Effects of the Acton Lake
Dam on Water Quality in
Four Mile Creek
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Amanda Gibson, Whitney Smith, Abby Workman
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ALL FOR THE ARTS
An old covered bridge spans
a lazy stretch of the creek.
Above and just out of sight,
cars go by, ignoring the beauty
found only a few yards away.
A path, narrow and slippery,
leads down to the pebbles
at the edge of the water.
Sun catches in overhanging trees,
hides beyond the bridge,
the shadows wrapping
the green, calm water
in unending twilight.
The lake spreads on all sides,
blue-green, deep, secretive.
Another path leads to its edge,
narrow again, but with almost-steps
worn into dirt and rock.
A tiny beach hides below
a vertical drop, peppered with rocks.
The lake bottom is visible,
but only for a moment,
disappearing beneath
the reflective surface,
a mirror of the clouds.
No path through these trees,
just underbrush and sand,
a slope of small stones, water.
Swift-running, bubbling,
confined by close-set banks,
the stream glints silver
and diamonds of sunlight
from riffles and ripples.
Leaves and small branches
catch in little swirls and eddies,
pause, swim away,
carried by the creek’s laughter.
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IN THE NAME OF SCIENCE
Car exhaust dulls the air and water.
Cigarette butts and other trash dot the creek.
Silt lines the rocks below the surface,
green-brown.
Soft light, dimmed by an old bridge,
falls on soft water,
lacking minerals that are held back by the dam.
The water is cold,
temperature changed by that same construct
which softens the water.
Up close, the water of the lake is brown,
sediments built up behind a wall
of earth and concrete.
Fish, caught and broken and thrown away,
or poisoned by human pollution,
flop, die, decompose along the bank.
Boats, cars, agriculture,
everything is trapped here,
a reservoir of human desecration,
rumored as “the lake of death.”
The water flows past banks
eroded by current and time,
aiming for the lake,
carrying sediment that will be left behind
when the waters sweep over the dam.
The water-level falls,
the banks are undercut,
stones and trash once swept along
by a current surprisingly fast
are exposed to air and exhaust
until the level rises again.
Warmer here above the dam,
more natural waters, healthier.
A few more fish, biodiversity
made apparent in water by fish,
seen in the plants along the banks
that still stand on un-eroded soil.
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THE PEOPLE SPEAK
“Let me show you what I caught!”
the little girl cries to us
as we stumble down the path.
We flinch as she walks into the water,
proudly displays one tiny, unhealthy fish,
but her face shines with pride,
so we smile, congratulate.
“We come here every Saturday with our daddy,”
her little sister proclaims.
“He won’t let us eat the fish though.”
Helen tells us,
“I raised my children in Dartown.
The creek was their summer home.
It never hurt them any.”
An old man peers out
from beneath the brim of a battered fishing hat,
twitches his line in the water,
says “I been fishing here for decades.
They take out this dam,
get rid of this lake, what am I
gonna do with my time then?
Been eating these fish for years,
taste fine to me.”
The ranger tells us,
“Maybe the lake isn’t clean,
but it’s better than before.
Swimming isn’t a great idea
but the children like to wade,
once the water warms up a bit.
Cindy remembers the 80s,
tells us how dirty it was then.
“I ain’t been back since ’83,
wouldn’t want to really.
Do a lot of people go there now?”
Children wave from the bank,
show us fish as they would a trophy.
I ask one, “Do you like it in this creek?”
“My mom, she doesn’t like me to get muddy,
so my dad brings me.
It’s fun if I can get dirty.
In summer, he lets me get all wet every weekend.”
We laugh, and his father smiles.
“Yeah, they like it here,”
he tells us.
“At least this water looks better than the lake.”
And the common refrain follows:
“It hasn’t hurt them yet.”
