Water Quality 1 Review

These flashcards cover key vocabulary related to water quality and its parameters, alongside relevant laws and scientific concepts.

Clean Water Act of 1972 (CWA), what is it and what does it do?

• A federal law aimed at regulating the discharge of pollutants into the waters of the United States and regulating quality standards for waters.

• Created to restore and preserve the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of water

• This Act created water quality criteria to ensure clean water for people and the environment. It established the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permitting program.

What is the role of the states in implementing the CWA?

• States are responsible for setting water quality standards, and managing the NPDES programs, ensuring compliance with federal regulations. They monitor and report water quality to the EPA.

• In GA the GA DNR and GA EPD (Environmental Protection Division or “watershed division”) takes the lead in these efforts.

Why are there diff. CWA regulations in each state?

There are diff. regulations in each state bc of the varied wildlife, fish, and invert. species that inhabit the states that have diff. needs

Ex: Different species have different concerns: need cold or warm water (neccessary temp. varies state to state), migrating for reproduction, DO levels, pH levels, sensitivity to sedimentation

How does CWA effect people?

The CWA affects people by ensuring access to clean water for drinking and recreational use, protecting public health, and supporting the economy through clean water initiatives and sustainable practices.

Some places you can boat, but not swim - good to know the difference

What are the three main parts of Water Quality? (Hint: PCB)

1. Physical- Turbidity, TSS, Conductivity, Temp., DO

2. Chemical- pH, Nutrients, Heavy metals

3. Biological- BOD(Biological Oxygen Demand), Algae (and algal blooms), Inverts., Bacteria, Fish, IBI(Index of Biotic integrity) 

What does TSS stand for?

Total Suspended Solids

Total Suspended Solids

The particles suspended in water can affect water quality and aquatic life. These solids include silt, clay, organic matter, and microorganisms that can cloud the water and carry pollutants.

Turbidity

A measure of the cloudiness or haziness of water caused by suspended solids, which can affect light penetration and aquatic life.

An increase in this can cause a decrease in photosynthetic rates and a decrease in predator-prey visibility in aquatic environments. Predator species that rely on photoreceptors (sight) rather than chemoreceptors to catch prey are more likely to be affected. This could result in a decrease in aquatic plant life and photoreceptor-dependent predator species and an increase in prey species.

To measure this, we use a turbidimeter that quantifies light scattering in the water sample.

What is important to know about Turbidity and TSS?

• sources can be natural or anthropogenic (human-caused) - bank failure

• no hard and fast cut off of too much bc diff. places have varying amounts of natural turbidity, but monitoring it can tell us if there is a drastic change.

• Rainstorms = higher TSS and Turbidity than usual

• there are consequences to the environment when there is an unnatural increase

What are some consequences of an unnatural increase in turbidity/TSS?

• decreased dissolved oxygen due to photosynthetic organisms dying off and being broken down by decomposers

• sediment can carry excess pollutants (heavy metals, excess nutrients, pesticides, bacteria, etc,)

• negative impacts on aquatic habitats (photosynthesis rates, predator’s sight, and prey pops. increasing, effects fish gills - respiration rates)

• More water treatment

• filling intertidal spaces

How does temperature effect water quality?

• Cold water spp. may be less reproductively successful

• Eggs and larvae have a smaller range of tolerance

• Warmer water has less dissolved oxygen

• can also affect metabolic rates

• GA standard no higher than 90°F?? not a useful standard

• abiotic factors 

Refugium/Refugia

Areas where organisms can survive adverse conditions, providing shelter and sometimes resources that are crucial for maintaining biodiversity and supporting species during environmental changes.

Ex: cold water fish seeking refuge in cooler areas of the stream during warm temperatures or drought conditions.

What can cause higher temperatures in bodies of water?

• Thermal pollution - industrial co. uses water to cool equipment then discharges heated water into water bodies

• impervious surfaces - absorb more heat than other materials and transfer than to rainwater runoff

• lack of a riparian buffer - no shade

How are Turbidity and TSS different?

Turbidity refers to the cloudiness of water caused by suspended particles, while TSS specifically measures the total amount of those solids suspended in the water.

Conductivity

The ability of water to conduct electrical current, which is influenced by the presence of ions.

uS = MicroSiemens divided by cm = centimeters

• Sources of ions can be natural or anthropogenic

• different rocks erode more easily than others like limestone (GA granite and limestone common)

• Sediment can effect the conductivity, dissipates the charge too quickly if too high

• Impacts activity of the electrofisher

• long term monitoring helps tell us if something is wrong bc we need a baseline GA usually between 0-1500

Dissolved Oxygen (DO)

The amount of oxygen that is present in water, essential for aquatic life.

Thermal Pollution

The degradation of water quality by any process that changes ambient water temperature.

Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD)

A measure of the amount of oxygen that microorganisms will consume while decomposing organic matter in water.

Photosynthesis

The process by which green plants and some other organisms use sunlight to synthesize foods with the help of chlorophyll.

Respiration

The process by which organisms convert oxygen and glucose into energy, producing carbon dioxide and water as byproducts.

pH

A scale used to specify the acidity or basicity of an aqueous solution.

Anthropogenic Influences

Environmental changes that are caused or influenced by human activity.

Organic Matter

Any material that is derived from living organisms, which can affect the concentration of dissolved oxygen in water.

Seasonal Variation

Fluctuations in environmental conditions that occur with the changing seasons, affecting water quality parameters like dissolved oxygen.