GETTING YOUR FEET WETINTRODUCTION TO DIFFERENT TYPES OF MONITORING

Erin Stretz -- StreamWatch Program Coordinator

How do you start a water monitoring program?

WHOWHATWHENWHER

EWHYHOW

will monitor?

will you test?

will you sample?

are your monitoring sites?

do you want to monitor?

will you conduct your tests?

Common Reasons to Start Water Monitoring Track the baseline conditions Compare different waterways Identify a problem Educate youth and the public Determine the efficacy of restoration site Affect changes in local/regional/state/national policy Check for regulatory compliance Determine if waters are safe for swimming/boating Respond to emergencies

Establish your GOALS early and often to stay focused.

This will help guide WHAT you want to monitor.

Why do YOU want to start monitoring?

Intended Use of Data Can indicate the required quality of the data to

be collected

NJDEP-Approved Quality Assurance Project Plans Long-term baseline study Project-specific monitoring Restoration monitoring

Why not just collect as much data as possible?

VisualComposition and quality of aquatic

and riparian habitats

PhysicalMeasurements related

to the composition and quality of aquatic

and riparian habitats

Chemical

Composition of and

constituents in water

MacroBiologic

alAbundance and/or type of insects,

crustaceans, fish,

reptiles, amphibians,

aquatic plants, riparian plants

MicroBiologic

alAbundance and/or type of bacteria, zooplankton

, phytoplankt

on

VISUAL Monitoring Parameters and Methods

Visual Monitoring In-stream habitat characteristics:

tell us how well organisms can survive in the aquatic ecosystems Benthic substrate Depth-flow regimes Aquatic vegetation

Water characteristics: can indicate the presence of a pollutant Color Odor

Visual Monitoring PracticeBenthic Substrate Characterization % Bedrock

% Boulders

% Sand

% Gravel

% Cobble

% Clay

% Silt

Visual Monitoring Riparian Habitat has a

huge impact on stream habitat and water quality Land use Riparian buffer width

and vegetation type Wildlife Erosion Outfall pipes

Visual Monitoring Practice

Riparian Buffer Vegetation Types % Hardwood trees

% Softwood trees

% Herbaceous

% Shrubs

% Grasses

% Bare

Visual Data Collection Methods

Aerial mapping Photography Drive-bys Walk stream segments Kayak/Canoe Drones

PHYSICAL Monitoring Parameters and Methods

Physical Monitoring

Water volume: flood or drought? Width

Bankfull? Depth Stream flow (cfs)

Cross-sectional Profile

Physical Monitoring

Temperature: organisms have very specific temperature requirements

Water clarity: measurements include sedimentation, plankton, or anything floating in the water Turbidity Total Suspended Solids

Visual and Physical Monitoring

Least expensive form of monitoring, but still delivers valuable information

Can lead to more intensive monitoring

Help to interpret chemical and biological data

Educate the public Select monitoring sites (or

areas for future studies) Identify potential sources

of pollution Locate restoration sites

Great for Newer Monitoring Groups! Uses of Visual and Physical Data

Measure turbidity of a water sample

PHYSICAL Monitoring Practice

TURBIDITY Lamotte Test Instructions

MACROBIOLOGICAL Monitoring Parameters and Methods

Macrobiological Monitoring Community/population vs.

Indicators

Benthic macroinvertebrates Long(er) term residents of a

stream or lake Stationary Easy to collect Have assigned Pollution Tolerance

Values Inform us about ecosystem health and potential pollutants

Taxonomy

KingdomPhylumClass

Order Family

GenusSpecies

Who Am I??

Kingdom: Phylum: Class: Order: Family:Genus:Species:

Animalia Arthropoda Insecta Ephemeroptera Heptageniidae

Send your samples to the pros!

Macroinvertebrate Sampling

Macroinvertebrates are generally the next step up from visual/physical monitoring

Easy to start sampling

Less expensive for volunteer-identified organisms, but lower-quality data

More expensive to send samples to a lab, but you can obtain genus/species level data

Another great option for newer groups Data quality is variable

Macroinvertebrates

MACROBIOLOGICAL Monitoring Display

Other Bioindicators Algae

Can grow in many different conditions

Respond rapidly to environmental changes

Fish Different species have very

different habitat requirements

MICROBIOLOGICAL Monitoring Parameters and Methods

Microbiological Monitoring

Total coliforms

Fecal coliforms

Escherichia coli

• E. coli is the most specific of the fecal coliform bacteria for freshwater

Enterococci

Streptococcus

• Enterococci is used as an indicator for estuarine and marine systems

Microbiological Monitoring

Public health Evaluate ecosystem

health

Sample collection with lab analysis

Coliscan Easygel Colisure/IDEXX

Best Uses Sample Methods

IDEXX & Quanti-tray/Colisure

MICROBIOLOGICAL Monitoring Demonstration

CHEMICAL Monitoring Parameters and Methods

Chemical Monitoring Dissolved Oxygen Biological Oxygen Demand

(BOD)

pH Alkalinity

Chemical Monitoring

Salinity Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) Conductivity/Specific Conductance

Arsenic

Chemical Monitoring Nitrogen

Total Nitrogen Nitrate Nitrite Ammonia

Phosphorus Total Phosphorus Orthophosphate

Chemical Monitoring: Requires Lab Analysis

Pesticides Volatile organic

compounds (VOCs) Heavy metals Dry cleaning

PCE Solvents

Benzene, TCE PCBs

Pharmaceuticals Wastewater systems

cannot remove these before discharge to streams

PAHs Asphalt, motor oil

Industrial/Commercial Discharges Emerging Contaminants

Chemical Monitoring

6 $$ 6 Precision/accuracy Easy to use in the field

5 Precision/accuracy 5 $$ More analyte options

Volunteer Kits Laboratory Analysis

Try out a Lamotte pH Test

CHEMICAL Monitoring Practice

Once you establish your WHYs, WHATs, and HOWs...

Nail down your study design/QAPP with as much detail as possible Who will monitor? When to sample? Where are your monitoring sites?

Check in with your goals to make sure you are still monitoring what you need to for your intended data use(s).

Manage your data well… and share it!

Questions?

Click icon to add picture

Contact Erin Stretz at estretz@thewatershed.org or 609-737-3735 ext.17.

Online ResourcesStreamWatch Volunteer Water Quality Monitoring Program:

thewatershed.org/science/stream-watch

Watershed Institute Water Monitoring Information Clearinghouse: thewatershedinstitute.org/resources/wqmresources

National Water Quality Monitoring Council(including National Environmental Methods Index and Water Quality Portal)

acwi.gov/monitoring

For more information…