Browsing by Subject "Water quality monitoring"
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Item Hydrology and Water Quality of the Grand Portage Reservation, Northeastern Minnesota, 1991-2000(2002) Winterstein, Thomas AThis is a technical geo-hydrologic study of water resources on the Grand Portage Reservation. There are few references to human uses of water resources, or to anthropogenic factors. The abstract with key points are extracted and reproduced below. Abstract: “The Grand Portage Reservation is located in northeastern Cook County, Minnesota at the boundary between Minnesota, USA, and Ontario, Canada. Between 1991 and 2000 the U.S. Geological Survey conducted a series of studies, with the cooperation with Grand Portage Band of Chippewa, to describe the water resources of the Grand Portage Reservation. Ground water moves primarily through fractures in the bedrock, probably in three ground-water systems: local, regional, and deep. Lake Superior is thought to be the discharge point for brines in the deep ground-water flow system. The watersheds in the Grand Portage Reservation are small and steep; consequently streams in the Grand Portage Reservation tend to be flashy. Lake stages rise and fall with rainfall. The pH of water in the Reservation is generally alkaline (pH greater than 7.0). The alkalinity of water in the Reservation is low. Concentrations of major ions are much greater in ground water than in spring water and surface water. The ionic composition of water in the Reservation differs depending upon the source of the water. Water from 11 of the 20 wells sampled are a calcium-sodium-chloride type. Water from wells GW-2, GW-7, and GW-11 had much greater specific conductance concentrations of major ions compared to the other wells. Some spring water (SP-1, SP-3, SP-4, SP-6, and SP-8) is calcium-bicarbonate type like surface water, whereas other spring water (SP-5 and SP-7) is similar to the calcium-sodium-chloride type occurring in samples from about one-half the wells. The major chemical constituents in surface water are bicarbonate, calcium, and magnesium. Measured tritium and sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) concentrations in water samples from springs and wells were used to determine the recharge age of the sampled water. The recharge ages of two of the wells sampled for tritium are before 1953. The recharge ages of the remaining 10 samples for tritium are probably after 1970. The recharge ages of seven SF6 samples were between 1973 and 1998.”Item Mercury in Streams at Grand Portage National Monument: Evidence of Ecosystem Sensitivity and Ecological Risk(2012) Wiener, James GThis is a 4-page pdf, which apparently has not been published although the paper reviewers are named. The origin of the paper is unclear, and it should be regarded as “gray” literature. Key points are extracted and reproduced below. “In 2008, the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse began quantifying mercury in aquatic food webs in six national park units in the western Great Lakes region, including Grand Portage National Monument (GRPO). Principal objectives are (1) to identify parks and water bodies where concentrations of methylmercury are high enough to adversely affect fish and wildlife, and (2) to assess spatiotemporal patterns in methylmercury contamination of aquatic food webs. Methylmercury is a highly toxic compound that readily bioaccumulates in exposed organisms and can biomagnify to harmful concentrations in organisms in upper trophic levels of aquatic food webs. Study sites at GRPO include Snow Creek (beaver pond in upper reaches and lower reaches), Poplar Creek (south branch), and Grand Portage Creek (lower reach). Analytical results reveal elevated concentrations of both total mercury and methylmercury in these stream systems... Concentrations of total mercury and methylmercury in streamwater from GRPO are substantially higher than concentrations typically found in lakes and streams in the western Great Lakes region. “Bioaccumulation and ecological risk. In 2010, prey fish were sampled from three streams in the park and analyzed whole for total mercury, which accumulates in fish as methylmercury. Mean concentrations were highest, exceeding 100 ng/g wet weight (nanograms per gram, equivalent to parts per billion) in blacknose dace (Rhinichthys atratulus) and longnose dace (Rhinichthys cataractae) from Poplar Creek. These mean concentrations in dace substantially exceed the estimated dietary threshold (40 ng/g wet weight in prey fish) associated with reproductive effects of mercury on piscivorous fish that feed on prey fish (Depew et al. in press). Mean concentrations of mercury in most of the other prey fishes analyzed also exceeded the 40 ng/g threshold for reproductive effects on piscivorous fish; these included creek chub (43 ng/g) and central mudminnow (56 ng/g) from Poplar Creek, fathead minnow (58 ng/g) and central mudminnow (55 ng/g) from Snow Creek, and longnose dace from Grand Portage Creek (67 ng/g). The maximal concentrations in individual fish were 242 ng/g in blacknose dace and 211 ng/g in longnose dace. These maximal values exceed dietary thresholds associated with adverse effects of methylmercury