Abstract
Blackbird Creek, Delaware is a small watershed in northern Delaware that has a significant proportion of land designated for agricultural land use. The Blackbird Creek water monitoring program was initiated in 2012 to assess the condition of the watershed’s habitats using multiple measures of water quality. Habitats were identified based on percent adjacent agricultural land use. Study sites varying from five to fourteen were sampled biweekly during April and November, 2012-2015. Data were analyzed using principal component analysis and generalized linear modeling. Results from these first four years of data documented no significant differences in water quality parameters (dissolved oxygen, pH, temperature, salinity, inorganic nitrate, nitrite, ammonia, orthophosphate, alkalinity, and turbidity) between the two habitats, although both orthophosphate and turbidity were elevated beyond EPA-recommended values. There were statistically significant differences for all of the parameters between agriculture seasons. The lack of notable differences between habitats suggests that, while the watershed is generally impacted by agricultural land use practices, there appears to be no impact on the surface water chemistry. Because there were no differences between habitats, it was concluded that seasonal differences were likely due to basic seasonal variation and were not a function of agricultural land use practices.
Highlights
Over half of the United States population resides along the coastal and estuarine areas (Crossett et al, 2004), threatening local ecosystems due to changing land use and causing changes in soil and groundwater chemistry, watershed-level hydrology, and dissolved nutrients in waterways, in the form of nitrogen, and phosphorous species
Results from this study provide a baseline for characterizing similar dynamic watersheds throughout the midAtlantic region, which had previously been given little attention in water quality assessments
This study showed that water quality in Blackbird Creek is consistent throughout the watershed
Summary
Over half of the United States population resides along the coastal and estuarine areas (Crossett et al, 2004), threatening local ecosystems due to changing land use and causing changes in soil and groundwater chemistry, watershed-level hydrology, and dissolved nutrients in waterways, in the form of nitrogen, and phosphorous species. The United States has increased its use of commercial fertilizers from about 6.8 million metric tons in 1960 to roughly 20.0 million metric tons in 2011 in order to accommodate rapid population growth and need for increased food quantities, nearly a 3-fold increase (Nehrling, 2013). Water resources throughout the Mid-Atlantic coastline of the United States are facing constant and increasing threats from growing human population (Postel et al, 1996; Pimentel et al, 2004). Water resource management needs to be a priority as land use is modified to accommodate this population increase.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