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Introduction
When the first explorers set foot in the wilds of the North American continent, they
were met with a lush and verdant landscape. To their eyes, this was paradise on earth,
unspoiled wilderness after the ravaged hills and valleys of the European continent. New
and previously unimagined birds called from the trees, strange animals skulked through
the tangled underbrush, and behemoth fish leaped and gamboled in the rushing torrents of
mighty rivers. The rivers. These rivers were a new breed to the early explorers. Vast
and unpolluted, they churned a sluggishly warm liquid brown, foaming through broad
canyons and under the sheltering branches of ancient trees. In clean-cut channels they
ran fast and strong; clearly cold they boiled and bashed their way to the seas.
The explorers marveled at what they saw. In tones of awe they wrote home of their
miraculous discovery. It was Paradise on Earth, the lost Eden, and it was theirs. In the
true spirit of European progress, they moved in.
The verdant forests and the ancient trees succumbed to the sharp-toothed saw, their
rich home soil claimed for cattle and for produce. The explorers eagerly carved their
home from their treasured wilderness. Yet perhaps the greatest damage was done, not to
the trees nor to the quiet land, but to the unassuming waters rolling by. Monuments of
cool, impassive concrete have cleaved the mighty rushing waters of the past. The rivers
have been dammed for human use and safety. Water is funneled off for agriculture and
harnessed for electricity. The concrete walls separate the flood-plain inhabitants from the
ravages of floods. These dams have corrupted the water flow and often adversely
affected the surrounding landscape. They change the face of the river in ways both large
and small, though the effects are often hidden from the casual observer.
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“Early in the summer of 1956, the 1,200-foot earth fill dam across Four Mile Creek
was completed, and the following year Acton Lake was impounded. Shortly thereafter
Hueston Woods was dedicated as a state park.” (Hueston Woods) For this project, our
group chose to look specifically at the Acton Lake Dam and its effects on water quality
both above and below the dam, as well as the human response to the structure. Based on
our class work and outside research, we hypothesized that the water quality would be best
above the dam, mediocre in the lake itself, and worst below the dam. We also theorized
that the people who lived near and used the lake would be largely ignorant of the actual
health of the dammed waterway, and would see it as something attractive and beneficial.
We chose this topic because we have spent a great deal of time debating the
benefits versus the detriments of damming in class. Many of the articles and books we
have read discussed the adverse effects that damming has on the health of the waterway
and the surrounding lands, animals, and people. However, it is one thing to read about
something in a book and quite another to experience and see it in person. We therefore
wanted to test the theories we had read to see how and if they applied in the “real world.”
We planned to test our hypothesis in a variety of ways, from the scientific (both
natural and social) to the artistic. Through the natural sciences we conducted several
tests of water hardness, nitrate levels, and temperature. These specific tests were chosen
because, based on our readings in class, they were three of the most likely to show
significant and reliable results. We interviewed several people to get their takes on the
dam and the health of the water from a socially scientific angle, and we allowed ourselves
to respond creatively to the stimulus of the dam and the waterway, reflecting through
poetry the effect the dam had on us as human beings. Conscious of the saying “a picture
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is worth a thousand words,” we also took many digital images which we used to illustrate
visually concepts of water clarity and other markers of stream health.
By performing these tests and personal reflections, we intend to finish the project
with a complete and multi-dimensional view of the Acton Lake Dam and its affects on
the Four Mile Creek waterway. Simply studying one of the angles, be it scientific or
artistic, could never convey the full impact of the dam. In order to comprehend its
influence on the land and people of the surrounding area, one must study it from as many
of the involved perspectives. This is what we have attempted to do throughout this
project. We hope that, by studying the dam in an interdisciplinary way, we can gain a
better understanding and analysis of exactly what it means to Four Mile Creek.
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Research and Relevance
“Water is the universal solvent” (Renn, 1) With water come life, sustenance, war,
peace, and every thing in between. Humans have to have water to survive anything.
Water gives us life. In this community, our life comes from the Four Mile Creek
watershed and the surrounding watersheds. With Four Mile Creek, we get our drinking
water, irrigation, recreation, biodiversity, aesthetics, dead fish and many other pollutants.
According to Bouwer :
Most of the projected global population increases will take place in Third
World Countries that already suffer from water, food, and health problems.
