The Community Science Institute Empowering citizens to monitor and - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

The Community Science Institute Empowering citizens to monitor and protect local water resources for sustainable management Claire Weston – Outreach Coordinator SUNY College of Environmental Science & Forestry February 27 th , 2017

Who we are and what we do Chemical Online Monitoring Volunteer Public Partnerships Water Database NY State and Monitoring EPA Partnerships Certified Lab CSI’s Mission: Biological Monitoring CSI partners with community-based Partnerships volunteer groups to better understand and protect local streams and lakes by collecting and disseminating Small Outreach scientifically credible, regulatory-quality Nonprofit and data that inform long-term, sustainable Education management strategies. 501(c)3 Initiatives

Who we are and what we do Chemical Online Monitoring Volunteer Public Partnerships Water Database NY State and Monitoring EPA Partnerships Certified Lab CSI’s Mission: Biological Monitoring CSI partners with community-based Partnerships volunteer groups to better understand and protect local streams and lakes by collecting and disseminating Small Outreach scientifically credible, regulatory-quality Nonprofit and data that inform long-term, sustainable Education management strategies. 501(c)3 Initiatives

Who we are and what we do Chemical Online Monitoring Volunteer Public Partnerships Water Database NY State and Monitoring EPA Partnerships Certified Lab CSI’s Mission: Biological Monitoring CSI partners with community-based Partnerships volunteer groups to better understand and protect local streams and lakes by collecting and disseminating Small Outreach scientifically credible, regulatory-quality Nonprofit and data that inform long-term, sustainable Education management strategies. 501(c)3 Initiatives

Who we are and what we do Chemical Online Monitoring Volunteer Public Partnerships Water Database NY State and Monitoring EPA Partnerships Certified Lab CSI’s Mission: Biological Monitoring CSI partners with community-based Partnerships volunteer groups to better understand and protect local streams and lakes by collecting and disseminating Small Outreach scientifically credible, regulatory-quality Nonprofit and data that inform long-term, sustainable Education management strategies. 501(c)3 Initiatives

The Story of CSI Increasing Recruitment and Outreach and Development Introduction of Coordination of Education of Testing Lab Biomonitoring Volunteer Stream Initiatives Monitoring Groups

Maintaining a Certified Lab – Benefits and Challenges Maintaining a certified lab is a lot of work! The quality assurance and quality control measures are extensive. • • The amount of paperwork involved is sizable. • Inspections are rigorous. So why make the effort? Certified data can be used for regulatory purposes. • It is difficult for citizen science groups to ensure that their data • is taken seriously. Certification is one way. • Maintaining certification also allows CSI to address the community’s potable water testing needs.

Volunteer Water Monitoring Partnerships Three Volunteer Water Monitoring Programs • Synoptic Sampling Red Flag Monitoring • Biomonitoring • Synoptic Monitoring Partnerships Certified laboratory analyses Red Flag Monitoring Partnerships Quality-assured field measurements Biomonitoring Partnerships Benthic macroinvertebrates

CSI Monitoring Programs – Synoptic Sampling Three Volunteer Water Synoptic Sampling Process Monitoring Programs • Synoptic Sampling • Water samples are collected by teams of volunteers three to Certified Lab Analyses • four times a year including once under storm water conditions. Sample Analytes include: • Sampling of a single stream occurs in a single day to get a “snap - shot” of water quality. • E. coli • T otal Phosphorus • Soluble Reactive Phosphorus • Volunteers bring samples to CSI’s certified Drop off • Nitrate -+ Nitrite Nitrogen lab and complete a chain of custody. T otal Kjeldahl Nitrogen • • Ammonia Nitrogen • Samples are analyzed by CSI staff T urbidity • Analyze using certified methods. • T otal Suspended Solids • Chloride • Chlorophyll a • T est results are entered into CSI’s • And others Database online public database: • Primary focus of program is monitoring nutrients, sediment, and pathogenic bacteria www. database.communityscience.org

CSI Monitoring Programs – Synoptic Sampling Three Volunteer Water Monitoring Programs • Synoptic Sampling Certified Lab Analyses • Analytes include: • • E. coli • T otal Phosphorus • Soluble Reactive Phosphorus • Nitrate -+ Nitrite - Nitrogen T otal Kjeldahl Nitrogen • • Ammonia Nitrogen T urbidity • • T otal Suspended Solids • Chloride • Chlorophyll a • And others • Primary focus of program is monitoring nutrients, sediment, and pathogenic bacteria.

