Silverton Writeup
Silverton Writeup
Silverton Writeup
Task statement:
On October 12th, the entire Junior class went up to Silverton. Where we tested the turbidity, pH,
conductivity, streamflow, and temperature of three creeks; Cement Creek, Mineral Creek, and
the Upper Animas. My pod tested Cement Creek, I worked with Claire, Janey & Saige. Ari
worked with Sammy, Larrea, & Eli, and lastly, Megan worked with Lydia and Chloe. Our goal
was to gather enough data to where we could be able to predict what the pH, turbidity,
conductivity, streamflow, and temperature would be when all three creeks merged to form the
Animas river. Once we made our predictions we would then compare them to the data that the
USGS collected on that day, October 12th.
Introduction:
In this investigation we went to Silverton, Colorado, in order to test three creeks, Cement, Mineral, and
the Upper Animas, all tributaries to the Animas River. We tested the water quality of each by taking
precise measurements in order to find each of the following; conductivity (or the amount of positive and
negative ions) , pH (potential hydrogen/the number of free hydrogen molecules), turbidity (the cloudiness
of a fluid), temperature (the degree of the intensity of heat), and streamflow (cubic feet per second of
water). After collecting these results we compiled our data as a grade, making sure every groups data was
incorporated into the larger dataset. From there we used Standard Deviation, Mean, Median, Mode, Sum,
Minimum, Maximum, to look for trends in the data and to compare our data we collected to other data
collected by others. The end goal of this investigation, was to refine our dataset to the point in which it
can be used to accurately predict trends/make conclusions about the animas confluence. We hoped to
achieve the following during this investigation; Experience field data collection including pH,
conductivity, temperature, flow rate, dissolved oxygen and turbidity, describe how people interact with
their environment, particularly their water, and how these interactions impact water quality, treat hard-
rock mining in Silverton as a case study, describe how geology and ecology can impact water quality
treat sulfide minerals and the equations resulting in AMD as a case study describe the current water
quality in the Animas River headwaters and action steps which are being taken to improve water quality
after the Gold King Mine spill.
Visual Representation:
Once we had all of the results from our investigation, we then made a table that contained all of our
information in one place.
10/12/2017
AVERAGE of Turbidity MEDIAN of Turbidity MAX of Turbidity MIN of Turbidity STDEV of Turbidity
(NTU) (NTU) (NTU) (NTU) (NTU)
Cement
Creek -0.23 -2.7 16.3 -17 13.90836679
Mineral
Creek 13.70 10 31.1 0 15.87671251
Upper
Animas 13.05 0.78 34.4 -5 19.58502796
Grand
Total 7.497142857 0.78 34.4 -17 16.71921209
10/12/2017
10/12/2017
AVERAGE of Streamflow MEDIAN of Streamflow MAX of Streamflow MIN of Streamflow STDEV of Streamflow
(cfs) (cfs) (cfs) (cfs) (cfs)
Cement
Creek 28.94 26.11 34.91 25.80 5.172494563
Mineral
Creek 49.97 46 77.248 26.65 25.53108435
Upper
Animas 24.45 24.445 24.49 24.4 0.06363961031
Grand
Total 35.70 26.38 77.25 24.40 18.35438872
Methods/Process:
When we went up to silverton we had to test 5 things, pH, Turbidity, conductivity,
streamflow and temperature. We used a pH rod to test the pH, a turbidity sensor for turbidity,
conductivity rod for conductivity, a rod that worked as a temperature gage, and we used a ruler
and measuring tape for figuring out the streamflow of the creeks.
The point of the project was to predict what the 5 things would be when the three creeks
merge we had to make the predictions based on the data that was collected in the three creeks
and put into a google spreadsheet. Megan, Chloe, Claire and I all worked together to try and
figure out how we would make the predictions. We ended up finding the average of all the
temperatures from the data set to predict what the temperature would be when the three creeks
merged. To predict what the Streamflow was we added all the maxs in the data set and found
the average. To find the conductivity we got rid of all the outliers and we found the average.
Finally to predict the pH we did the same thing we did with conductivity, we got rid of all the
outliers and we found the average.
My group only got help from Claire and Chloe when we had to figure out the predictions,
we also got a few tips from Steve on the problems we encountered when comparing our data to
the USGS data website. The problem that we came across was called the ice conundrum. Other
than the ice conundrum we did not have any problems.
Importance:
It is important to find the pH, temperature, streamflow, conductivity and turbidity when working with
water quality because if a body of water that people frequently use, such as the Animas river, is
contaminated or toxic, and gets consumed, can be very dangerous and make people very sick. Testing the
pH in water tells you how acidic or basic the water is. If the water you test is lower than the pH of 7, then
the water is acidic, thus meaning it is toxic and can cause harm. Turbidity causes cloudiness or haziness to
the water, which makes testing turbidity a major factor in testing water quality because it is a good
indicator of the effectiveness in the filtration system. If turbidity is high it can make it harder on aquatic
life because the water is unsuitable for their living, due to the particles being suspended. Testing
streamflow is also an important factor because aquatic life depends on the flow of the stream. Rivers that
flow fast can receive pollution discharges and be little affected, while smaller streams have less capacity
to decrease and help get rid of wastes. Conductivity measures the waters capability to pass electricity,
which is related to the absorption of the ions in the water. Temperature effects the dissolved oxygen levels
within the water, which impacts the chemical and the biological components of the water.
Solutions/predictions:
Once we had all of our classes data collected, we all made predicted values for the water quality
parameters in the Animas River. Our group predicted that the temperature would be 7.02, the conductivity
would be 1,999.3, the stream flow would be 45.78 and the pH would be 5.55. We predicted the
temperature by finding the averages, for streamflow we added all the maxs to find the average and for
conductivity and the pH we used the x outliers average. Observing the student data, a trend that we
noticed was that the standard deviation was always less than the average in each creek. Comparing our
data to the USGS data, we predicted that the temperature was seven, which it was, but for the streamflow,
the USGS data said the streamflow was 103, while we had predicted it to 45.78. Since there was no data
for pH, conductivity, or turbidity in the USGS data, we had to look at the data over the weeks before we
went, to find what the parameters would be, so we could compare it to our predictions. We then had to
make calculations that helped find our predictions. We started off by finding the mean and used each
mean for the parameters which then would find the weighted averages. Our predictions werent very
accurate compared to the USGS data, because we found that when our data was being measured, it wasnt
as precise as theirs.
Evaluation:
Doing this experiment in Silverton, I think was worthwhile, because it provided us with
important information that is crucial to testing water quality. We learned how to use the instruments that
you need to test water quality, and also what they are used for. We were also able to learn why we need to
use those particular instruments to test the water, and the importance each test has. Conducting this
experiment was interesting in the fact that it is an actual body of water that can affect us, so we were able
to learn what it means if the pH is low and the turbidity is high, and how it can affect us.
Self-Assessment: I think my group should get at least an A- because we worked the best we
could and we communicated to the best of our abilities. In the beginning we all came to a
consensus on how we would split the work, and we helped each other out when we needed it.
Parts:
Megan: Visual representation, solutions/predictions, evaluation and importance
Ari: Introduction
Baylee: Task Statement, Methods/Process, Self Assessment