Water Resource Management Commons^™

Groundwater In The Inner Bluegrass Karst Region, Kentucky, John Thrailkill, Lawrence E. Spangler, William M. Hopper Jr., Michael R. Mccann, Joseph W. Troester, Douglas R. Gouzie

KWRRI Research Reports

The hydrogeology of about 12% of the 5600 km² Inner Bluegrass Karst Region of central Kentucky was investigated by water tracing and other techniques. Using fluorescent dyes adsorbed on fabric and charcoal detectors, 96 traces (average length 2.7 km, maximum length 15 km) resulted in the identification of 38 groundwater basins (with areas up to 15 km²). Within the basins, subsurface flow is in a dendritic conduit system at depths up to 30 m below the surface, while in the interbasin areas which separate them flow is generally less than 5 m deep. Each groundwater basin discharges …

Some Variations In Distribution Of Fishes In Large Mainstream Reservoirs Associated With Artificial Cover, Donald W. Johnson, Elizabeth M. Choinski

KWRRI Research Reports

The influence of artificial cover (brush piles) on fish populations in Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley was studied. Mature and larval fishes were collected from deep and shallow sites with and without cover in a bay of each lake. Highest densities of mature crappie, bass, and sauger were found adjacent to deep attractors, while larval crappie and minnows were most concentrated at shallow brush piles. Shad (both adult and larvae) were not congregated at attractor sites. Information gathered supports the continuation of artificial cover installation and water level management procedures which will provide high and stable levels through spring spawning …

The Aquatic Toxicity Of Organic Compounds To Embryo-Larval Stages Of Fish And Amphibians, Jeffrey A. Black, Wesley J. Birge, Willaim E. Mcdonnell, Albert G. Westerman, Barbara A. Ramey, Donald M. Bruser

KWRRI Research Reports

Aquatic toxicity tests were conducted on 11 organic compounds considered hazardous to water resources. The toxicity of each compound was evaluated using embryo-larval stages of two to eight fish and amphibian species. Exposure was initiated at fertilization and maintained through 4 days posthatching. The animal test species exhibited varying degrees of sensitivity to the selected toxicants. Combined frequencies for mortality and teratogenesis at 4 days posthatching gave LC₅₀ ranges of 3.66 to 8.25 mg/L for benzene, 1.16 to 22.42 mg/L for carbon tetrachloride, 0.11 to 1.20 mg/L for chlorobenzene, 2.03 to > 68 mg/L for chloroform, 3.01 to 5.56 mg/L …

Sunlight Induced Movement Of Planktonic Organisms And Their Relationships To Water Movements, John Calkins, Ed Colley, Jay Wallingford, Carol Hulsey, Kathy Lohr, Marc Bolling

KWRRI Research Reports

Previous studies have shown the planktonic organisms of various natural water bodies to be quite sensitive to the levels of solar ultraviolet radiation incident at the water surface in summer. It has been assumed that the majority of the phytoplankton are simply carried about in the mass of the water which they inhabit with little control of their position or sunlight exposure. Photosynthetic microorganisms must strike a delicate balance with regard to solar radiation; they must obtain enough visible light for adequate photosynthesis while avoiding an excessive exposure to the injurious solar UV-B radiation.

It is proposed that the circulation …

Classification And Management Of Wetlands In The Western Kentucky Coal Field, William J. Mitsch, Robert W. Bosserman, Paul L. Hill Jr., Jan R. Taylor

KWRRI Research Reports

This is the first research report of a three-year project on wetland identification and management criteria in the western Kentucky coal field. The region is approximately 12,000 square kilometers and, due to its slight relief, contains many wetlands, some contiguous with surface coal mining operations. The overall objectives of the research project are 1) to identify, classify, and map wetlands in the western Kentucky coal field; 2) to evaluate the major biotic and abiotic factors that affect those wetlands; and 3) to develop strategies for the proper management of those wetlands.

