published_or_final_version / Botany / Master / Master of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Civil and Structural Engineering / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

Completion Report / Contract No. 26-235-816-40-2-050-0735 / Arizona Department of Health Services / Bureau of Water Quality Control

Partial Technical Completion Report, Office of Water Resources Research, Project A-020-ARIZ / Grant Agreement No. 14-31-0001-3203 / Period of Investigation: 7/69-6/71 / Potential uses or reuses of salvageable waters in the Tucson region were examined, and costs and benefits related to such uses were evaluated. The quality of salvageable waters as determined in exploratory sampling was compared with water quality standards and criteria appropriate for agricultural, recreational and selected industrial uses. A tableau was then constructed which showed the type and estimated cost of conventional water treatment that would be required for each source-to-use combination. Finally, an estimate was made of unit net benefits to be anticipated from salvageable water input to these uses, and the net benefits were applied in several test calculations to illustrate mixed allocations of the various salvaged waters to the selected uses.

This paper is part of a larger water quality study for Arizona (Marrero-Ortiz et al., 2009) and looks more closely at 22 water samples from 16 wells less than 250 feet deep in rural areas of southern Cochise County, Arizona. Nine wells were positive for total coliforms, four wells tested positive for fecal coliforms and one well tested positive for Escherichia coli. Nine wells were positive for enterococci and 13 were positive for Aeromonas hydrophila, some with very high levels. Fourteen of 21 possible metals were detected. All 16 wells contained barium. Ten wells were above limits for at least one primary contaminant (e.g., uranium or coliforms). Nine of the wells exceeded safe limits for at least one secondary contaminant (e.g. aluminum or total dissolved solids). Also found were weak correlations between microbes and metals including enterococci and arsenic, and Aeromonas hydrophila and manganese and uranium.

In developing a water quality monitoring program, the sampling frequency chosen should be able to reliably detect changes in water quality trends. Three datasets are evaluated for Minimal Detectable Change in surface water quality to examine the loss of trend detectability as sampling frequency decreases for sites within the National Park Service's Sonoran Desert Network by re-sampling the records as quarterly and annual datasets and by superimposing step and linear trends over the natural data to estimate the time it takes the Seasonal Kendall Test to detect trends of a specific threshold. Wilcoxon Rank Sum analyses found that monthly and quarterly sampling consistently draw from the same distribution of trend detection times; however, annual sampling can take significantly longer. Therefore, even with a loss in power from reduced sampling, quarterly sampling of Park waters adequately detects trends (70%) compared to monthly whereas annual sampling is insufficient in trend detection (30%).

Water distribution system modeling can be used as a basis of planning and operation decisions. However, model accuracy and uncertainty will impact the model based decisions. Model prediction uncertainty results from uncertainty in model parameters that are determined through calibration or are based upon modeler judgment. The focus of this dissertation is the effect of uncertainties on water quality model estimates and calibration. The dissertation is centered around three journal articles and a technical note.In the first paper, the effect of parameter uncertainty on water quality in a distribution system under steady and unsteady conditions was analyzed by Monte Carlo simulation (MCS). Sources of uncertainties for water quality include decay coefficients, pipe diameter and roughness, and nodal spatial and temporal demands. The effect of individual parameter is discussed, as well as the combined effect of the parameters. It also describes the effect of flow patterns.A general calibration model is developed in the second paper for identifying wall decay coefficients. The problem is solved using the SFLA optimization algorithm that is coupled with hydraulic and water quality simulation models using the EPANET toolkit. The methodology is applied on two application networks. The study presents the effect of different field conditions such as the network with or without tanks, altering disinfectant injection policies, changing measurement locations, and varying the number of global wall decay coefficient on the estimated parameters. The numerical study also discusses whether the complexity of the system can be captured with fewer than the actual number of field parameters and if the number of the measurement locations is sufficient.The third paper conducts a study that considers a full calibration assessment for a water quality model in the distribution systems. The calibration process begins with estimating the the best fit wall decay coefficients. Next, the uncertainties involved with estimated parameters are calculated. Finally, the study assesses the model prediction uncertainties for critical demand conditions due to the parameter uncertainties. Various conditions are evaluated including the effects of different measurement errors and different measurement conditions on the uncertainty levels of estimated parameters as well as on the model predictions.Fourth paper presents study in which a booster disinfectant is introduced within a distribution system to maintain disinfectant residuals and avoid high dosages at water sources. Assuming that first order reaction kinetics apply to chlorine decay, an integer linear programming optimization problem is posed to booster locations and their injection rates. The formulation avoids long water quality simulations by adding constraints requiring the concentrations at the beginning and end of the design period to be the same. The optimization problem is divided into two levels. The upper level selects the booster locations using a genetic algorithm, if more than a few boosters are included, or enumeration, if the number of boosters and/or potential locations is relatively small. Given a set of boosters from the upper level, the lower level minimizes the chlorine mass to be injected to maintain required residuals. The approach is applied to the Brushy Plains system for alternative numbers of allowable boosters.

