Hydrosapiens
GIV eSAT of Vermont: Water Group 2013
Ben DeJong, Nina Brundage, Caitlin Beaudet, Julie Rickner, Mariah Ollive, Hannah VanGuilder,
Heather McCabe,Carly Brown, Ian Browning, Jack Cinque, Alexander Cotnoir
Clear Water Revival:
A case study in the Greater Burlington Area
Research Field Days
June 24: Field Day at Centennial Brook (Urban)
June 25: Field Day at the Mill Brook (Rural)
Research Question: Can we determine the relative
health of urban and rural streams using a combined
physical, biological, and chemical approach?
Locations:
Centennial Brook
Drainage Basin: 0.34 mi2
Mill Brook
Entire Mill Brook Watershed:
16.3 mi2
Drainage Basin for
sampled location at
Mill Brook: 4.95 mi2
Location Comparison
Methods:
Physical
Biological
Chemical
Physical
Stream Characteristics
Light Meter
Strength
Exposure
Habitat Assessment
Epifaunal substrate and available cover
Sediment deposition
Embeddedness and size of cobbles
Human Alteration
Riparian Vegetative Zone Width
Frequency of riffles
Velocity to depth comparison
Area of channel flow
Bank Vegetative Protection
Bank Stability
Stream Geometry
Velocity (m/s)
Width (m)
Depth (m)
Discharge (m3/s)
Biological
Sampling Methods
Direct Water Samples
Macro Invertebrate Sampling
Dump and Rinse Net
Repeat 3 times
Macro Invertebrate
Identification
Count and Identify Macro
Invertebrate in water sample
Identifying
characteristics
Determine the group and subgroup of each organism
Tally records
Chemical
Properties
Dissolved Oxygen Meter:
Oxygen Levels
HACH Meter:
Nitrate and Phosphate Levels
Pollution
pH:
Acidity
Data
Physical Results
Visual Observations
Centennial Brook
Mill Brook
Sunny and humid
Sunny and humid
Paved roads by entrance of woods
Dirt road visible from stream
Located in populated valley area
Located in rural mountain area
Riparian zones, meandering river
Noisier, wider width
Evidence of recent rain
Evidence of wildlife
Vegetated banks
Terrace formations
Evidence of wildlife
Evidence of creeping
Fence separating nearby shooting range
Habitat Assessment Data
River Cross Sections and Discharge
Mill Brook Cross Section Downstream
Sunlight Comparison
Biological
Results
Multimetric Index
Metric Organisms
SEM
Chemical
Results
Chemical Properties
Nitrogen and Phosphorous Levels
Concluding Results
Physical
Biological
Optimal
Sub Optimal
Marginal
Chemical
• Higher phosphorous and nitrogen levels in Centennial
• Higher oxygen percent in Mill Brook
Conclusion
The Hydrosapiens have determined we can use physical,
chemical and biological approaches to determine the
health of urban and rural streams.