H.E.+Individual+Summary+Report


 * Summary Report**

A description of the location site is: Mashamoquet Brook, State Park, 147 Wolf Den Drive, Pomfret Center, CT 06259. The historical uses of Mashamoquet are: that near the Den are the Table Rock and Indian Chair natural stone formations. The Indian Chair is a wide seat-shaped ledge. In the section that is now the entrance to Mashamoquet Brook State Park, there once operated a cider mill, grist mill and wagon shop. The mill dam and pond went out during the flood of 1938. Now only the grist mill is still in existence. It is maintained as a museum by the Pomfret Historical Society. The mill is open on a regular basis and staffed by members of the Historical Society who provide interpretation for all interested visitors. The current day uses of Mashamoquet are: the two camping areas which are available. The Mashamoquet Brook Campground has 20 wooded sites. Wolf Den Campground offers 35 campsites. The campgrounds are open from mid-April through Columbus Day. Campgrounds at Mashamoquet Brook State Park can also be reserved for Youth Group Camping. A description of the physical site is: the site was litter free, there was no trash on the ground or in the water. The water to me did not have an odor. A description of the surroundings would be that there was a lot of grass with benches and trash cans, along with a bathroom on the same side. After the grass there was the water which curved and was winding throughout the park which made a border for the trees causing it to look like the trees were surrounding the water.
 * Description of the Physical Environment/Background Information**

A description of the weather during the data collection was: it was not warm but rather chilly with a slight breeze. There was no sun but rather lots of clouds, and during the beginning of the trip it rained for a little bit. The average temperature of the water was: 16 degrees. My role during the field trip was: I did not collect the water but rather did the Ammonia test along with the Nitrate test once we were back in class.
 * Data Collection Conditions**

The dissolved oxygen test was: Remove the cap and immerse the DO bottle beneath the river's surface. Allow the water to flow. (This will ensure the elimination of air bubbles.) Make sure no air bubbles are present when you take the bottle from the river. Add 8 drops of Manganous Sulfate Solution and 8 drops of Alkaline Potassium Iodide Azide. Cap the bottle, making sure no air is trapped inside, and invert repeatedly to fully mix. Be very careful not to splash the chemical-laden water. Wash your hands if you contact this water. The first two reagents "fix" the available oxygen. Allow the sample to stand until the precipitate settles halfway. When the top half of the sample turns clear, shake again, and wait for the same changes. Add 1 gram of Sulfuric Acid Powder. Cap and invert repeatedly until the reagent and the precipitate have dissolved. A clear yellow to brown-orange color will develop depending on the oxygen content of the sample. Fill the titration tube to the 20 ml line with the "fixed" sample and cap. Fill the Direct Reading Titrator with Sodium Thiosulfate Solution. Insert the Titrator into the center hole of the titration tube cap. While gently swirling the tube, slowly press the plunger to titrate until the yellow-brown color is reduced to a very faint yellow. Remove the cap and Titrator. Be careful not to disturb the Titrator plunger. Add 8 drops of Starch Indicator Solution. The sample should turn blue. Replace the cap and Titrator. Continue titrating until the sample changes from blue to a colorless solution. Read the test result where the plunger tip meets the scale. Record as mg/L (ppm) dissolved oxygen. Each minor division on the Titrator scale equals 0.2 mg/L (0.2 ppm). A test result for a healthy environment is: Dissolved Oxygen’s presence in water is a positive sign, but low levels are a sign of severe pollution. Water with consistently high levels of dissolved oxygen are considered healthy and capable of supporting many different kinds of aquatic organisms. In order for a body of water to sustain warm water fish like bluegill, bass, and pike, the dissolved oxygen level must be at least 4 milligrams per liter (mg/L). 4 – 10 mg/L is good. More than 10 mg/L is excellent. The test results for Mashamoqut was: An overall positive test, because when the group took water samples of the water the DO level came out to be a 9.2 mg/L and trout and salmon only need a 5 mg/L to live in the water. There were three different groups doing dissolved oxygen and out of the three groups the average dissolved oxygen readings came out to be around 9 mg/L. The comparison of the Mashamoquet test to a healthy environment was: Mashmoquets water quality turned out to be very healthy. If the river at Mashmoquet was to be unhealthy than the river would be lower than 5 mg/L, because the ecosystem for the river consists of trout pumpkin seeds, and other small creatures.
 * Dissolved Oxygen**