The first report of this three-year project has involved …

A Multiobjective Branch-And-Bound Method For Planning Wastewater And Residual Management Systems, Masahisa Nakamura, Suraj M. Alexander, James M. Riley, Robert Simon, Susan Meyer, Kenneth F. Bloemer

KWRRI Research Reports

A multiobjective branch-and-bound algorithm is proposed for use in analysing multiobjective fixed-charge network-flow problems which are found commonly in water resources planning situations. Also proposed is a multiobjective imputed value analysis which makes use of the branch-and-bound tree structure and allows the comparison of the importance of facilities in the network as represented by individual arcs or sets of arcs. The mathematical formulation and the analysis procedure of the method are described, and the potential usefulness of the method is demonstrated using two hypothetical example problems dealing with regional wastewater treatment and residual management systems. A FORTRAN program for implementing …

Low Pressure Membrane Separation Process To Remove Heavy Metal Complexes, Dibakar Bhattacharyya, Chin-Shun Cheng

KWRRI Research Reports

The overall objective of this investigation is to establish the rejection behavior of heavy metals in the presence of complexing agents, utilizing negatively charged ultrafiltration membranes. An extensive experimental investigation is conducted with Zn²⁺, Cd²⁺, Cu²⁺, and Cu¹⁺ in the presence of cyanide, ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid, and oxalates, under insignificant concentration polarization condition. The rejection dependence of the heavy metals is found to be a function of feed metal concentration, metal types, complexing agent to metal feed molar ratio, pH and ionic strength. The dependence of rejection behavior of heavy metals and complexing …

Modeling Soil Water Contents And Their Effects On Stream Flow In Kentucky, Grant W. Thomas, Ronald E. Phillips, David E. Radcliffe, Scott Shepard

KWRRI Research Reports

Soil water contents of eight important soil series in Kentucky were measured periodically during the summer growing season for four years, 1977 through 1980. The soils divided into three groups according to their behavior. The first group (Maury and Crider) is well-drained and never showed excess water above field capacity at any time during the four seasons. The second group (Zanesville, Lowell, Calloway, Grenada and Shelbyville) showed perched water tables at times, especially during the early part of the growing season. The third group was represented by the Huntington soil which has a permanent water table.

The in-situ field capacity …

Algorithms For Pipe Network Analysis And Their Reliability, Don J. Wood

KWRRI Research Reports

Algorithms for analyzing steady state flow conditions in pipe networks are developed for general applications. The algorithms are based on both loop equations expressed in terms of unknown flowrates and node equations expressed in terms of unknown grades. Five methods, which represent those in significant use today, are presented. An example pipe network is analyzed to illustrate the application of the various algorithms. The various assumptions required for the different methods are presented and the methods are compared within a common framework.

The reliabilities of these commonly employed algorithms for pipe network analysis are investigated by analyzing a large number …

Mathematical Model For Water Quality In Streams Impacted By Point And Nonpoint Source Pollution, Michael E. Meadows

KWRRI Research Reports

Modeling the impacts of stormwater runoff on small streams, requires that the prediction model has the capability of simulating the behavior of the hydrologic and water quality components of the stream system. Development of such a model involves coupling the equations for pollutant transport during unsteady flow with the appropriate flood routing equations. The decision on which equations to choose requires a full understanding of the pollutant transport and hydrograph dispersion processes.

This research was undertaken to develop a rigorous theoretical evaluation of the pollutant transport and hydrograph dispersion processes during unsteady flow, and to recommend a suitable model for …

Simulating The Water Requirements And Economic Feasibility Of Corn In The Midwest, Wendi L. Palmer, B. J. Barfield, M. E. Bitzer, C. T. Haan

KWRRI Research Reports

An evaluation of the economics of supplemental irrigation when using a surface water supply must be site specific in order to account for variations in soil moisture holding capacity, watershed area supplying the runoff, climatic conditions, and proposed irrigation management procedures.

With the use of farm specific simulation models to determine grain yields, availability of irrigation water, and economic expenditures involved in irrigation, an economic evaluation of supplemental irrigation can be performed, In the model presented in this report, the Duncan SIMAIZ model is used to predict grain yields using long-term daily weather information. SIMAIZ also determines irrigation water demand …

An Avoidance Response Bioassay For Aquatic Pollutants, Jeffrey A. Black, Wesley J. Birge

KWRRI Research Reports

Avoidance response bioassays were conducted with eight aquatic contaminants, including cadmium, copper, mercury, zinc, chloroform, dioctyl phthalate (DOP), trisodium nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA), and phenol. Tests were performed in a dual-channel fluviarium system, and the toxicant injection procedure used provided good regulation of exposure concentrations. Juvenile stages of largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides), bluegill sunfish (Lepomis macrochirus), and rainbow trout (Salmo gairdneri), and tadpoles of the American toad (Bufo americanus) proved to be suitable animals for evaluating avoidance or attraction responses. The trout was the most sensitive species tested.

