Water quality monitoring at Morristown National Historical Park: Northeast Temperate Network 2014 summary report

Gawley, William; Dieffenbach, Fred

This report on the water quality of Morristown National Historical Park (MORR) includes data gathered by the Northeast Temperate Network (NETN) in the 2014 monitoring season and displays these results in graphic form, accompanied by a brief interpretation. The data address the NETN objective to detect change in the status of physical, chemical, or biological attributes of park freshwater bodies. The NETN Freshwater Monitoring Protocol calls for a total of five park streams to be sampled monthly from May through October at MORR. Staff measured physical and in-situ water chemistry parameters each month and periodically collected water samples for analysis at the University of Maine’s Sawyer Environmental Chemistry Research Laboratory. Monthly sampling parameters included in-situ water quality measures (pH, specific conductance, temperature, dissolved oxygen, and turbidity), weather, stream flow (discharge), and stream stage. In May and August, water samples were obtained and analyzed for acid neutralizing capacity (ANC), color, nutrients, dissolved organic carbon (DOC), chloride, and sulfate. Most water quality parameters for the monitored streams were within state standards, and were generally within the range of EPA criteria, where applicable. The majority of values were within the ranges of the historic NETN monitoring data from MORR. The exception was the high temperature recorded for the Indian Grove Brook in July, which slightly exceeded state standards. Additionally, although there is no state standard for chloride, the spring values for Indian Grove Brook and the Passaic River were very high and likely reflect runoff of road de-icing chemicals. ANC measurements showed that all streams had sufficient buffering to avoid severely depressed pH values from spring snowmelt and runoff that can contribute acidity and sediment to the stream water. Test results for TN and NO3 were moderate in most 2014 samples. Results for NO2 and NH3 in all streams were low, with many values below the method reporting limits. All total phosphorus results for 2014 were moderate, well below the New Jersey state TP standard of 100µg/L and also below the EPA Region 9 criterion of 36.56µg/L.

Water quality monitoring at Morristown National Historical Park: Northeast Temperate Network 2014 summary report

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