 * Water Hardness**

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The water hardness test was: Fill the Titration Tube with your water sample up to the 12.9ml line. Put five drops of hardness Reagent 5 into your water sample. Now drop in one hardness reagent 6 tablet. Put the cap back on and shake it until the tablet disintegrates. It should turn red. Use your Hardness reagent 7 to fill the direct reading titrator. Put the titrator in the hole in the center of the cap on the titration tube. Press on the plunger to add in the Hardness Reagent 7. Inject it in small amounts as you swirl the titration tube. Keep making injections until the water turns blue. Read the test result where the tip of the black plunger meets the titrator scale. Each minor division on the titrator scale equals 4 mg/L (ppm). Next, is the procedure fo the Calcium Hardness. Fill the titration tube to the 12.9 ml line with the sample water. Add 6 drops of Sodium Hydroxide w/Metal Inhibitor. Cap and swirl to mix. Add one Calcium Hardness Indicator Tablet. Cap and swirl until tablet disintegrates. The solution will turn purple. Fill the Direct Reading Titrator with Hardness Reagent 7. Insert the Titrator into the center hole of the test tube cap. While gently swirling the tube, slowly press the plunger to titrate until the red color changes to blue. Read the test result where the plunger meets the Titrator scale. Subtract Calcium Hardness from Total Hardness. Record as ppm Magnesium Hardness as mg/L CaCO3. Magnesium Hardness (ppm CaCO3) = Mean Total Hardness- Calcium Hardness.====== The test result for a healthy environment was: A healthy water hardness test would be 121 to 180 = hard. The test result for Mashamoquet was: When the water was tested in mashamoquest the group got a total hardness of 40, witch is a soft result. The comparison of the Mashamoquet test to a healthy environment was: Soft water can be detrimental to aquatic organisms, especially fish. Heavy metals like mercury and lead, as well as nonmetals like ammonia, are more toxic in soft waters than in hard waters. The water hardness level that was taken in Mashamoquest was a really unhealthy level for the fish. A healthy level for the fish would be the hard level, which is the 121 to 180.

The test for alkalinity was: Fill the titration tube to the 5 mL line with sample water. Add one Phenolphthalein tablet. Cap and shake. If no red color develops, P alkalinity is zero. Fill Direct Reading Titrator with Alkalinity Reagent B. Insert Titrator in center hole of test tube cap. While gently swirling tube, slowly depress plunger until red color disappears. Record test result where the plunger tip meets the titrator scale. Next, is the procedure for the total alkalinity. Fill the titration tube to the 5 mL with sample water. Add one BCG-MR tablet. Cap and shake until the tablet disintegrates. The solution will turn green-blue. Fill the direct reading titrator with Alkalinity Reagent B. Insert Titrator into the center hole of test tube cap. While gently swirling the tube, slowly depress the plunger until the blue-green color changes to pink. Lastly, record the results. Carbonate Alkalinity is present when Phenolphthalein is not zero but is less than the Total Alkalinity. Hydroxide Alkalinity is present if Phenolphthalein Alkalinity is more than one-half the Total Alkalinity. Bicarbonate Alkalinity is present if Phenolphthalein Alkalinity is less than one-half the Total Alkalinity. The test result for a healthy environment was: The alkalinity of fresh waters is typically between 20 and 200 mg/L. The test result for Mashamoquet was: Three tests were conducted, all of which had a stable 20.6 ppm. Then another two tests were conducted, one with a level of 20.6 ppm and one with a level of 40 ppm. The comparison of the Mashamoquet test to a healthy environment was: The levels found at Mashamoquet were border line for fresh water, which means that it is safe enough for the aquatic animals.
 * Alkalinity**

The test for nitrate was: Carefully wipe the tubes dry before inserting into the colorimeter chamber. Fill the water sample collecting bottle with sample water. This will be used to dispense sample water for the tests. Remove the tube from the colorimeter and pour off 5 mL into the graduated cylinder. Discard the remaining sample. Use the graduated cylinder to measure 5 mL of Mixed Acid Reagent and add it to the tube. Cap and mix. Wait approximately 2 minutes before moving on. Use the 0.1 g spoon to add two measures of Nitrate Reducing Reagent. Put the cap back on. Holding the tube by your index finger and thumb, mix by inverting approximately 50-60 times for a period of 4 minutes.Then let the tubes stand for 10 minutes for maximum color development. At the end of waiting period, an undissolved portion of the Nitrate Reducing Reagent may remain in bottom of the tube without affecting the results. Lastly, record results as ppm Nitrate Nitrogen. The test for a healthy environment was: A healthy result in an unpolluted area, the levels are usually less than 1.0 mg/L. Acceptable concentrate in CT with a pH pf 7.0 and temperature of 250C is 1.24 mg/L. The test results for Mashamoquet was: The results for the Nitrate test was 0.40 ppm for the first try, 0.34 ppm for the second try, and 0.38 ppm for the last try. The comparison of the Mashamoquet test to a healthy environment was: The numbers for a healthy environment are usually less than 1.0 mg/L, which with the Nitrate groups results from the Nitrate test works.
 * Nitrate**

