Grantee Research Project Results
2003 Progress Report: Tidal Creek Monitoring and Reporting Program
EPA Grant Number: R829322Title: Tidal Creek Monitoring and Reporting Program
Investigators: Cabiness, Laura , Vaughn, Tracy
Institution: City of Charleston , United States Geological Survey , South Carolinia Department of Natural Resources
Current Institution: City of Charleston
EPA Project Officer: Packard, Benjamin H
Project Period: October 1, 2001 through September 30, 2003
Project Period Covered by this Report: October 1, 2002 through September 30, 2003
Project Amount: $399,788
RFA: Environmental Monitoring for Public Access and Community Tracking (EMPACT) (2001) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Environmental Statistics , Water , Aquatic Ecosystems , Air , Ecological Indicators/Assessment/Restoration
Objective:
The objective of this research project is to assess the impacts of stormwater runoff on tidal creeks in the metropolitan area. The City of Charleston is collaborating with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR), and the South Carolina Aquarium on this project. Project investigators have monitored water quality and quantity in four representative tidal creeks following storm events, and are tracking nutrient loading data collected from atmospheric sources at a fifth site. An extensive public education is intended to direct students and the public at large to the Environmental Monitoring for Public Access and Community Tracking (EMPACT) Web Site, and to provide in- and out-of-classroom activities that incorporate and augment the project's sampling data and expand the usefulness of the results. Analyses are expected to demonstrate the environmental and health risks associated with stormwater runoff, and will be used to advise the public of certain activities they can employ to help minimize negative impacts. The goal is to reach the entire family by engaging children in the project, as well as to educate those children to be future stewards of the environment through wise personal and organizational practices.
Progress Summary:
Project investigators have monitored water quality and quantity over a 12-month period in four representative tidal creeks following storm events, and have tracked nutrient loading data collected from atmospheric sources at a fifth site. The real-time data has been incorporated into the City's EMPACT project Web Site since its Spring 2003 debut. The USGS monitored continuous water quality and collected stormwater samples during and following storm events at the headwaters of each watershed (USGS gauging station or USGS headwaters sites). SCDNR monitored water quality and collected stormwater samples at two sites downstream from the USGS headwater sites. The sites included one within the upper portion of each creek and one further downstream near the confluence with an open water body. Data collected continuously included gauge height, velocity, temperature, and specific conductivity. Additional data collected included dissolved oxygen, specific conductivity, salinity, temperature, pH, and depth. The results were graphed to compare the three sites within each system and were made available on the Web site. Preliminary findings revealed that fecal coliform concentrations always exceeded the state shellfish standards of 14 colonies/100 mL and 43 colonies/100 mL. All base-flow conditions (dry) for the headwaters, upper, and lower sites exceeded the state contact recreation fecal coliform standard, with the exception of the lower Shem Creek and Parrot Creek sites. The majority of the samples taken during rain events for fecal coliform exceeded the state contact recreation fecal coliform standard of 200 colonies/100mL.
Future Activities:
We will continue to post and update test results and analyses on the project Web site as this information becomes available. An informational, interactive placemat about the EMPACT project has been created by staff at the South Carolina Aquarium and will be distributed at several local restaurants in conjunction with the further implementation of educational programs in area schools during the winter and spring of 2004. Plans currently are underway to continue working with biology teachers who are referred to EMPACT investigators, and to present a standardized, hands-on lesson that will allow students to take actual water samples and compare their test results with data presented on the project Web site. An existing stormwater runoff educational package also is being considered for classroom use in 2004, with the addition of a survey component to assess student awareness before and after exposure to the program. The project's final report will be prepared during the summer of 2004, and will be presented to community officials and stakeholders in the early fall, in line with the program's conclusion date.
Journal Articles:
No journal articles submitted with this report: View all 3 publications for this projectSupplemental Keywords:
atmosphere, watersheds, marine, estuary, tidal creeks, chemical transport, risk assessment, health effects, ecological effects, cumulative effects, chemicals, nitrogen oxides, BOD, organics, metals, dissolved oxygen, bacteria, PCBs, PAHs, BNAs, pesticide, aquatic, habitat, indicators, remediation, waste minimization, public policy, conservation, biology, environmental chemistry, monitoring, satellite, southeast, Atlantic coast, South Carolina, SC, EPA Region 4., RFA, Scientific Discipline, Water, ECOSYSTEMS, Ecosystem Protection/Environmental Exposure & Risk, RESEARCH, Ground Water, Water & Watershed, Monitoring/Modeling, Civil/Environmental Engineering, Monitoring, Wet Weather Flows, Environmental Monitoring, Terrestrial Ecosystems, Ecological Risk Assessment, Ecology and Ecosystems, Urban and Regional Planning, Watersheds, aquatic ecosystem, EMPACT, remote sensing, atmospheric processes, hydrologic dynamics, Tidal Creek, nutrient transport, wetlands, community-based approach, streams, nutrients, downstream effects, runoff, sediment transport, stream ecosystems, community water quality information system, stormwater, community outreach, community tracking, nutrient monitoring , water quality, community partnerships, aquatic ecosystems, lake ecosysyems, ecological models, nutrient transport model, stormwater runoff, ecology assessment models, water management options, watershed assessment, land management, stream ecosystem, storm water, Storm Water Management Model, land useRelevant Websites:
http://www.charlestonempact.net Exit
Progress and Final Reports:
Original AbstractThe perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.