By Mary Carson, Valerie Du, and Abigail Jewell YWSI 2009 What is causing the Upper Hocking River watershed to be polluted?

The River’s Impairments The Upper Hocking River suffers from: A low pH level Oils and grease within the water Too many nutrients, especially phosphate and nitrogen Siltation Metals dissolved within the water Many parts of the river are channelized

County Information Fairfield, Perry, and Hocking counties. Forests and agricultural areas square miles The Hocking River goes through 7 counties Lancaster is the fastest growing region of our watershed

Impacts of Nitrogen On Fish  As the total nitrogen levels increased the fish population decreased.  Increased Nitrogen levels often cause disease in fish. It also suppresses oxygen levels When water high in Nitrogen is consumed, the Nitrogen takes the place of oxygen in the blood stream High levels of Nitrogen in drinking water are especially harmful to newborn infants. On Humans

When the measure of pH in the water becomes more acidic, the diversity of fish, also known as IBI, decreases.

Analysis My hypothesis was well supported by the data.

Abby’s Hypothesis: As Agriculture Development Increases, Phosphate Levels Also Increase.

Analysis  Agricultural development increased, the phosphate levels rose.  Algae grows very quickly and dies after a short period.  Algae decomposes very slowly.  Decomposing algae requires a lot of oxygen.  High levels of nutrients such as phosphate indirectly hurt the fish population

Conclusions We conclude that high Nitrogen, Phosphate, and acidic pH levels are all causes of pollution in the Upper Hocking River. Other causes of pollution that were less prominent : coal mining, siltation, grease, oil, and other habitat alterations.

Improving Our Watershed The Friends of the Hocking River and The Hocking River Commission are the two main organizations that preserve the environment around the Upper Hocking River. The Hocking River Commission reduce runoff by adding more easements surrounding the river. They are having informing public meetings

Group 3

Katie Hossler, Paula Williams, Steve Gordon, Shannon Schraegle, and Leslie Southern