2007 Monitoring Results Rock & Richardson Creek, Oregon USA

8/9/2019 2007 Monitoring Results Rock & Richardson Creek, Oregon USA

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A Day in Damascus:Along with water quality testing on Rock andRichardson Creeks, Portland State University stu-dents and the Clackamas River Basin Council heldan educational event at A Day in Damascus. Atthe event PSU students ran an educational fishinggame that helped children learn the importance ofhaving clean streams and creeks, and the effect thatdirty creeks have on animals and the environment.People were also able to view a tank that had a

sample of water and aquatic life from RichardsonCreek.

Invasive Plants:Alongside Richardson and Rock Creeks a wide vari-ety of vegetation occurs. Unfortunately some ofthese plants are know invaders, including Himala-yan Blackberry, English Ivy and Japanese Knot-weed. Himalayan Blackberry can be found at manysites along rivers and creeks in western Oregon,including most of the sites along Richardson andRock Creeks. In this region it is the most wide-

spread and economically damaging noxious weed.

Large populations of Knotweed, English Ivy andFalse Brome can also be found along Richardson

and Rock Creeks as well as other riparian and for-ested areas throughout western Oregon. Theseplants also have negative effects on timber produc-tion, agriculture, and right-of-way maintenance, notto mention the detrimental effects on the diversityand integrity of our riparian and forested areas.

Excess Nutrients:Nitrogen (nitrate and ammonia being the 2 mainforms) and phosphorus are two of the main compo-nents in fertilizers. The numbers in a fertilizer, suchas 20-20-20, are nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium.

Most plants require 14 times more nitrogen as phos-phorus, so most fertilizers provide far more phos-phorus than plants require, relative to nitrogen. Therelative increase in phosphorus and decrease in ni-trate may be due to algae living in the stream utiliz-ing most of the nitrate and being unable to use thephosphorus, as a lack of nitrate limits their ability togrow. As watersheds become more urbanized, weoften notice this trend of increasing phosphorus.

Rock & Richardson Creek

Snapshot Event Monitoring ResultsJuly 28, 2007

Significant Findings:

E. coli was only detected at a few sites, andonly one particular site in upper Rock Creek ex-ceeded the water quality standard.

Temperature and dissolved oxygen levels werewithin acceptable range at most sites

Most sites (83%) had blackberries, or anotherinvasive plant species, present. Trees, whichshade the streams, were also present at manyof the sites (75%).

Ammonia levels were higher than found in 2005for both streams

Relatively low nitrate levels (decreased signifi-cantly from 2005) were detected

Phosphorus concentrations were higher than in2005, nearly double in both streams.

Professor Phosphate demonstrates the activityPSU students hosted at A Day in Damascus


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Results:Water quality data were consolidated based upon whethersites were located in the upper or lower sections of Rock orRichardson CreeksHwy 212 was used as the dividing linebetween uppser and lower. The graphs show the resultsfrom six of the tests run on samplestemperature, dis-

solved oxygen, turbidity, phosphorus, nitrate, and ammonia.For each graph the water quality standard or recommendedlevel is shown by the straight, dark line.

Temperature directly effects plants, animals, and the physi-cal, biological, and chemical characteristics of a stream.Lack of shade, water from ponds, and wastewater inputscan increase surface water temperatures. Increased tem-perature reduces dissolved oxygen concentration makingthe water uninhabitablefor fish and other aquaticlife. Oregon's water qual-

ity standard for tempera-ture in surface water isless than 17.8C (64F).Waters above 25C(77F) are lethal to sal-monids.

Data range: 15to 19CMedian value:16C

Dissolved oxygen is

required for the growthand development of aquatic life. Algal blooms, high temperatures,and decomposition of organic matter can cause dissolved oxygento drop to harmful levels. Dissolved oxygen should be higher than8 mg/L, but spawning salmon require at least 11 mg/L.

Data range: 4.8 to 9.9 mg/LMedian value: 8.3 mg/L

Turbidity is a measure of how cloudy water is. Highly turbid watercan degrade streambedhabitat for aquatic life,such as fish. Turbidityvaries heavily amongstreams, with erosion,and algae being the pri-mary contributors to in-creased turbidity.

Data range: 1.8to 26.8 NTUMedian value:4.9 NTU

Rock & Richardson Creek Water Quality Snapshot Results Page

Temperature

0.0

2.0

4.0

6.0

8.0

10.012.0

14.0

16.0

18.0

20.0

Upper Rock Lower Rock Upper

Richardson

Lower

Richardson

Temperature(C

elsius)

Temperature

Standard (8)

Turbidity

0.0

2.0

4.0

6.0

8.0

10.0

12.0

14.0

Upper Rock Lower Rock Upper

Richardson

Lower

Richardson

Turbidity(NTU) Turbidity

Recommended (


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Phosphorus is an element that is required by all livingthings. Excess phosphorus in freshwater promotes rapidgrowth of algae which can lower dissolved oxygen levels.Phosphorus sources include detergent, fertilizers, industrialwaste, pesticides, and the decomposition of organic matter.The EPA recommends less than 0.10 mg/L P for lakes and

streams.Data range: 0.07 to 0.23 mg/L PMedian value: 0.12 mg/L P

Nitrate is the most common form of nitrogen found instreams. Excess nitrate in streams can cause algal bloomsand be detrimental to aquatic life. The surface water stan-dard for nitrate is 10 mg/L N.Data range: 0.03 to 6.33 mg/L N

Median value 0.08 mg/LN

Ammonia is a form of ni-trogen which is usuallytransformed into nitratewhen oxygen is present.Ammonia can reduce oxy-gen levels and, at highconcentrations, be toxic toaquatic life. Common am-monia sources are sewageand decomposing organicmatter. While there are noOregonstandards for ammonia,

the optimal concentration in surface water is less than 0.03 mg/L N.Data Range:


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Student Watershed Research Project

Environmental Sciences & Resources

Portland State University

PO Box 751

Portland, OR 97207

Results from theRock & RichardsonCreek WatershedMonitoring Event

Whats Inside:

On Saturday, July 28th, 2007 the Clackamas

River Basin Council (CRBC) and Portland StateUniversitys Student Watershed Research Pro-

ject (SWRP) conducted a Snapshot WaterQuality Monitoring Event. Streamside residentsin the Rock and Richardson Creek Watersheds,as well as students from SWRP, collected watersamples to be tested for E. coli, ammonia, ni-trate, phosphorus, turbidity, temperature anddissolved oxygen.

Purpose of event:

Assess watershed health, Provide educational resources on how to

improve water quality, Educate children on the importance of keep-

ing a healthy watershed.

What we did:Tested 12 water samples and compared ourfindings to the 2005 Snapshot Watershed Eventand with the water quality standards estab-lished by the DEQ.

Why a healthy watershed is important:

Rock and Richardson Creeks flow into theClackamas River, upstream of your drinkingwater intake.

You save money on your water bill whenless drinking water treatment is needed.

Salmon spawn and rear in the lower por-tions of the creeks and will continue to do soif water quality is preserved.

Easy steps to help maintain a healthy water-shed:

Keep septic tanks maintained, Remove invasive plants, such as Japanese

knotweed, and plant native plants along sidethe creeks to keep shaded and cool,

Dont put yard debris, garbage or chemicalsin or around the creeks,

Reduce or eliminate the use of chemicals,pesticides, weed-killers and fertilizers. In-stead, use compost or mulch to fertilize.

For more helpful hints and information please

visit our website: www.clackamasriver.org

Rock & Richardson Creek Water Quality Snapshot Results Page

Documents

2007 Monitoring Results Rock & Richardson Creek, Oregon USA