Avoidance was significant in tests …

An Environmental Study Of The Origin, Distribution, And Bioaccumulation Of Selenium In Kentucky And Barkley Lakes, B. E. Mcclellan, Kenneth J. Frazer

KWRRI Research Reports

Many samples of water, bottom sediment, and fish were analyzed for toxic metal ion content. The samples were collected from several selected sites along Kentucky and Barkley Lakes as well as the Cumberland River and several sub-impoundments along these aquatic systems. Emphasis was placed on selenium, although several other metal ions were determined. The results showed that there are no serious pollution problems with As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Pb, Se, Sr, Zn, or Zr at any of the sites examined. Actually, none of the trace metals examined even come close to the EPA limits on fish, with the exception …

Charged Membrane, Low Pressure Ultrafiltration To Treat Acid Mine Drainage Waters, Dibakar Bhattacharyya, Robert B. Grieves, Shiela Shelton

KWRRI Research Reports

Low-pressure ultrafiltration with negatively-charged, non-cellulosic membranes is shown to be a feasible process in terms of achieving the simultaneous separation of dissolved metals (and sulfate) and of suspended solids from acid mine drainage water. The process is evaluated in terms of the simultaneous achievement of good water flux without membrane fouling and of adequate ultrafiltrate quality at high water recovery for water reuse operation.

At a transmembrane pressure of 5.6 x 10⁵ N/m², water fluxes in the range of 5.8 x 10^-4 cm/sec to 12.5 x 10^-4 cm/sec could be obtained at 97% water recovery. …

Emission Of Microbial Aerosols From Polluted Waters In Densely Populated Regions, Lois S. Cronholm

KWRRI Research Reports

The air surrounding three activated sludge tanks was sampled over a two year period for the emission of bacterial aerosols under a variety of climatic conditions and at varying distances upwind and downwind of the aerated tanks. All plants emitted species of enteric bacteria which are significant as index organisms and as frank pathogens. The emission pattern of these bacteria were influenced by distance from the plant and wind direction. Within the parameters of a plant, defined arbitrarily in this study by sampling sites less than 150 m upwind and less than 900 m downwind, distance from the source was …

Development Of A New Technique For The Analysis Of Pesticides In Water, Prasad K. Kadaba, Pramode K. Bhagat, Radko Osredkar, V. R. K. Murthy

KWRRI Research Reports

A Nuclear Double Resonance Spectrograph has been designed and constructed with emphasis on quadrupolar nuclei of half-integral spins. The use of a data acquisition and processing system featuring the A/D converter, signal averager with built in fast Fourier transformation hardware greatly improves the S/N ratio. The spectrograph has been used to detect certain organochlorine, carbamate and symmetrical triazine pesticides. Concentration levels that can be detected range from 15 to 100 micrograms per liter. Since the measurements are done below ice temperatures, heat-labile compounds can be detected without conversion to more suitable derivatives as in gas chromatography. Fats and oils in …

Influence Of Nitrogen Fertilization On The Quality And Quantity Of Streamflow From A Forested Watershed, George B. Coltharp, Michael T. Shearer, Everett P. Springer, Robert F. Wittwer

KWRRI Research Reports

This project was designed to determine the effects of nitrogen fertilization on the quality and quantity of streamflow eminating from an eastern hardwood forest watershed. A 40.67 ha watershed, located in mountainous eastern Kentucky, was aerially fertilized in late April 1975. The forest stand was principally oak, hickory, and yellow poplar, 50 - 55 years of age and in a relatively undisturbed condition. A helicopter applied anunonium nitrate at a rate of 504 kg/ha. Because a large part of applied nitrogen fertilizer ends up in the highly mobile nitrate nitrogen.form, this is the principal ion monitored in this study. No …

A Proposed Revision Of Kentucky's Water Rights Legislation, Richard Ausness

KWRRI Research Reports

Kentucky's present system of water law consists of a statutory water withdrawal permit system superimposed upon a body of common-law water rights doctrine. The rights of water users are often uncertain under this system, particularly in periods of water shortage. The proposed revision of Kentucky's existing water rights legislation, would greatly reduce the significance of common-law water rights and would remedy some of the weaknesses in the present statute.

