Booth Id:
EAEV020
Category:
Earth and Environmental Sciences
Year:
2020
Finalist Names:
Mitchell, Echo (School: Rural Special High School)
Abstract:
A recent proposal by the EPA, if passed, will take away the Clean Water Act’s protection of headwater streams. This will reduce protection on around 9 million of America’s stream miles. With millions of people around the world living without clean water, frequent monitoring of our water sources is vital. Since many headwater streams are tributaries to larger watersheds, they play a major role in the health of these water sources. Goldman Hollow Stream, where the study was conducted, is a tributary of the Red River. By studying Goldman Hollow a holistic view of the watershed can be provided. The 2017 study of Goldman Hollow Stream focused on the health of the stream based upon the macroinvertebrate community, water chemistry, and habitat. This study serves as a follow up that will show how the macroinvertebrate community, habitat and physicochemical variables have changed. This will also help show how the health of the stream has changed. Not only this, but this new study could be a platform for a later one regarding seasonal abundances of Macroinverteabrates. We tested for changes in the Macroinvertebrate community, water chemistry and habitat. The study showed that the Goldman Hollow Stream was in good health and that it had not majorly changed since the 2017 study.