This study focuses on valuation of natural resources and particularly valuation of the quality of a natural resource. The aim is to value an improvement of water quality, measured as sight depth, in the bay Himmerfjärden in the Stockholm archipelago. It is desirable to attain a value of a one metre sight depth improvement in Himmerfjärden and to analyse how a sight depth improvement affects the demand for travelling to Himmerfjärden. A condtional logit model is applied to obtain these values from survey data. The benefits of a one metre sight depth improvement in Himmerfjärden, will yield 162 260-1 599 420 SEK per year, adjusted to the price level of 2007. The estimated value depends on how travel time is treated and whether a commute variable is included or not. Furthermore will a one per cent sight depth improvement in Himmerfjärden increase the demand for travelling to Himmerfjärden with approximately 0.13-0.18 trips on a given choice occasion. These results indicate that there are values attained to the quality of a natural resource.

South Africa is a semi arid country and the provision of water clean water to a steadily growing population is currently one of the major challenges facing governmental organisations. Water resources in South Africa are subject to many forms of pollution. resulting in eutrophication and salinisation. Hence, there is a need to monitor chemical and organic pollution in South African rivers. Chemical monitoring is expensive and not all the elements of water quality can be monitored and measured in a particular sample. The synergistic effects of water quality determinants cannot be demonstrated if only the chemical composition of a water resource is monitored. Biological monitoring can provide a rapid indication of water quality and at a lower cost than traditional monitoring. Organisms within a river are exposed to all water quality variables present in a system and can provide an integrated reflection of the health of their environment. Diatoms are found in all aquatic ecosystems and have demonstrable responses to many of the elements of water quality that have been identified as causing aquatic pollution. These elements include total dissolved solids, pH and plant nutrients such as nitrates and phosphates. The relationship between the structure of a given diatom community and the water quality to which the community is exposed, has lead to the development of several indices of water quality. Diatom indices of aquatic pollution have been developed in France, Belgium, Germany, Britain and Japan. Existing diatom indices have been tested for use in Finland, Poland, Britain, the Himalayas and South America. Several diatom indices were tested in this study for application in the Vaal and Wilge Rivers. The tested diatom indices correlated well with measured water quality variables such as pH and the chemical variables responsible for eutrophication and salinisation. The demonstrated correlations were comparable to those demonstrated by European authors. Several indices proved successful in indicating general water quality, namely the Biological Diatom lndex (BDI), the Specific Pollution sensitivity lndex (SPI) and the Generic Diatom lndex (GDI). The Eutrophication and Pollution lndex (EPI) successfully indicated levels of plant nutrients together with the ionic composition measured at various sites in the Vaal and Wilge Rivers. It is recommended that these indices be further tested in different regions within South Africa. / Thesis (M. Omgewingswetenskappe)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2004.

Little is known about the distribution of bacterial indicators and pathogens in biofilms on different surface types in natural aquatic environments. This study was conducted to examine the distribution of pathogens and indicator bacteria in biofilms in an agricultural watershed. The study particularly focused on whether biofilms can act as sinks for pathogenic organisms and could be monitored to protect public health. To do so, we monitored the presence of faecal contamination indicators (heterotrophic plate counts, faecal coliforms, enterococci, and E. coli) and particular pathogens (E. coli 0157, Campylobacter sp. and Salmonella sp.) in water, sediment, and in biofilms on river and slate rock, wood, sandpaper, and Lexan™ in Elk Creek (British Columbia, Canada) from December 2005 to April 2007. Faecal indicator concentrations and pathogen presence were evaluated using standard culturing and isolation methods. The results showed that both faecal indicators and pathogens were present at the headwaters and that the use of water column grab samples underestimated faecal indicator numbers. Also, water column grab samples during the dry season were not representative of pathogens present in the creek. This indicates that biofilms might be the main reservoir of Salmonella sp. and pathogenic E. coli O157 in the summer when rainfall (which results in flow changes and sloughing) is limited. Campylobacter sp. was not retrieved in the dry season. Campylobacter on sediment, slate rock and wood showed high correlations with nitrates and enterococci, which could be used as faecal contamination surrogates. Numbers of indicator organisms and pathogens in one-month biofilms were compared to those in long-term biofilms (colonized 12 and 24 weeks) and short-term biofilms (colonized one to three weeks). The comparison showed that surface type, colonization period and water quality all affected the concentration of indicator organisms and pathogens present in biofilms. Finally, results showed high levels of phenotypic antibiotic resistance of E. coli and pathogenic E. coli O157 isolated from the watershed (even at the headwaters), particularly to tetracycline, ampicillin and streptomycin. This study highlights the potential biofilms could play in prediction of water quality changes, the improvement of sampling methods, and the study of aquatic environments.