Part 1 of the proposed statute establishes an administrative structure; Part 2 deals with water withdrawal permits; Part 3 retains the present statute's provisions on the regulation of dams and impoundments, …

Effects Of Soil Injection Of Liquid Dairy Manure On The Quality Of Surface Runoff, I. J. Ross, S. Sizemore, J. P. Bowden, C. T. Haan

KWRRI Research Reports

Liquid dairy manure has been injected on the soil contour to depths of 6 and 12 inches and applied to the surface of a Bluegrass sod and a bare tilled soil. Application rates of 9,250 gallons per acre were used. Runoff from 9-foot-square plots which were sprinkled at rates of 2.5 inches per hour on sod and 1.5 inches per hour on bare soil was collected and analyzed for various pollution parameters including COD, N, TS, TSS, pH, DO, and Fecal Coliform. The effects of pollutant yield in the runoff have been determined for various treatments.

Injection of the manure …

Evaluation Of Detention Basins For Controlling Urban Runoff And Sedimentation, C. T. Haan, A. D. Ward

KWRRI Research Reports

This report summarizes the work completed under the research project "Evaluation of Dentention Basins for Controlling Urban Runoff and Sedimentation." The main project accomplishments were:

(1) a demonstration of the desirability of considering systems of urban stormwater detention basins as opposed to individual basin design,

(2) the development of a systems analysis approach for least cost selection of a system of dentention basins for meeting a preset hydrologic objective,

(3) the development of a mathematical, computer-based simulation model of the performance of sediment retention basins,

(4) partial verification of the sediment basin model and

(5) the development of design recommendations …

Organized Resistance To An Imposed Environmental Change: A Resevoir In Eastern Kentucky, William F. Schweri Ii, John Van Willigen

KWRRI Research Reports

This is a case study of a group organized to resist the construction of an Army Corps of Engineers reservoir project located in Eastern Kentucky, More specifically the account describes how a group of landowners organized themselves and enacted an increasingly complex strategy of resistance. Within this framework perceived costs, leadership and authority and group organization are considered.

The primary method employed in this research was that of repeated interviews with members of the resistance organization who were identified as key informants. These interviews were carried out on both structured and unstructured bases.

The formal analysis of the voluntary association …

Removal Of Chloroform From Drinking Water, John S. Zogorski, George D. Allgeier, Robert Lee Mullins Jr.

KWRRI Research Reports

The overall objective of this investigation was to evaluate via laboratory experiments the technical feasibility of reducing trihalomethane levels in drinking water. Special attention was directed at the removal of chloroform since: (a) it is the only trihalomethane which has been shown to be carcinogenic in animal tests; and (b) this compound generally comprises the largest fraction of the total trihalomethane content of chlorinated waters in Kentucky. Trihalomethanes are present in municipal drinking waters due to the reaction of free chlorine with naturally occurring compounds, collectively called "precursors".

A variety of treatment processes and potential modifications (or additions) to existing …

Design Of A Reliable, Inexpensive Recording Rain Gage Which Utilizes Solid-State Memory, Stephen A. Dyer

KWRRI Research Reports

Researchers working in the general area of water resources frequently have need for precipitation data. Unfortunately, the cost of commercially available recording rain gages is often greater than $1,000 per unit. This report describes a microprocessor-controlled remote recording rain gage which is capable of unattended operation for periods of greater than a month that costs less than $400 in single quantities. The laboratory prototype uses a tipping bucket to collect precipitation in 0.01-inch increments. The time of the bucket tip is stored, using an offset binary format, in solid-state memory. A complete description of the gage hardware is presented along …

Studies On The Role Of Solar Ultraviolet Radiation In "Natural" Water Purification By Aquatic Ecosystems, John Calkins, Jeanne A. Barcelo, Perry Grigsby, Stephen Martin

KWRRI Research Reports

The possibility that pollution might deplete the stratospheric ozone layer and intensify solar UV at the earth's surface focuses attention on the role of solar UV in the various ecosystems at the earth's surface. Previous studies suggested that solar UV might contribute to bacterial die off in wastewater and the studies reported here were directed toward elucidating the action of solar UV in "natural" waters.

