|
| |
Brush Creek: Water Quality Monitoring
|
Type of Monitoring |
Description |
|
Physical |
Assessment of
physical aspects of the stream: floodplain use, riparian cover,
streambank conditions, bed composition, embeddedness of substrate,
signs of human use, visible algae, water color, water odor, and flow
measurements. |
|
Biological |
Collection and
identification of aquatic macro-invertebrates, then calculation of a
water-quality rating* based on the presence or absence of pollution
sensitive organisms. |
|
Chemical |
Field analysis of
water samples for chemical parameters such as dissolved oxygen,
nitrates, pH, conductivity, temperature, and chlorides**.
|
*Water Quality Rating Ranges:
<12=Poor; 12-17=Fair; 18-23=Good; >23=Excellent
**Chloride sampling is being
conducted at sites #1 and #5 as part of a pilot project with the MO
Department of Natural Resources and MO Stream Team Program. Sampling
is conducted and reported monthly.
Stream Team
Sampling Map:
Click on Site # (in yellow boxes) to see results for that
location.
The Platte Land Trust entered into
a Memorandum of Agreement with Park University to establish stream gauging sites
and discharge rates along Brush Creek in Platte County, Missouri. The data
gathered from this agreement will be used in conjunction with the data collected
by the volunteer Stream Team to further the goals of the Brush Creek Mid-Shed
Project.
Goals of the Memorandum of Agreement include:
- • Installation of semi-permanent gauging
sites at each bridge crossing within the mid-shed area. These include the
Highway 152, Highway 45, and 76th Street Bridges.
See Maps for gauge locations.
-
• Development of a
Quality Assurance Project Plan for the methodology and stream gauging
equipment (approved by the Platte Land Trust and the MO Department of
Natural Resources).
-
• Development of
rating curves based on cross-sectional analysis; storm hydrographs, Flood
Frequency Analysis, and rate of discharge calculations for each gauging
site.
Brush Creek Mid-Shed Project Pages:
    
|