Increasingly, agricultural water management must be coordinated with, and
integrated into, the overall water management of the region. Sustainability, public
health, and environmental protection are key factors. More storage of water
behind dams and especially in aquifers via artificial recharge is necessary to save
water in times of water surplus for use in times of water shortage. Municipal
wastewater can be an important water resource but its use must be carefully
planned and regulated to prevent adverse health effects and, in the case of
irrigation, undue contamination of groundwater.. Water short countries can save
water by importing most of their food and electric power from other countries
with more water, so that in essence they also get the water that was necessary to
produce these commodities and, hence, is virtually embedded in the commodities.
This ‘virtual’ water tends to be a lot cheaper for the receiving country than
developing its own water resources. Local water can then be used for purposes
with higher social or economic returns or saved for the future. (Bouwer, Herman)
Looking at it from a different approach,
Virtually every river in the lower 48 states is regulated by dams, locks
or diversions. The river entering the reservoir behind a dam is not the same as the
river in the reservoir or downstream from the dam. Its flows can vary wildly,
depending on whether the dam is operated for the benefits of cheap electricity,
navigation, recreation, flood prevention, or water storage for irrigation. Seasonal
fluctuations can be "reshaped" by dams. Dammed rivers also see changes in
channel shape and habitat. Native aquatic species can suffer and die. Upstream
from dams, reservoirs flood riverine habitat, displacing some species. Over time,
reservoirs fill with sediment, causing new flooding problems. Temperatures in
slackwater reservoirs can violate water quality standards. Passing through or over a
dam structure stresses fish in several ways. Downstream, rivers can experience an
increase in algae and nutrients, and a decrease in dissolved oxygen. Decreased
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sediment loads can increase the amount of light passing through the water, further
altering the biotic system. (Jean A. Hamilla)
These two approaches shows just how varied research is on the usage of dams.
Some people want use dams as a source of economy, and as a way to create “new, better
lifestyles.” In the second approach Hamilla shows the dangers of dams and what can
really happen if one creates too many of them. Our whole project is based on these two
main thoughts: How good is a dam for humanity? And how bad is it?
Total hardness is measured in milligrams per liter (mg/L). According to Boyd,
50mg/l is considered soft water. 50 mg/l-150 mg/l is considered an ok amount of total
hardness in water. But as this amount rises, people must use more soap to create their
precious suds because as the total hardness rises, the harder is it to create suds. At the
200-300 mg/l, cities are required to soften water for their citizens. With our project, we
tested total hardness to show the varying differences below, at and below the lake. We
know that Oxford water is softened and wanted to see about how hard the water really is.
When testing Nitrogen, one must consider the different types of nitrogen that are
present in naturally occurring. Natural water contains, dissolved N2, ammonium ion
(NH+4), dissolved ammonia (NH3) and nitrate ion (NO3-), nitrite ion (NO2-), and
organic nitrogen compounds. (Spang 1) In this area it is usually found in three forms:
Ammonia (NH), Nitrite (NO2) and Nitrate ( NO3) (Spieker, A30) With having all these
different concentrations of nitrate/nitrogen, one would think they are a good thing. Well,
yes and no.
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In nature, nitrate/nitrogen is a nutrient and important component of living
organism, but some of its compounds also can be toxic to aquatic life. Its
concentrations and dynamics have a large influence on the structure and function
of aquatic ecosystems, and nitrogen is an important variable in considerations of
water pollution. (Boyd, 190)
It usually can regulate itself until humans come along. With our irrigation, fertilizers,
farming, industrial use, etc, we screw up Mother Nature and therefore making
nitrate/nitrogen a harmful substance in large concentrations. Even though, one might say
nitrate/nitrogen is harmful in large concentrations, the large concentrations are actually
quite small. In unpolluted waters, a reading of .25 mg/l is considered normal, while in
polluted waters a reading of 1 mg/l is considered polluted. In highly polluted waters a
reading up to 10 mg/l may be found.
. The Kjeldahl method is the traditional method that is used for testing
nitrate/nitrogen. Testing done on Four Mile Creek in 1968 and in 1989 both used this
traditional method.