It has been assumed that solar UV action on aquatic ecosystems can be evaluated (using proper models) on the basis of the following four independently measurable quantities: I) the intensity of solar UV at the …

Hydrology And Water Quality In The Central Kentucky Karst: Phase Ii Part A: Preliminary Summary Of The Hydrogeology Of The Mill Hole Sub-Basin Of The Turnhole Spring Groundwater Basin, James F. Quinlan, Donald R. Rowe

KWRRI Research Reports

Water from upland areas flows to small ephemeral and perennial springs that feed sinking streams that are tributary to low-order cave streams. These cave streams, also recharged by diffuse percolation, are part of a dendritic network in which intermediate-order streams join high-order streams that flow to major trunk streams. The trunk in the Mill Hole Sub-basin flows across the bottom of a large karst window, Mill Hole, and joins the trunk of the Patoka Creek Sub-basin. Their combined discharge bifurcates, flows around the collapsed central core of a larger karst window, Cedar Sink, and re-joins to flow as one to …

Hydraulic Resistance Of Grass Media On Shallow Overland Flow, David K. Tao, Billy J. Barfield, Austin E. Lyons

KWRRI Research Reports

Simulated dense vegetation with random blade arrangements and different blade flexibilities were used to determine the hydraulic properties of flow of small, non-submerging depths. With the water flowing among the randomly patterned vegetation blades, drag resistance becomes the dominant force that retards the flow. An equation of flow was established based on the momentum balance in the system. Experimental results were used to determine the coefficient of blade resistance, R_D, and plotted in terms of blade width and flow depth Reynolds number respectively.

Assessment Of The Water Quality In The Salt River Prior To Its Impoundment In Anderson And Spencer Counties, Kentucky, Andrew C. Miller, Louis A. Krumholz, Stuart E. Neff, Darly E. Jennings, Patricia B. Olmes, David S. White

KWRRI Research Reports

Monthly water samples were taken and analyzed to determine the water quality of the Salt River in Anderson and Spencer counties Kentucky prior to the river's impoundment. Sediments from the area watershed were analyzed to total acid digestion, barium chloride extraction, and aqueous extraction methods. Rainwater and runoff water were collected and analyzed for major cations and anions from two sites in the watershed.

The Salt River at Taylorsville is characterized by hard water with high levels of calcium (33.5-74.8 mg/1), bicarbonate (136-236 mg/l), specific conductance (200-535 μmhos/cm), and sulfate (16.5-71.5 mg/l). Nitrates (0.6-5.7 mg/l), phosphates (0.2-2.4 mg/l), sodium (3.2-20.3 …

Optimal Systems Of Storm Water Detention Basins In Urban Areas, D. K. Mynear, C. T. Haan

KWRRI Research Reports

Flood retention basins are commonly used in urban areas to reduce the impact of urbanization on downstream flooding. When more than a few acres are developed, systems of retention basins are often required. A procedure has been developed whereby the optimum (least cost) system of basins can be determined to meet a given downstream flow requirement. The method considers several design options including basins on all subwatersheds, basins on only some of the subwatersheds, basins of various sizes and basins with various stage-discharge characteristics. The procedure has been developed in the form of a computer program to aid the designer …

Hydrology And Water Quality In The Central Kentucky Karst: Phase 1, James F. Quinlan, Donald R. Rowe

KWRRI Research Reports

Study of springs and cave streams has shown that heavy metal-rich effluent from a wastewater treatment plant can be traced to Hidden River Cave (beneath the city of Horse Cave) and thence 4 to 5 miles north to a group of 39 springs at 14 locations along a 5-mile reach of Green River. Nickel, chromium, copper and zinc in these effluent-bearing springs are in concentrations of as much as 30 times greater than other springs upstream and downstream from this reach, 20 times greater than the Green River, and 60 times greater than in shallow domestic wells between Horse Cave …

Embryopathic Effects Of Waterborne And Sediment-Accumulated Cadmium, Mercury And Zinc On Reproduction And Survival Of Fish And Amphibian Populations In Kentucky, Wesley J. Birge, Jeffrey A. Black, Albert G. Westerman, Paul C. Francis, Jarvis E. Hudson

KWRRI Research Reports

Fish and amphibian egg cultures were used to determine the embryopathic effects of cadmium, mercury, and zinc released from natural and metal-enriched sediments, and to develop egg culture bioassay procedures suitable for monitoring bottom sediments for hazardous contaminants. Eggs of the narrow-mouthed toad (Gastrophryne carolinensis), goldfish (Carassius auratus), and rainbow trout (Salmo gairdnei) were cultured in contaminant-free water added to natural and metal-enriched sediments. Exposure was initiated after fertilization (toad, goldfish) or at 10 days prehatching (trout) and maintained continuously through 4-10 days posthatching. Sediments were enriched with 0.1-100 ppm cadmium and mercury and …