By: Lauren Carroll
Hello and happy Creek Week! My name is Lauren Carroll, and I am a senior at Conestoga High School. During May of our senior year, we are given the opportunity to intern at an external non-profit or company in a field of interest/our major in college. I am lucky enough to be doing my internship with the Watershed Department here at the Willistown Conservation Trust! During this month I have learned so much about work after graduating high school, as well as our earth. I have been able to learn so much so fast, partially because of how much time we spend out in the field.
For example, I, along with a fellow intern, Clare, and our supervisor, Anna, performed a mini-stream study on the upstream Ashbridge sensor area. This study was conducted in hopes of finding out why the sensor station located in Ridley Creek was reading high levels of conductivity. Conductivity is the measure of how easily electricity can move through water. To begin the mini-study, we first made a map (Map 1) and chose 13 sites of interest to sample. We made sure to choose sites in the mainstream of Ridley Creek, in the outflow of the wastewater tributary, where these waterways meet, downstream, and on the various parts of the left and right stream banks. At each of these sites we collected 125 mL bottles of water and also recorded the temperature of the water, the time we took the sample and the conductivity of the water in that specific location.
Later, in the lab, we tested chloride levels, which relate to conductivity, as well as nutrient levels such as nitrates and nitrites at select sites. This is because there is a wastewater treatment plant that deposits water into this stream from a tributary, and we know wastewater typically contains high levels of nutrients and has higher conductivity as well. These nutrients are harmful to the overall health of our streams in abundance. The word nutrients may sound positive, but it actually is not. They cause, in excess, an event called eutrophication, which is extreme plant growth, most often algae. This causes dissolved oxygen levels to decrease, which harms aquatic life. Mass fish die-offs can occur because they are suffocated. Interestingly, while we were in the creek taking samples, we could see the difference between the right bank and the left bank’s algae growth due to the nutrients carried by the wastewater tributary. The right bank was brown, and the left bank was a vibrant green which shows this difference in algae growth.
Learning how to take water samples properly, measure conductivity in the field, record data, perform tests for chloride and nutrients in the lab and interpret the data has been such a beneficial experience. Throughout my internship, I have also been able to learn about other fascinating things going on in our waterways that are less chemistry-focused, such as taking a look at our Freshwater Mussel population and seeing their effect on water quality as well as their use as an indicator species. Another animal that can be used as an indicator species is the River Otter. When you see freshwater mussels and otters in a stream, you know it is happy and healthy!
Overall, I have loved looking at our waterways through all the different lenses, from things as small as a molecule of NO3 to as large as an Otter! I have learned so much about how everything interacts and balances each other out, as well as how to help our waterways to be healthier and happier. I hope you learn just as much this week as I have and can help us keep our waterways healthy and happy!
Funding for this project was awarded through the “Protect Your Drinking Water” grant program, administered by the Pennsylvania Environmental Council with funding from Aqua, an Essential Utilities company.
Sample sites 2 and 3 are in the wastewater tributary, and 4 is at the confluence of Ridley creek and the tributary. Sample sites 5 and 8 are on the right bank. Sample sites 6 and 8 are in the center of the stream. Sample site 7 is on the left bank and is our PURC1S sensor.
