Friday, October 28, 2011
Hall 1-2 (San Jose Convention Center)
The focus of this research is to study the impact of selected land uses (forested and urban) on water quality of streams. E. coli and TSS were monitored at two sites, Potash Brook and Snipe Island Brook. Potash Brook is in a watershed that has moistly an urban land use and the selected sampling site was in South Burlington, VT. Snipe Island Brook is in a watershed that has moistly forested land use and the selected sampling site was in Richmond, VT. E. coli is a gram negative bacteria that lives in the lower intestines of warm blood organisms. TSS are sediments particles that include a variety of organic materials such as decaying plant, animal matter and industrial waste. Water samples were collected from Potash Brook and Snipe Island Brook weekly during the summer. Streams parameters were also recorded at the time of each sampling and flow rates calculated. All samples were analyzed in the laboratory for TSS, E. coli, and Coliform following protocols provided by the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) and APHA (American Public Health Association).Water Quality data for these two sites from 2009 and 2010, provided by Vermont Epscor Streams Project Databases will also be used in the analysis. Statistical methods will be used to draw conclusions on the effects of land use on E. coli and TSS in Potash Brook and Snipe Island Brook.