Performing the Water Resource Assessment

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Performing the Water Resource Assessment
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Goals of this session

• Approach the water assessment systematically
• Describe the water resources, in terms of
  accessibility, quantity, and quality
• Discuss tools and techniques

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What are you drinking?

• the Chattahoochee River Atlanta water works,
  approximately 1 mile away

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What are you drinking?
Shallow groundwater wellIndia fishing village-
approximately 9000 miles away
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Why EVERYONE should be here

• Over 1 billion people do not have any
• access to clean water

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Why EVERYONE should be here

• Standard procedure
• Project Flexibility
• Not just about drinking water
• Cost of data
• Rotary Support
• Metric for project effectiveness

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Outline

• Introduction
• Developing a Plan
• Physical Parameters
• Intermission
• Chemical Parameters
• Reporting your Results
• Hands On/Discussion

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Have a plan

• Research
• Contact the local water resource authorities
  (USGS/EPA/Flooding District/USDA/Universities)
• Find the applicable water quality standards
• Think hard about what is important
• Decide Lab/DIY
• Assign team members to water
• Learn the equipment
• Figure out how much time you need (incubation
  time and lab reporting time)
• Buddy system One sampler, one recorder
• Setup a spreadsheet or notebook before you go on
  your trip
• Things will change. Be prepared

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Lab/DIY

• If you have a lab near your site
• Be aware of holding and reporting time
• Follow handling instructions exactly
• Ice
• Bottles
• Headspace
• If you do it yourself
• Creating a field lab
• Transporting your gear
• Dispose of lab wastes properly

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Sampling Equipment

• Plastic Gloves
• ChemWipes/Alcohol
• Garbage Bags
• Buckets/Bailers
• Distilled water
• Eye protection
• Sharpies and china markers
• GPS
• Camera
• String
• Scissors
• Tape measure

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Selecting Equipment

• Is equipment field ready?
• Letter for getting equipment into country
• Packed well
• Ready for rain
• Battery charging
• Do you need additional equipment to complete
  test?
• Electricity
• DI Water
• Acids/Buffers

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Sample Containers

• Whirl-Paks
• Glass Bottles
• Plastic Bottles (polyethylene)
• Clear vs Color
• Headspace

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Preparing your Sample Containers

• Make sure your sample containers are clean
• Use sterilized containers if possible
• Triple rinse containers if they do not contain
  preservative (distilled H2O, sample water)
• Dry all containers thoroughly before reuse
• Add preservatives or neutralizers before sampling

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Blank and Duplicate Samples

• Tests
• sampling technique
• handling procedure
• equipment/laboratory procedure
• Use distilled or drinking water for blanks
• Do not hold separately from the rest of the
  samples
• Standard notation
• TB Trip Blank
• Dup Duplicate

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Where to get equipment

• Vendors
• Hach
• LaMotte
• Idexx
• ColiScan
• Hanna
• Forestry Supply (Ben Meadows)
• Borrowing
• Universities (Civil Eng, Agriculture, Natural
  Resource)
• Other EWB chapters
• Local companies
• Government (USGS, local water district)

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Groundwater
Surface Water
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Physical Parameters

• Location
• GPS highly recommended
• Surveying
• Color
• Smell (Not Taste!)
• Photograph
• Soil characteristics (Silty, sandy, clayey)
• Sources of contamination
• Timing matters

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Physical Parameters

• Surface Water
• Width
• Depth
• Flowrate
• Sources and outfalls
• Turnover?
• Groundwater
• Type of supply
• Depth to groundwater
• Total well depth
• Slug Testing

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Surface Water

• Surface Water
• Width
• Depth
• Flowrate
• Sources and outfalls
• Turnover?

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Groundwater
From Purdue University
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Describing Groundwater Supplies

• Diameter
• Construction
• Depth
• Casing type (cement/hand dug)
• Enclosed
• Slug Tests
• Well purging

Open Well
Borewell
Spring box
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Urban Supplies

• Source vs. point of use
• Distribution
• Holding Tanks
• Treatment
• Transportation vessels
• Household testing

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Intermission 10 minutes
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Chemical Parameters

• Turbidity
• Specific Conductivity/TDS
• pH
• Temperature
• Alkalinity/Hardness
• Nitrites/Nitrates/Ammonia
• Phosphates
• Dissolved Oxygen
• Arsenic
• Fluoride
• Bacteria
• Other

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Turbidity

• Water Clarity
• Algae, suspended sediment, and organic matter
  particles can cloud the water making it more
  turbid.
• Quantitatively measured with a meter
• Secchi discs

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Salinity/TDS/Specific Conductivity

• Specific conductivity is an easy way to estimate
  the amount of dissolved solids in water
• High dissolved solids in water may be perceived
  as tasting strange metallic, bitter, or salty.
  It may or may not be harmful.
• Conductivity will vary with water source ground
  water, water drained from agricultural fields,
  municipal waste water, rainfall.