With this method a sample is digested in Sulfuric acid and all organic
nitrogen is converted to ammonium. The digest is then made alkaline and the
ammonium is distilled off as ammonia and captured for measurement.
Subtraction of ammonia nitrogen from Kjeldahl nitrogen provides a good estimate
of organic nitrogen in a sample. (Boyd, 189)
Being that we are amateurs at testing nitrogen, we only had the opportunity of using the
supplied Hack kit for testing nitrogen.
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Even with nitrogen/nitrate being a good nutrient for a water system, it can also be
toxic in many cases.
Nitrate can be absorbed from the water by fish and other organisms. In the
blood of fish, nitrite reacts with hemoglobin to form methemoglobin.
Methemoglobin does not combine with oxygen like hemoglobin; so high nitrite
concentrations in water can result in functional anemia known as
methemoglobinemia. Blood that contains significant methemoglobin is brown,
so the common name for nitrite toxicity in fish is “brown flood disease.” Nitrite
can also bind hemocyanin in crustacean blood to lower the ability of blood to
transport oxygen. (Boyd, 191)
With this the nitrite gets transported through the gill by lamellar chloride cells. These
cells can’t tell the difference between chloride and nitrite, therefore causing the fish to
have too high of a nitrite concentration in their system, giving them methemoglobinemia.
In waters of low dissolved oxygen and many other factor, it is extremely hard to
determine what a true safe level is for fish to thrive.
With reading about methemoglobinemia, we started wondering if the dead fish
problem of Acton lake could be due to this disease. We found some higher levels of
nitrogen/nitrate concentrations and therefore think this could be part of the problem of the
dead fish.
From watching the video on the Colorado River, we learned that in theory,
temperature should fall as the water goes from above dam, through the dam, and below
the dam.
Research done on the Great Miami River Valley showed that on average, the
temperature in this area basically follows the weather patterns. When it is cold in
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Southern Ohio, the water temperature is around .56 degrees Celsius. During the summer
months, the water temperature as been known to soar as high as 32 degrees Celsius.
(Spieker)
“The People Speak” was our response to the multiple interviews we did on people
who have lived, live, work(ed), and play(ed) on the Four Mile Creek watershed. Below
is a synopsis of each interview.
Helen Spicer
Ms. Spicer grew up on Four Mile Creek outside of Hamilton, Ohio on State Route 177.
She is the oldest of six children. Being the oldest, she spent many summers, taking the
younger children down the to creek to play. She remembers wading in the water
watching the “Twins” as she calls her younger twin brothers. She always had to watch
them closely since she said they were so ornery.
After leaving the Hamilton area to go to college, she returned after she married. Her and
her husband, settled outside of Darrtown on Hogue road. There she raised two children
on Four Mile Creek. The creek ran behind their house she told us. Both of her children
spent many summers out near the creek, wading, trying to catch fish and frogs, etc. She
told us she had really fond memories playing with her children there before they moved
north and she had to have lung surgery.
Cindy LittleJohn
(Ms. Littlejohn was not comfortable giving her real name)
Cindy spent the early years of her childhood on Four Mile Creek. She never returned to
Four Mile Creek until she came to Miami University in the late 1970’s on a Basketball
scholarship. She got to know Lake Acton very well from spending countless hours
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running through Hueston Woods to condition for basketball practice. She told us that
during her years here at Miami, Lake Acton was a source of jokes. Everybody joked
about how polluted it was and how that if one would swim in it, they would become
extremely sick. After graduating, she left the area and hasn’t visited Hueston Woods
since.
Virgi Stone
Virgi is a “towny” in all sense of the word. She grew up in Oxford, left for a while and
now has returned to the area to care for her mother. She laughed at our reference to being
a “towny” and thought it was fitting for her. Virgi told us about her late teenage years
growing up around Hueston woods. She told us that she remembered there being a
“octopus” in Lake Acton, that was used to clean it. Virgi wasn’t sure if it was still used
to clean the lake. In our research, we weren’t able to verify the use of the “octopus”.
