Monitoring the effects of highway construction over the Little River and Crane Creek.
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2005-09-08
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Edition:Final report; 7/1/03-6/30/05.
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Abstract:This report summarizes the results of a two-year water quality monitoring project to document the effects of
the construction of the Highway 1 bypass on the water quality of Crane (Crains) Creek and the Little River.
Automated monitoring equipment were installed upstream and downstream of the highway corridor on both Crane
Creek and the Little River. For Crane Creek, discharge was monitored and samples of creek water were collected on
a flow-proportional basis throughout the project, while for the Little River samples were collected every 6-8 hours
during the project. A recording raingage was also maintained for most of the study at Crane Creek and in-situ
measurements of temperature, dissolved oxygen, conductivity, and pH were made at least monthly.
The mean suspended sediment concentration and turbidity for Crane Creek was 48 mg/L and 40 ntu upstream
and 38 mg/L and 26 ntu downstream of the highway corridor. Statistical analysis of the bi-weekly sediment load
data from both sites showed that the loads at the upstream site were not significantly different than the downstream
site indicating that the construction had no effect on sediment loads of Crane Creek. The mean turbidity of samples
was greater upstream compared to downstream, which also indicates no negative effect of highway construction.
Means of temperature, dissolved oxygen, conductivity, and pH were nearly the same upstream and downstream
indicating no effect on these water quality parameters.
Monitoring results for the Little River were similar to Crane Creek in that there were no significant
differences between upstream and downstream sites according to paired t-tests conducted on the bi-weekly data. The
mean suspended sediment
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