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pH/Temperature

• pH
• Between 6-8.5 is considered normal for drinking
  water
• Electronic meters
• Often combined with a Thermometer
• Accurate
• Need batteries/charging
• calibration
• Paper
• convenient
• not very accurate
• Temperature affects water chemistry and the
  functions of aquatic organisms. The main
  influence the
• amount of gases that can be dissolved in water
• Good for detecting problems in samples.
• Should be measured at time of collection, after
  wells are purged.

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Alkalinity/Hardness

• Alkalinity- Defined as the ability of a water to
  neutralize acids. Measured by the amount of
  alkaline compounds in water, such as carbonates
  (CO32-), bicarbonates (HCO3-), hydroxides (OH-).
• Hardness- The concentrations of metal ions in the
  water, generally Calcium and Magnesium carbonates
• Affected by geology
• Not generally a health problem
• Soap doesnt foam easily in hard water. Water
  will form a hard scale on pipes and equipment,
  and precipitates when the water temperature
  rises.

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Ammonia/Nitrate/Nitrite

• Nitrogen is found in many forms in the
  environment including nitrate (NO 3) , nitrite
  (NO 2) , ammonia (NH 3) , and nitrogen gas (N2 )
  .
• Excessive concentrations of nitrate, nitrite, or
  ammonia can be harmful to humans and wildlife.
• High levels of nitrate, along with phosphate, can
  over stimulate the growth of aquatic plants and
  algae, resulting in high dissolved oxygen
  consumption, causing death of fish and other
  aquatic organisms.
• Nitrate, nitrite, and ammonia enter waterways
  from lawn fertilizer run-off, leaking septic
  tanks, animal wastes, industrial waste waters,
  sanitary landfills and discharges from car
  exhausts.

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Nitrification Cycle
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Phosphates

• Phosphorus is a nutrient required by all
  organisms for the basic processes of life and is
  usually found as phosphate.
• Phosphorus is a natural element found in rocks,
  soils and organic material. Its concentrations in
  clean waters is generally very low.
• Used extensively in fertilizer and other
  chemicals, so it can be found in higher
  concentrations in areas of human activity.
• High levels of phosphate, along with nitrate, can
  over stimulate the growth of aquatic plants and
  algae, resulting in high dissolved oxygen
  consumption, causing death of fish and other
  aquatic organisms.
• The primary sources of phosphates to surface
  water are detergents, fertilizers, and natural
  mineral deposits.

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Dissolved Oxygen

• Defined as the amount of oxygen dissolved in
  water.
• Anaerobic environments can indicate the presence
  of bacterial or naturally occurring sulfur-using
  bacteria, causing a rotten egg smell. It can
  also indicate the presence of decomposing
  material in the water

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Arsenic

• Naturally occurring mineral in water
• Highly toxic, and can cause birth defects and
  reproductive problems
• Treatment can remove arsenic
• If well drilling is your project, an arsenic test
  should be required

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Fluoride

• Naturally occurring
• In low concentrations, its a common additive
  used to strengthen teeth
• In high concentrations, it can cause fluorosis, a
  disease that is damaging to teeth and bones

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Bacteria

• Bacteria
• Many different types of pathogenic bacteria
• Fecal Coliform Bacteria are present in the feces
  and intestinal tracts of humans and other
  warm-blooded animals, and can enter water bodies
  from human and animal waste.
• If a large number of coliform bacteria (over 200
  colonies/100 ml of water sample) are found in
  water, it is possible that pathogenic (disease-
  or illness-causing) organisms are also present in
  the water. They are considered an indicator
  species
• Hydrogen Sulfide Producing Bacteria are not
  harmful themselves, but can be indicators of
  other problems.
• They also produce H2S gas which can cause
  problems with corrosion in pipes and makes the
  water smell bad.
• New research suggests the H2S bacteria might be a
  better indicator of Fecal Coliforms in tropical
  countries that have high numbers of naturally
  occurring coliform bacteria.
• High concentrations of the bacteria in water may
  be caused by septic tank failure, poor pasture
  and animal keeping practices, pet waste, and
  urban runoff.

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Microbiology

• P/A Testing vs. MPN vs. Plate Count
• To Incubate or not to Incubate
• Avoiding contamination
• Create a lab environment
• Use sterile equipment
• Verify dilution water

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P/A Testing Options

• Many different kits
• Hach MEL kits
• Colilert
• Generic P/A test
• ColiTag

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Coliform MPN Options

• Hach Pathoscreen
• LaMotte Coliform Test Kit

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Coliform Quantification

• Hach MF
• Idexx Quantitray
• Idexx QuantiDisc
• ColiScan Easygel
• ColiScan MF
• 3M PetriFilm

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Other Parameters

• Iron
• Lead
• Mercury
• Other Contaminants

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Reporting

• Table 1 Physical Parameters
• Table 2 Chemical Parameters
• Talking to the community about results
• Repeat measurements

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Standards

• Location Specific
• Find the numbers before you go
• USEPA National Drinking Water Standards

http//www.epa.gov/safewater/consumer/pdf/mcl.pdf
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this never works
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