on the health and reproduction of fish-eating birds. “The high concentrations of methylmercury in larval dragonflies may indicate significant risks for insectivorous songbirds that forage and nest near streams at GRPO. Studies in eastern North America have documented unexpectedly high concentrations of mercury (present as methylmercury) in certain terrestrial invertivores, including passerine songbirds. Most songbirds with elevated concentrations of mercury are linked trophically to mercury-methylating environments—such as wetlands, streams, or lakes—and feed on spiders or emergent insects with aquatic larval stages. Methylmercury in the diet of reproducing female birds is transferred rapidly to the developing egg, and the embryo is the most sensitive life stage. Methylmercury exposure and its potential effects on reproductive success of invertivorous songbirds at GRPO has not been assessed but merits critical evaluation.”Item MERS Experimental Stream Facility Database(University of Minnesota Duluth, 1993) Detenbeck, Naomi E; Niemi, Gerald J; Keyport, Jane; Barnidge, PhyllisTo support guidance for the development of experimental designs for the Monticello Ecological Research ' Station (MERS) artificial streams, historical databases have been compiled, and the spatial and temporal variability of physical and biological measurements have been quantified. Databases have been constructed of chemical and biological variables measured during the course of experiments in the MERS streams conducted over a 15-year period, 1975-1989 (Table 1; USEPA and Univ. of MN 1990). Data from these experiments were supplemented with water, quality monitoring data collected by Northern States Power (NSP) near their cooling water intake on the Mississippi River at Monticello during 1968-1987 (NSP 1987) . This water intake for the Monticello nuclear power plant also serves as the main source of water for the eight experimental stream channels. Water quality data collected from the Mississippi River at the bridge on Highway 25 in Monticello by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) monitoring program also are available (Appendix A), but have not been included in datasets or summaries included in this report. Data collected during the course of experiments at MERS have been selectively collated to document the natural variability within and among the MERS experimental streams; thus only pretreatment data, data collected from control channels, or data collected at inlets of control or experimental streams (upstream of chemical additions) have been included. Only data sets with sufficient spatial replication to calculate coefficients of variation for among-channel, among-station (within channel) and within station variability were included. This report describes the format and documentation for these databases, provides summary statistics for spatial and temporal variability in the MERS datasets, and discusses the implications of inter-channel, interstation (pool or riffle), and intra-station variability for future experimental designs at the MERS facility.Item Minnesota's Water Resources: Impacts of Climate Change(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2011-01-04) Johnson, Lucinda BMinnesota's climate has become increasingly warmer, wetter, and variable, resulting in unquantified economic and ecological impacts. More recent changes in precipitation patterns combined with urban expansion and wetland losses have resulted in an increase in the frequency and intensity of flooding in parts of Minnesota with extensive and costly damage to the state's infrastructure and ecosytems. We are examining historic climate records and developing a database of key climatic measures and their variability in a current LCCMR project “Impacts on Minnesota's aquatic resources from climate change.” To assess the consequences of past climate trends on aquatic resources we are analyzing hydrologic, water quality, and fish community responses. We propose to expand that study to develop prediction for future climate specific to Minnesota, and then quantify the potential economic impact of climate-induced changes in precipitation and hydrology on the water resource infrastructure, including storm sewers, bridges, water treatment facilities, and shoreline development. The current biological analyses will be expanded beyond fish to invertebrates (e.g., mosquitos) and projections of future biotic responses from hydrologic and water quality models will be developed. Lastly, to assist the state's natural resource managers and regulators, we will identify potential hydrologic and aquatic indicators and propose monitoring methods that can be implemented in Minnesota. An advisory committee will help define the initial questions to be answered and review productsItem Volunteer Assisted Water Quality and Biological Monitoring of North Shore Superior Streams Project(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2008-05) Axler, Richard P; Ruzycki, Elaine; Brady, Valerie; Breneman, DanItem Water Quality Monitoring Protocol for Inland Lakes : Great Lakes Inventory and Monitoring Network(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2008-06) Elias, Joan; Axler, Richard P; Ruzycki, Elaine