By:Stephanie Ammerman & Steven Smith Conductivity By:Stephanie Ammerman & Steven Smith

What is Conductivity of water? Conductivity: the measure of electrical current flow through a solution (used to measure ion concentration in solutions)

Specific Conductance (SC) A measure of how well water can conduct an electrical current; conductivity increases with increasing amount and mobility of ions These ions come from the breakdown of compounds and conduct electricity because they are negatively or positively charged when dissolved in water

Measuring Specific Conductance SC is measured using a sensor which measures resistance (how well something can resist electrical current), and is reported in ohms The name “siemen” is another term for ohms, and is most often reported

Conductivity Factor The SC in natural waters is usually much less than 1 siemen/cm Because of this, SC is usually reported in microsiemens (1/1,000,000 siemen) per centimeter SC is affected by temperature, so for consistency SC values are converted to what they would be at room temperature (25 degrees Celsius) Generally, there aren’t regulatory levels for SC

Factors affecting SC Acid mine drainage Wastewater from sewage treatment plants Wastewater from septic systems Urban runoff from roads Agricultural runoff

Impact on water life “Urban runoff from roads has a particularly episodic nature with pulsed inputs when it rains or during more prolonged snowmelt periods. It may "shock" organisms with intermittent extreme concentrations of pollutants which seem low when averaged over a week or month” -http://waterontheweb.org/under/waterquality/conductivity.html

Sources http://waterontheweb.org/under/waterquality/conductivity.html Bcn.boulder.co.us/index.html