Browsing by Subject "Total maximum daily load (TDML)"

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
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    Knife River Macroinvertebrate and Sediment Survey
    (University of Minnesota Duluth, 2007) Brady, Valerie; Breneman, Dan
    This effort was conducted as part of the Knife River TMDL (total maximum daily load) study for turbidity, and includes data to compare invertebrate community composition, habitat structure, and sediment deposition among Knife River sites. Macroinvertebrate, stream substrate, water quality, and fish and invertebrate habitat data were collected from five sites along the Knife River and its tributaries in August 2006. The study’s objectives were two-fold: first, to collect baseline data from several locations within the Knife River watershed, which is currently listed as impaired for turbidity; and second, to compare these data to historical data from the Knife River watershed and other North Shore streams. Turbidity and embeddedness affect stream invertebrates and fish by raising water temperature, reducing search distances for visual predators, clogging or abrading delicate gill tissue, filling in interstitial spaces among stream cobbles, and other detrimental effects. To put current data into perspective, Knife River TMDL sample locations were compared to historical samples within the Knife River watershed and other North Shore streams using macroinvertebrate assemblage metrics and, for one set of samples, substrate and water physical parameters. Due to differences in sampling methodology, macroinvertebrate metrics had to be calculated differently for comparison with historical data.
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    Little Rock Creek Biological Survey, Habitat Evaluation, and GIS Analysis
    (University of Minnesota Duluth, 2008) Breneman, Dan; Brady, Valerie; Hollenhorst, Thomas; Johnson, Lucinda B
    Little Rock Creek was listed as a Minnesota 303(d) impaired water in 2004, resulting in a TMDL (total maximum daily load) study for aquatic life due to the lack of a cold water fish assemblage. Data presented in this report provide biological survey summary information on the stream community associated with Little Rock Creek (LRC), local habitat measurements, and land use/land cover characteristics of the watershed in an effort to identify causes of impairment. This report will describe the biotic stream community and quantify potential relationships among landuse characteristics, local habitat conditions, and biotic assemblages including fish, and macroinvertebrates. This report will focus on trends in the macroinvertebrate and fish communities (abundance and functional traits), physicochemical, and local habitat conditions from five sample locations within the Little Rock Creek watershed (Fig. 1a,b). Additional data is provided by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA), and an earlier Natural Resources Research Institute (NRRI) study, for the purpose of regional comparisons (hereafter referred to as ‘MPCA and/or NRRI regional comparison sites;’ Figs. 2,3). Data collected by the MPCA between 1996-2006 includes 16 streams in the same area as the TMDL sites. A 1998 sampling efforts at 18 streams (c.f., Hutchens et al. 2009) in southeastern Minnesota were conducted in a heavily agricultural area to determine landuse/landscape interactions with macroinvertebrate and fish communities.
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    Miller Creek Macroinvertebrate, Habitat, and Temperature Report
    (University of Minnesota Duluth, 2010) Brady, Valerie; Breneman, Dan
    We sampled benthic macroinvertebrates and stream habitat at five locations in Miller Creek during late May 2008 as part of a TMDL (total maximum daily load) study on temperature. Data collected included: macroinvertebrate community composition, in-stream habitat for invertebrates and fish, stream bottom substrate types, and sediment particle size distribution. These data were linked with temperature logger data supplied by the South Saint Louis Soil and Water Conservation District (SSL SWCD) at or near these five sites, as well as additional sites (total of 27 stations) along the creek. Miller Creek macroinvertebrate and habitat samples were compared to data from several other streams where samples were collected during the early summer.
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    Poplar River Macroinvertebrate and Habitat Survey
    (University of Minnesota Duluth, 2008) Brady, Valerie
    We surveyed the biota and stream habitat of the lower mainstem of the Poplar River in August 2007 to obtain baseline information on stream assemblages as part of a TMDL (total maximum daily load) study for turbidity. Four sites were selected along the Poplar River within the last 3 km before it enters Lake Superior. Data collected included macroinvertebrate community composition, in-stream habitat structure and stream bottom substrate types, and sediment particle size distribution. Poplar River data generated from each sample site were compared to data from 24 other North Shore stream sites to better place the Poplar River’s condition into a regional context.