to the
  Currituck Sound allowed us to gain hands-on
  experience on how scientists collect and analyze
  data. Through Problem Based Learning (PBL) and
  the Earth System Science (ESS) we have all gained
  invaluable skills that will last a lifetime!

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