The test for ammonia was: Fill a test tube to the 5 mL line with sample water. Add 4 drops of Ammonia Nitrogen 1. Cap and mix. Then, add 8 drops of Ammonia Nitrogen 2. Cap and mix. Match the sample color to a color standard on the white strip given. Record as ppm Ammonia Nitrogen. The test result for a healthy environment was: NH3-N levels are usually less than 1.0 mg/L. But, in especially sensitive areas, like salmon spawning grounds, the maximum limit is lower (0.86 mg/L). The test result for Mashamoquet was: The results were 0.25 ppm for the first try, 0.25 ppm for the second try, and 0.25 ppm for the last try. The comparison of the Mashamoquet test to a healthy environment was: The ideal and normal measurement of Ammonia is zero. If fish though were expected to tolerate an Ammonia level of 1 ppm saying that the pH was 7.0, or even as high as 10 ppm if the pH was at 6.0. At a pH of 8.0, just 0.1 ppm could be dangerous to the fish.
 * Ammonia**

The test for pH was: ﻿T o calculate pH, the higher the number, the more basic the solution. The strongest acids have numbers closer to zero. Acidic solutions have a greater concentration of hydrogen ions, and basic solutions have a higher concentration of hydroxide ions. For example, to calculate the concentration of hydrogen ions divide the molecules of hydrogen ions by the volume, in liters, of the solution. Take the negative log of this number. The result should be between zero and 14, and this is the pH. So, if the hydrogen concentration is 0.01, the negative log is 2, or the pH. The stronger the acid, the more corrosive the solution. The test result for a healthy environment was: The pH of the most natural waters ranges from 6.5 to 8.5. Deviation from the neutral 7.0 is largely the result of the interaction between acids and bases. Most aquatic species though tolerate a limited pH range and most fish require a pH above 5.5 for growth and reproduction. The test result for Mashamoquet was: The results were 6.6 pH for the first try, 6.6 pH for the second try, 6.8 pH for the third try, and 6.9 pH for the last try. The comparison of the Mashamoquet test to a healthy environment was: Since all four results were in the 6.0 pH range this for Mashamoquet was healthy because a healthy pH number is 7.0 for a community of fish.
 * pH**

The biological factors that might influence the water quality are: The Coliform bacteria that is present in the intestines of people and animals and, while not harmful itself, can signal the presence in the water of other more harmful bacteria found in the fecal matter. How this might impact aquatic life at Mashamoquet is: It’s mostly due to its location, it gets a lot of runoff during heavy rain events. The bacteria problem could be in the groundwater or in the above-ground runoff or more likely, some combination of the two. In an unnamed stream that flows into Mashamoquet Brook near the main entrance to the park, bacteria levels spiked right after rainstorms, leading people to blame runoff, likely from a farm or from the owner of a large animal who didn’t cover it's waste. The likely source of high bacteria levels in the brook, which is among several feeding Mashamoquet Brook, is faulty septic systems leaking into the groundwater. This can affect the aquatic life because of the bacteria that is coming from these sources which can cause an even bigger problem when it comes in to contact with the water and the fish.
 * Environmental Impact**

Healthy environment: Overall, after reading all of the other tests, it has come to my attention that yes this is a fairly healthy environment. The dissolved oxygen test came out to be very healthy, the alkalinity test came out to be safe enough for the aquatic animals, the nitrate test came out to be on the lower side of a healthy environment but would not cause much harm in the future, the ammonia test came out to be closer to the zero mark because all three tests were 0.25 ppm, which is low but healthy, and the pH test was also very healthy because all four results came out to the 6.0 pH range and the healthy pH number is 7.0. The only test that came out to be unhealthy for aquatic life was the water hardness since the result came out to 40 which means that the water is soft. Keeping Mashamoquet clean: To do this we can make sure that if we have a large animal to pick up the waste after them, along with making sure that our septic systems are not faulty. Compared to the pond at Killingly High School: In my opinion I would have to say that after testing Mashamoquet's water with 6 different tests I would say that Mashamoquet is more healthy than the pond at Killingly High School. I would say this because whenever we would go to the pond outside of the school it did not, to me, look very clean but rather with lots of leaves and things on top of the water, while at Mashamoquet the water had nothing on top of it and it looked like it was a healthy flowing river. At a first glance you would think that Mashamoquet was not healthy but if you take the time to dig deeper into doing these chemical tests you would be surprised at the results that you could get.
 * Conclusion/Summary**


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