Fisherman
(He didn’t want us to use his name)
On one of our sampling trips, we spoke to an older gentleman fishing on the banks of
Lake Acton. We asked him why he liked fishing on the lake and if he knew of the
pollution problem Lake Acton has. He responded that, “I been fishing here for decades.
They take out this dam, get rid of this lake, what am I gonna do with my time then? Been
eating these fish for years, taste fine to me.” After that he turned away and focused back
on his line.
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Little Girls at Black Bridge
We were under the Black Bridge getting water samples. While we were gathering, two
girls came running towards us from down the bank. One was about 5, the other girl about
8. We asked them what they were doing and they showed us the one measly, sick fish
they had caught. They were all excited about their fish and we asked them if they were
going to eat them. The both said no, that their daddy wouldn’t let them because it could
make them sick.
Naturalist at Hueston Woods
Interview done with Biodiversity Group (Wolfe/Blaisdell)
We spoke with Chris Smith on April 26th, 2003 with Meagan Leigh, Les Arms, and
Diane Jones. He spoke to us about how the dam was put in during the late 1940’s and the
early 1950’s. He also told us that part of Hueston woods is part of the only virgin timber
in the state. Besides that he spoke of how they rarely use the lake, usually they just take
canoeing excursions out to the beaver dam.
3rd graders from Marshall Elementary
Amanda helped with a Pweep event at Pfeiffer park. She spent four hours
walking up and down Collin’s Run, showing groups of 8-10 3rd graders about life,
pollution, etc, on Collin’s Run.
Most of the children had been to the park before. Those who hadn’t had at least
been to another creek similar to Collin’s Run. Amanda told the children how Collin’s
Run, runs into Four Mile Creek all the way down to the Gulf of Mexico. After
explaining that, she showed them how the river runs in varying difference. Where they
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were at, there was a semi-deep pool that had minnows in it, while upstream the water ran
swiftly down stream. She also showed the children many different spots where there was
pollution. The whole point of this trip was for children to be more educated about the
environment and how they can help save it. The children reactions were from awe that
their play area would have pollution to those who wanted to save the Earth in one day.
Can all of the information we gathered throughout this study be applied to other,
perhaps larger, creeks and rivers? Is it at all relevant to “The Big Picture?” We’d like to
think so. Perhaps our results, and how they compare to what we found in our research,
will shed a little light on these queries.
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Testing Methods
Gathering the Samples
1. Borrow someone’s car.
2. Argue over who gets to drive said car.
3. Head to the Black Bridge.
4. Fill and label water vials, take temperature, splash around for a few minutes.
5. Head toward Hueston Woods.
6. Pause to stare at Izaak Walton League sign. (http://www.iwla.org/ for info, it really
does apply).
7. Continue to Acton Lake.
8. Avoid dead fish.
9. See step 4, minus splashing.
10. Continue to above-dam test site.
11. Trek through woods.
12. See step 4, with a lot of splashing to clean sand off feet.
13. Go home and shower.
Hardness of Water
1. Put 5 ml of water in testing tube
2. Added 2 drops of buffer solution, mixed buffer and water solutions.
3. Added 1 drop of red solution mixed it with water solution, changing the solution red.
4. Added drop by drop third solution that mixed with solution two until the water turned
blue, indicating the hardness of water.
5. Rinsed testing tube.
6. Repeated for each testing sample
Nitrogen Testing
1. Put Nitrogen disk in Nitrogen reader.
2. Pour 5ml of water into testing tube one.
3. Add dry packet number one.
4. Put cap on and shake for 30 seconds.
5. Pour solution into testing tube two.
6. Add dry packet number two.
7. Put on cap and shake for 30 seconds or until solution turns red.
8. Put testing tube two into Nitrogen reader.
9. Hold up to light.
10. Move Nitrogen disk until the disk matches the testing tube.
11. Repeat for each testing sample.
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Talking to the People
1. Randomly run into families fishing.
2. Talk to them, especially the children.
3. Make sure they don’t mind being included in a project.
4. Run into someone at church who has lived here their whole life.
5. Talk to them.
6. See step 3.
7. Find a park employee.
8. Talk to them.
9. See step 3.
10. Go back through and realize that most people would not let us have their names.
Great. But at least we got the interviews.
