Influence of Water Quality and Sediment Transport on Biological Recovery Downstream of Lime Doser Systems a Thesis Presented To

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Influence of Water Quality and Sediment Transport on Biological Recovery Downstream of Lime Doser Systems a Thesis Presented To Influence of Water Quality and Sediment Transport on Biological Recovery Downstream of Lime Doser Systems A thesis presented to the faculty of the Voinovich School of Leadership & Public Affairs In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Science Henry Bedu-Mensah August 2015 © 2015 Henry Bedu-Mensah. All Rights Reserved. 2 This thesis titled Influence of Water Quality and Sediment Transport on Biological Recovery Downstream of Lime Doser Systems by HENRY BEDU-MENSAH has been approved for the Program of Environmental Studies and the Voinovich School of Leadership & Public Affairs by Natalie Kruse Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies Mark Weinberg Director, Voinovich School of Leadership & Public Affairs 3 ABSTRACT BEDU-MENSAH, HENRY, M.S., August 2015, Environmental Studies Influence of Water Quality and Sediment Transport on Biological Recovery Downstream of Lime Doser Systems Director of Thesis: Natalie Kruse Lime doser treatment for acid mine drainage (AMD) is often used in areas with insufficient space for passive treatment systems and in rural areas where more complex treatment systems would be impractical. In this study, assessment of pH, conductivity, sulfate, iron, manganese and aluminum was conducted for 8-11 miles downstream of each doser. Grain size profile and trace metal concentration in stream sediments were also analyzed. Doser downstream reaches’ field parameters, water quality profile and sediment were analyzed with R application and compared to assess differences in biological recovery in the four watersheds. Results of the study showed that precipitation of dissolved metals, high alkalinity content, high average grain size of sediment downstream of the doser treatment led to better biological improvement. Model output of multivariate regression showed strong relationship between biological score and iron and alkalinity. The adjusted R2 was 0.47. The parameter linkage in the streams in the different watersheds shows that the influential factors are applicable to many different systems to enhance biological score improvement. 4 DEDICATION To Eva and Kweku Bedu-Mensah 5 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This thesis study was a very challenging undertaking and I am glad to have had the support of many people to see me through to its completion. I am deeply grateful to Dr. Natalie Kruse for believing in me and mentoring me all the way. I am at a loss of words in expressing my gratitude for the support I received from her. I am deeply appreciative of her patience and help at every single step in coming up with this paper. I wish to thank the committee members Dr. Dina Lopez, who not only granted me unconditional use of her laboratory but gave me great guidance all the way and Dr. Kelly Johnson, who set herself as an anchor in giving me immense help in constructing this study. I couldn’t have achieved this feat without the help of the watershed groups and their members. The Raccoon Creek watershed members Jen Bowman, Sarah Landers Amy Mackey, Rand Romas were very instrumental in the organization and tutorship leading to this study. They provided an overwhelming support all the way. My deepest gratitude goes to Tim Ferrell, Nate Schlater, Megan Ligett, Kelly Caris of Monday Creek Watershed group who never wavered but assisted me at every turn. My special thanks goes to Shannon Stewart, Michelle Benedum and Homer Elliot of Sunday Creek Watershed group who devoted their time and resources in helping me achieve this vision. To Jim Freeman of Leading Creek Watershed, I can never repay you for the warmth of your friendship and assistance you gave me. To MaryAnn Borch, Shaw Kabe and Jeff Calhoun there is an unforgettable place in my heart for the help you gave me. I will never be able to show my appreciation enough to Steve Porter and Dr. Ani Ruhil for their immense help in setting up this study. This study would have not been possible without 6 their help and I am forever indebted to them. To my colleague students who assisted in every way with sampling, I wish to especially thank Bruce Underwood, Sarah Shaw, Caleb Hawkins, Saruul Damdinbal, Godfrey Ogallo and Aaron Coons for going out of their way to support me. I am especially thankful to all mentioned and I hope that this study would be of immense help in stream restoration approaches in the southeastern Ohio. I know that this study would be the foundation of my future endeavors and to share with others. 7 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Abstract ............................................................................................................................... 3 Dedication ........................................................................................................................... 4 Acknowledgments............................................................................................................... 5 List of Tables ...................................................................................................................... 9 List of Figures ................................................................................................................... 10 Chapter 1: Introduction ..................................................................................................... 13 1.1 Objectives of Study ........................................................................................... 15 Chapter 2: Literature Review ............................................................................................ 16 2.1. Formation of AMD ........................................................................................... 16 2.1.1. Pyritic Sulfur Oxidation and Conversion of Ferrous Iron to Ferric Iron. 17 2.1.2. Hydrolysis of Ferric Iron and Further Oxidation of Pyrite by Ferric Iron. 17 2.2. Fate of Dissolved Metals in AMD .................................................................... 18 2.3. Neutralization of AMD ..................................................................................... 19 2.4. Impacts of AMD ............................................................................................... 20 2.5 Remediation of Acid Mine Drainage ................................................................ 21 2.6. Lime Doser Remediation and Biological Recovery ......................................... 24 2.7. Study Sites ........................................................................................................ 28 2.7.1. Hewett Fork .............................................................................................. 31 2.7.2. Upper Mainstem Monday Creek ............................................................... 34 2.7.3. Thomas Fork ............................................................................................. 37 2.7.4. West Branch Sunday Creek. ..................................................................... 40 Chapter 3: Methods and Procedure ................................................................................... 43 3.1. Procedure .......................................................................................................... 43 3.2. Field Parameters Sampling and Flow ............................................................... 46 3.2.1. Total Suspended Solids .............................................................................. 46 3.2.2. Flow Measurement .................................................................................... 47 3.3. Water Quality Sampling ................................................................................... 47 3.4. Alkalinity – Acidity Budget .............................................................................. 48 8 3.4.1. Alkalinity Titrations .................................................................................. 48 3.4.2. Acidity titrations ....................................................................................... 48 3.5. Sediment Sampling and Grain Size Profiling ................................................... 49 3.5.1. Sediment Sampling ................................................................................... 49 3.5.2. Grain Size Profiling .................................................................................. 49 3.5.3. Sediment Digestion and Metal Concentration Analysis ........................... 50 3.6. Biological Index Analysis ................................................................................. 50 3.6.1. Macroinvertebrate Aggregated Index for Streams .................................... 51 3.7. Statistical Analysis ............................................................................................ 51 Chapter 4: Results ............................................................................................................. 52 4.1. Field Parameters ............................................................................................... 52 4.1.1. pH Profile .................................................................................................. 52 4.1.2. Conductivity Profile .................................................................................. 56 4.1.3. Metal Profile ............................................................................................. 60 4.1.4. Alkalinity-Acidity Budget and Sulfate. .................................................... 66 4.1.5 Biological Scores 2013 and 2014 ............................................................. 73 4.2. Linear Regression Modelling of 2013-2014 Data ...........................................
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