EPFinal+Summary

The work sight that we went to was the creek by mashamoquet pond. there once operated a cider mill, grist mill and wagon shop. The mill dam and pond went out during the flood of 1938. some of the current uses for mashamoquet is camping,hiking, picnicking, fishing, and swimming. The aria is very clean there is no litter every thing is clean and well kept there is not a lot of erosion along the river side

The wether the day we went was slightly overcast the average temperature was around 16 degrees Celsius. My role on the trim was conducting the experiment and gathering water.

Disolved okygen You need to describe the test here

This was an overall positive test, because we took water samples of the water and the disolved oxygen level came out to be a 9.2 and trout and salmon only need a 5 to live in the water. If the river at Mashmoquet was to be unhealthy than the river would be lower than 5, because the ecosystem for the river consists of trout, pumpkin seeds and other small creatures that dwell in the water .We had three different groups doing dissolved oxygen and out of the three groups the average dissolved oxygen readings came out to be around 9. Mashmoquets water quality turned out to be very healthy for the animals and plant life it is doing great.

Water hardness Try to put description in more of your own words

Hardness is a measure of the total concentration of calcium and magnesium ions, and, to a lesser extent, the salts of other minerals. Calcium and magnesium enter the. water via the action of carbonic acid. As water and carbon dioxide react, carbonic acid is produced and dissolves calcium and magnesium from carbonate rocks. Missing data, healthy environment, comparison to healthy environment Alkalinity:

two tests were conducted one with a PH level of 20.6ppm and one with a PH level of 40ppm. The alkalinity of fresh waters is typically between 20 and 200 mg/l. In CT, alkalinity values are generally well below 100 mg/l. The pH of water does not decline steadily with acid contamination. Buffering minerals moderate the decline to around PH  6.4. Below PH  5.5 very little buffering materials remain and the pH declines rapidly upon addition of acid. At about pH 4.5, the buffering capacity of the water is lost. A negative PH level would be either too low or too high. The levels found at Mashamoquet were border line for fresh water, meaning it is safe enough for aquatic animals. PH does not equal ppm

Nitrate:

take a sample of the water, hold for 48 hours until our next class. it had to take 5ml of the sample of water and put it into three different tubes. We had distilled water that we put into the colorimeter and had to push the "30 second read" button and adjust the "Set Blank" button to 100%. Pour 5Ml of water into a graduated Cylinder. Return it to the 'Reading tube'. Measure 5ml of Mixed Acid Reagent to the tube, mix and wait. Add .2g of Nitrate reducing reagent by filing the .1g spoon twice. Mix within a four period minute. Wait ten minutes. Insert the reading tube into the chamber and press the "30 second read button". Then read the percentage and change it to ppm with the chart given.For 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 temp of 250C is 1.24 mg/l.For an unhealthy result would be exceeding more than 10 mg/l. If Elevated this is caused by human contamination from fertilizers and sewage. The high levels of nitrates causes growth to aquatic plants and can be harmful to small mammals. The test results at Mashamoquet State Park was two that were done by our group, which was Ammonia and then the Nitrate test. Our results for the Ammonia test was 0.25 ppm for each of our three tries. Our 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. Mashamoquet, it is a little lower than it should be to be able to meet the standard of a healthy environment. The numbers for a healthy environment are usually less than 1.0 mg/l, which with our results for the Nitrate test works. It may be on the lower side for a healthy environment but at least it is in the range where it will not cause much harm.


 * <span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">pH: **

<span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">pH is a measure of the hydrogen ion concentration of water, which determines. Whether the water is acidic or "basic" (alkaline). It is measured using an electrical probe sensitive. to hydrogen ion activity. The pH scale ranges from 1 (very acidic) to 14 (very alkaline or "basic") and is logarithmic. Thus, a change of one pH unit represents a tenfold change in hydrogen ion concentration. For example, a pH of 6.0 has ten times the hydrogen ions of pH 7.0 and one. hundred times the hydrogen ions of pH 8.0. Because of this, it is inappropriate to calculate a mean. pH. Rather, a median pH should be expressed. The pH of 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. Industrial and community wastes, acid rain, bedrock type, and the biological processes of photosynthesis, respiration, and decomposition all influence pH levels. The pH of water is extremely important to aquatic life. Most aquatic species tolerate a limited pH range and most fish require a pH above 5.5 for growth and reproduction. If waters become too acidic, metals, such as aluminum and lead, can be leached from the surrounding soil and bottom sediments, contaminating fish and other aquatic organisms. pH was tested by using an indicator that showed a yellow color if the water was acidic or a blue color if it was basic.

<span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">Ammonia:

<span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">Ammonia-Nitrogen. Ammonia (NH3) is extremely soluble in water. When dissolved, it reacts to form ammonium (NH4+) and hydroxide (OH-) ions, as shown by the following reversible equation. Since NH4+ is relatively less toxic to aquatic organisms than NH3, toxicity is primarily attributed to the un-ionized form. Of all freshwater organisms, fishes are generally considered the most sensitive to ammonia toxicity. By decreasing the ability of hemoglobin to combine with oxygen, NH3 may cause fish to suffocate. Brief exposure of fishes to high concentrations of NH3 may lead to loss of equilibrium, hyperexcitability, increased breathing and cardiac output, and, in extreme cases, convulsions, coma, and death. Prolonged exposure to lower concentrations reduces hatching success, growth rate, and morphological development and may cause pathological changes in the tissues of gills, livers, and kidneys (CA State Water Resources Control Board 1963). The toxicity of ammonia is affected by several factors including pH, temperature, dissolved oxygen concentration, salinity, carbon dioxide concentration, previous acclimation to NH3, fluctuating or intermittent exposures, and other toxins. Some factors minimize or exacerbate the effects of NH3 itself, while others alter the concentration of NH3 by shifting the equilibrium. Of all factors affecting toxicity, temperature and pH are considered the most important. Increases in either variable are associated with increased concentrations of NH3 relative to NH4+. As NH3 becomes more abundant, the risk to aquatic organisms increases. Test results for ammonia are often expressed as ammonia-nitrogen (NH3-N), or "nitrogen that was in the form of ammonia." In unpolluted, well-oxygenated freshwaters NH3-N levels are usually less than 1.0 mg/l. In CT, the maximum acceptable concentration of NH3-N, assuming a pH of 7.0 and a temperature of 250C, is 1.24 mg/l. In especially sensitive areas, like salmon spawning grounds, the maximum limit is lower (0.86 mg/l). As either temperature or pH change, the amount of ammonia needed to produce the same toxic effects also changes. If temperature or pH decrease, more NH3 is needed and the maximum acceptable concentration increases. Conversely, if temperature or pH rise, less NH3 is needed and the maximum limit decreases. The criteria for NH3-N concentrations at various temperatures, given a constant pH, are presented in Appendix D of Water Quality Standards (CT DEP 1992). For a description of the chemical reactions occurring in tests for NH3-N, see the section entitled "Chemical Reactions." The ammonia test, like the ph test was done with an indicator. The darker the green, the more ammonia was present. 1mg/l = 1ppm

Missing environmental piece

<span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">The enviornment is well suided for aquatic plant and animal life everythin in the ecosystem seems quite balanced. Keeping the river clean and it and its suroundings clean is a great way to help the water stay clean. Killinglys pond is more balanced because it is well mantained by student and staff in the Ag department, as mashamoquet is not as maintained so the water fluctuates.