Taking the Pictures
1. Borrow a digital camera.
2. Argue over who gets to use said camera.
3. Take a lot of pictures (most of which do not turn out).
4. Send Whitney to hang out over a 40-foot drop with someone else’s digital camera.
5. Pay nominal fee to owner of camera to upload and email pictures.
Writing the Poems
1. Stare at pictures.
2. Stare at data and results.
3. Stare at interviews.
4. Write poems using items in steps 1-3.
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Data
Hardness (mg/L)
Day (Test)
1 (a) 1 (b)
2 (a)
2 (b)
3 (a)
3 (b)
Below Dam
460
380
460
520
480
500
Acton Lake
500
520
500
480
500
540
Above Dam
580
520
540
520
580
560
Hardness (mg/L) (Averages)
Day
1
2
3
Below Dam
420
490
490
Acton Lake
510
490
520
Above Dam
550
530
570
Nitrate (mg/L)
Day (Test)
1 (a) 1 (b)
2 (a)
2 (b)
3 (a)
3 (b)
Below Dam
<0.1
<0.1
<0.1
0
<0.1
0
Acton Lake
0.2
0.1
0.2
0.1
0.2
0.2
Above Dam
0.1
<0.1
0.1
<0.1
<0.1
<0.1
Nitrate (mg/L) (Averages)
Day
1
2
3
Below Dam
0.05
0.025
0.025
Acton Lake
0.15
0.15
0.2
Above Dam
0.075
0.075
0.05
1
2
3
Below Dam
13
14
15.5
Acton Lake
13.5
15
16
Above Dam
14.5
15
18.5
Temperature (°C)
Day
20
21
22
23
Results/Analysis
**Note: Site 1 is below dam, Site 2 is Acton Lake, Site 3 is above dam
Hardness
The first table on page 18 shows the results of both tests each day for hardness.
The second shows the same, with the tests for each day averaged. The statistics and
charts for our results are on page 19.
According to the mean numbers given, it would appear that the water is hardest
above the dam and softest below the dam. It would make sense, as the dam holds back
sediment and minerals, that the water would be softer below the dam. However, the fact
that it is not as hard in the lake as above it is slightly confusing, as one might imagine that
minerals would be trapped in the reservoir.
The “Univariate Line Chart” is a visual representation of the averages of each
day’s test results. The “Cell Line” and “Cell Bar” charts are for the mean numbers
mentioned above. The line chart in particular shows the differences in hardness between
the three sites.
Nitrate
The third and fourth tables on page 18 pertain to the tests of nitrate levels. Results
of “<0.1” were reinterpreted as .05 for use in the fourth table and the statistics and charts.
Said statistics and charts are on page 20.
While these numbers may seem low, they are higher than in most other parts of
the world. These high nitrate levels are mainly due to farm runoff. The highest nitrate
levels are in the lake, and the lowest are below the dam. It would appear that the dam
holds back much of the nitrate, hence the high levels found in the reservoir.
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On all three charts, it is easy to see the dramatic differences in levels, particularly
when comparing Site 2 to the other two testing sites.
Temperature
The fifth table on page 18 and the charts and statistics on page 21 apply to our
temperature measurements. (As the temperature remained the same when we tested twice
each day, we decided not to include the two-test table.)
As expected, the mean numbers indicate that the temperature was lowest below
the dam, and significantly higher in the creek above the reservoir. This difference is most
easily seen in the “Cell Line” and “Univariate Line” charts.
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A Few Final Thoughts
Amanda Gibson
Even though for the past three semesters we have had to do group projects for NS,
this project was different. In the past, we had free reign on what we wanted to do but this
time around we were forced concentrate on Four Mile Creek and its watersheds, making
this project in the end more intense. With over sixty students focusing on one small
watershed, many different projects were created to look at Four Mile Creek.
