River Ranger
Quarterly Report

Standard Core monitoring is what all of our current volunteers use; is how they all participate on a monthly basis and an entry for them to participate in more advanced monitoring later.

Standard Core monitoring is useful because it allows us to perform a basic “health checkup” (kind of like a physical with your doctor) to understand the trends of how a site changes over time.

The parameters collected include:

• Photos & Comments

• Field Observations

• Temperature (Air & Water) [°C]

• Depth [meters]

• Transparency [meters]

• Dissolved Oxygen (D.O.) [mg/L]

• Conductivity (TDS) [μS/cm]

• pH [standard units]

Riparian Evaluation is a supplemental monitoring option that some of our monitors perform on an annual or semi-annual basis.

Biomonitors assess the health of lake, river, stream or estuaries based on the riparian habitat. Data is coupled with water quality data and used to track ecosystem and habitat health over time in the rivers and streams that flow to the Texas Coast.

A riparian area is the interface between land and a water body. When a riparian area is healthy and functioning properly it filters and slows run-off and floodwaters, and allows for sediment trapping, water storage and groundwater infiltration. The water quality benefits of a healthy riparian area are well documented.

It is important to collect data on riparian areas because the indicators of riparian function can lead to the identification of activities that may be hindering the natural riparian recovery process.

The riparian indicators evaluated are:

• Photos & Comments

• Field Observations

1. Active Floodplain

2. Energy Dissipation

3. New Plant Colonization

4. Stabilizing Vegetation

5. Age Diversity

6. Species Diversity

7. Plant Vigor

8. Water Storage

9. Bank/Channel Erosion

10. Sediment Deposition

Advanced is a complimentary monitoring option that some of our monitors perform on an annual or semi-annual basis.

Advanced monitoring is useful because it specifically targets non-point source pollutants that may be entering a waterway and how quickly that stream can deal with the pollutants entering it.

The parameters collected include:

• Photos & Comments

• Field Observations

• Nitrate-Nitrogen [mg/L]

• Phosphate [mg/L]

• Turbidity [NTU]

• Streamflow [CFS]

Bacteria is a complimentary monitoring option that a few of our monitors perform during our busy recreation season along the river.

E.coli bacteria is measured to determine the relative risk of swimming (contact recreation) in a water body. E. coli is a bacteria that originates from the wastes of warm-blooded animals, and the presence of this bacteria indicates that associated pathogens from waste may be reaching a body of water. Sources of E. coli include inadequately treated sewage, improperly managed animal waste from livestock, pets, aquatic birds and mammals, or failing septic systems.

The parameters collected include:

• Photos & Comments

• Field Observations

• Bacteria Colony Count [CFU/100 mL]

Optical Brightener is a supplemental monitoring option that currently none of our monitors perform due to how recently it has been released.

Optical brightener monitoring involves testing for synthetic compounds commonly used in laundry detergents and other cleaning products. These compounds make fabrics appear brighter by absorbing UV light and re-emitting it as visible blue light. The presence of optical brighteners in a water body may indicate that untreated wastewater is entering the water, as these anthropogenic compounds are not naturally occurring in the environment. Potential sources include septic system leaks, sewage overflows, and lower treatment wastewater treatment systems. Monitoring optical brighteners helps identify bacteria sources and should be conducted at the same sampling time and location as bacteria monitoring.

The parameters collected include:

• Photos & Comments

• Field Observations

• Presence or Absence of Optical Brightener