Synoptic Sampling Results - Phosphorus 350 Why focus on phosphorus? • Soluble reactive phosphorus is a decent surrogate for Average Soluble Reactive Phosphorus at Stream Mouths (  g/L) bioavailable phosphorus. 300 Phosphorus is the limiting nutrient for the majority of • freshwater autotrophs. An overabundance of bioavailable phosphorus can lead to • 250 eutrophication and is implicated in cyanobacteria blooms. 200 Major Findings: SRP concentration correlates with • land use type. 150 • SRP concentrations are higher in the northern half of the watershed. • SRP concentration is higher under 100 storm water conditions. 50 0 Yawger Creek Deans Creek Salmon Creek Fall Creek Six Mile Creek Baseflow SRP Stormwater SRP

Synoptic Sampling Results – chloride Why focus on chloride? Upward Trend of Base Flow Chloride Concentrations at Mouth 80 • The salinization of a water body of Six Mile Creek, 2004-2016, is 2.5 mg/L/year can negatively affect aquatic life 70 and reduce biodiversity. • Increasing chloride y = 0.0069x + 22.633 60 Chloride Concentration at Baseflow (mg/L) concentrations have been R² = 0.4186 observed throughout the 50 Northeast and Midwest (Dugan et al, 2017) 40 Major Findings: 30 • Chloride concentration has increased in all southern 20 streams • Long term stream 10 datasets yield insights into 0 non-point source 0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000 4500 pollution. Time Elapsed Since First Sampling Event (Days)

CSI Monitoring Programs – Red Flag Monitoring Red Flag Monitoring Process Three Volunteer Water Monitoring Programs • Red Flag Monitoring • Water samples are collected by teams of volunteers once a Sample month. Stream samples are collected and • tested in the field for five analytes monthly using portable kits and meters. • Volunteers analyze samples in the field and Analyze • T emperature record results on field data sheets. • pH Conductivity • • T otal Hardness • Volunteers mail or deliver their field data Dissolved Oxygen • Review sheets to the CSI lab where results and • Goal is to establish baseline water quality controls are reviewed by CSI staff. quality and monitor for possible After review, results are entered into • impacts including “hydrofracking.” CSI’s online public database by CSI Database Volunteers also collect nutrient samples • staff, provided data quality objectives twice a year and send them to the CSI are met. lab for certified analyses of total phosphorus, NOx, and ammonia. • Most Red Flag sites lie within the www. database.communityscience.org Chesapeake Bay watershed.

CSI Monitoring Programs – Red Flag Monitoring Three Volunteer Water Monitoring Programs • Red Flag Monitoring Stream samples are collected and • tested in the field for five analytes monthly using portable kits and meters. • T emperature • pH Conductivity • • T otal Hardness Dissolved Oxygen • • Goal is to establish baseline water quality and monitor for possible impacts including “hydrofracking.” Volunteers also collect nutrient samples • twice a year and send them to the CSI lab for certified analyses of total phosphorus, NOx, and ammonia. • Most Red Flag sites lie within the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

Long term datasets yield Red Flag Monitoring – unexpected results Three Volunteer Water 700 Monitoring Programs 600 y = 2.4047x + 10.702 R² = 0.9419 Conductivity (  S/cm) • Red Flag Monitoring 500 Stream samples are collected and • 400 tested in the field for five analytes 300 monthly using portable kits and meters. 200 • T emperature 100 • pH Correlation Conductivity • 0 • T otal Hardness 0 50 100 150 200 250 Dissolved Oxygen • Total Hardness (mg/L) Seasonality 1.6 700 Seasonality Index 1.4 600 1.2 Conductivity  S/cm 500 1 400 0.8 300 0.6 0.4 200 0.2 100 0 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 1/1/2012 1/1/2013 1/1/2014 1/1/2015 1/1/2016 1/1/2017 Month