With our project, we chose to look at the pollution aspect of Four Mile Creek,
Acton Lake and the water quality above, at and below Acton Lake. It felt with at least
with our project, we were really “scientists”. We got to find our testing sights, collect
the samples, test them and interpret the results. In the past, we also did this but with Four
Mile Creek, it made it more real. There isn’t a lot of information on Four Mile Creek
readily available; one must dig to find it. So with having to dig to find information and
creating a new inquiry on Four Mile Creek, it felt like we were explorers.
At times, our group dynamics were intense. This semester seemingly has been
long and hard for everybody and at times it showed. With our schedules being so varied
and hard to work around, we were forced to split the duties and only meet when we had
something important to work on. Because of this, Abby and Whitney collected most of
the samples except for the last samples; I was able to go with Whitney to gather them.
Since they gathered most of the samples, I was in charge of testing them. Testing the
samples was tedious sometimes but at the same time, I was the first to view the results
and know how polluted the water was.
Another neat aspect of the project was the interviews. Being able to talk
to people who had lived, worked and played on Four Mile Creek, made the project come
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alive. It made it real. All in all, this project was different differed from the past projects
but was still the same as past projects. It was enjoyable to learn more about Four Mile
Creek since we live, work and play on it and I’m glad I had the chance to learn more
about this watershed.
Whitney Smith
Never in my experience with group projects have emotions run so high. It seemed
like we were either having a great time or wanting to kill each other, with very little in
between. In general, I had fun working on it, but there were also those beautiful moments
when I was ready to quit school specifically due to this one thing.
One of the biggest reasons I looked forward to this project was that I’d get to play
in the water. After coming home with soaked pants and shoes, swearing I was catching
pneumonia, I was no longer so enamored with the idea, and the day I had to walk into
Acton Lake up to my knees, I was fairly sure I would grow and extra limb before the
week was out.
Despite some crazy circumstances and odd set-backs, I realize now just exactly
how much I learned from the project, not only about water quality, but about people
along the creek, my group members, and myself. Everything about water quality you can
find in the rest of this report, along with all the things I learned from the people we talked
to. My group members and I have gone from loving to hating and back again, and I think
we are all the closer for it. And myself… I’ve discovered that when it comes down to it, I
would much rather be one of those people recreating without knowing what’s going on
with the water.
Still, the way we went about the learning was fun, especially because we weren’t
confined only to science as we were in our NS classes. It was nice to be able to play with
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a camera, write poetry, and help little kids fish, and yet be working on this project at the
same time.
Abby Workman
I had a lot more fun than I anticipated working on this project. After years of doing
science projects, it was very difficult for me to work on a project that combined not only
science, but also the humanities and social sciences. I had to force my mind to remember
that I could not focus solely on the science. However, once I managed to get into the
spirit of the project, I found it to be very interesting. Just being out at the test sites was a
great experience. I really enjoyed being able to walk around near the water and enjoy
nature. It was very relaxing, in a way, to be collecting samples in the middle of the day;
it was as if, for a few minutes, all the stresses of school melted away.
One of the reasons I was most interested in doing this project was in order to discern how
much the materials we had read in class really applied to the real world. Beyond the
scientific connections, which were fairly easy to make, I began to feel the truth of the
cultural connections. All the articles on the Hudson River School and the religious
aspects of the river, the idea of paradise, and the ties of the human soul to the river
suddenly made a lot of sense. I think this was the most valuable experience I took from
the course and from this project. Beyond the scientific aspects, I was encouraged to look
at a river as a tool and a treasure, as secular and as sacred. In short, I was not confined to
one view of the river, but exposed to several and told to find my own way to the truth.
28
Bibliography
City of Oxford, Ohio water quality investigation. Columbus, Ohio: Burgess & Niple,
1989.
Water quality studies (“area planning studies) for Oxford, OH, January of 1989.
Seven Mile Creek watershed : a non-point source profile. Cincinnati, Ohio: OhioKentucky-Indiana Regional Council of Governments. 1985.
A look at water quality and water pollution in Butler County, OH, focusing specifically
on the Seven Mile Creek watershed.
Boyd, Claude E. Water quality: an introduction. Boston, MA: Kluwer Academic
Publishers. 2000.
Gives an introduction to water quality, covering topics relevant to our study such as
dissolved oxygen, hardness, and water quality regulations.
Camargo, Julio A. and Neal J. Voelz. “Biotic and Abiotic Changes Along the Recovery
Gradient of Two Impounded Rivers with Different Impoundment Use.” ???? (1996): 143158.
Effects of damming on the macroinvertibrates of the ColoradoRiver (Granby Dam) and
the Durat—n River in Spain (Burgomillodo Dam), particularly in regard to downstream
changes in water quality.
Fried, Gabriela and Alfred WŸest. “Disrupting biogeochemicl cycles – Consequences of
damming.” Aquatic Sciences 64 (2002): 55-65.
Effects of damming on rivers, and why these effects might be overlooked. Effects include
biogeochemical cycles, nutrient balance, and thermal conditions.
Graf, William L. “Damage Control: Restoring the Physical Integrity of America’s
Rivers.” Annals of the Association of American Geographers 91(1) (2001): 1-27.
Discusses the restoration of the natural physical integrity of rivers whose ecosystems
have been damaged due to damming, and focuses on economic, cultural, and
environmental aspects.
Mngomezulu, M. Michael. A descriptive study of water quality trends in the Great Miami
subbasin, Ohio, 1979-1992. 1994.
Looks at water quality trends in the Miami River Basin over the course of 13 years (7992).
Novotny, Vladimir. “Integrated Water Quality Management.” Water Science Technology
33 No 4-5 (1996): 1-7. 1996.
Discussion of water quality management using the Use Attainability Analysis (UAA),
which is a combination of water body assessment, total maximum daily load process
(natural vs. man-made problems), and socio-economic analysis.
29
Spang, John F. A study of nitrogen compounds in Four Mile Creek near Oxford, Ohio.
1971.
As stated in the title, it is a look at nitrogen compounds in Four Mile Creek, relevant to
our study in that it is about our specific creek of study and is regarding water chemistry.
Spieker, Andrew Maute. Ground-water hydrology and geology of the lower Great Miami
River Valley, Ohio. U.S. Govt. Printing Office. 1968.
Provides information on geological aspects of the Miami River Valley, as will as
information on ground-water.
Waite, Thomas D Principles of water quality. Orlando, Fla: Academic Press. 1984.
Discusses water resources, water quality, and water quality management.
Ward, Robert C. “Development and use of water quality criteria and standards in the
United States.” Regional Environmental Change 2 (2001): 66-72.
Definitions of water quality criteria and standards developed over the course of the last
century, as well as a call for new methods of water quality management.
http://www.miamiconservancy.org/Great_Miami_River_Watershed/What_Is_A_Watersh
ed/Images/Lower%20Great%20Infographic.pdf
A quick look at the biological health of the lower Great Miami River watershed.
http://www.unep.or.jp/ietc/Publications/Short_Series/LakeReservoirs-1/5.asp
Discusses water quality and the differences between lakes and reservoirs, and between
deep and shallow water bodies, as well as downstream effects of damming.
http://www.cleanwateract.org/pages/b9.htm
Explains application of the Clean Water Act to damming projects.
http://www2.privatei.com/~uscold/
Homepage of the United States Society on Dams, “dedicated to advancing the technology
of dam engineering, construction, operation, maintenance and dam safety; to fostering
socially and environmentally responsible water resources projects; and to promoting
awareness of the role of dams in the beneficial and sustainable development of the
nation's water resources.”
http://www.ies.wisc.edu/research/wrm00/educqual.htm
A guide to deciding whether to repair or remove a dam which has been damaged, looking
at water quality, biology, timing, etc.
http://biology.usgs.gov/cro/98bor-4.htm
Looks at water quality in western river reservoirs, particularly the Lower Colorado River
reservoirs.
30
http://www.soton.ac.uk/~engenvir/environment/alternative/hydropower/hydchan.htm
Looks at effects of dams on both water quality and on operation of downstream power
plants.
http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/parks/parks/huestonw.htm
DNR homepage for Hueston Woods State Park, including brief history of the Acton Lake
Dam and general information on recreation in the area.