http://dcm2.enr.state.nc.us/wetlands/wetlands.htm Wetlands

What are Wetlands? Lands that are wet at least part of the year Marshes: prominent plants are non-woody: grasses, rushes or reeds Swamps: contain larger trees. Evaluate issues of ground and surface water pollution, wetland and estuary degradation, and salt water intrusion. • Analyze how drinking water and wastewater treatment systems impact quantity and quality of potable water. • Evaluate water quality of NC streams (chemical, physical properties, biotic index). • Analyze non-point source pollution and effects on water quality (sedimentation, stormwater runoff, naturally and human induced occurrences of arsenic in groundwater). • Evaluate conservation measures to maximize quality and quantity of available freshwater resources.

Why are they worth protecting? Stabilize sediment Buffer excess water, preventing floods Wildlife habitat – plants and animals Protect water quality Wetlands minimize the danger of damaging floods by storing and preventing rapid runoff of water. Large pocosin wetlands can store enormous amounts of water and slow runoff of freshwater into brackish estuaries. Bottomland wetlands along streams provide holding basins for floodwaters and slow the water to reduce flood damage. Wetlands store water after rains and release it gradually into groundwater or through surface outflow. This function of wetlands helps maintain more constant water levels in streams Plant roots stop soil from eroding

How do wetlands protect water quality? Natural buffers between open water and upland pollutants such as Stormwater runoff Waste Agricultural runoff Sediment During rainstorms, runoff from farm land, highways and urban areas washes into rivers and sounds. This runoff may contain toxins, bacteria, sediment or nutrients that can harm aquatic life and contaminate drinking water. Stormwater runoff is a major contributor to water-quality problems in coastal North Carolina.

How do wetlands protect water quality? Filter out pollutants before they can enter the ocean or lake Trap sediment Remove excess nutrients Detoxify chemicals Wetlands are natural buffers between uplands and waterways. By trapping sediment, removing nutrients and detoxifying chemicals, wetlands act as efficient and cost-effective filtration systems. When runoff enters a wetland, many of the harmful components are removed before the water enters a stream.

What is “Potable Water”? Water safe enough to be consumed by humans Free of pathogens – microorganisms, such as viruses, bacteria, or fungus, that cause diseases Acceptable levels of toxic substances Acceptable levels of suspended solids, including salt http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safe_Drinking_Water_Act http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potable_water

What…acceptable toxins?! Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974 of US EPA sets standards for every public water system Coliforms: Zero mg/L (organism found in fecal waste) Arsenic: 0.01 mg/L (runoff, manufacturing) Cyanide: .2 mg/L (manufacturing) Mercury: 0.002 mg/L (erosion, manufacturing)) Does not cover bottled water nor private wells http://water.epa.gov/drink/contaminants/index.cfm

Arsenic in groundwater Dissolved from weathered rocks and soils.

Water Quality Measurements DO: Dissolved oxygen – needed for wildlife Transparency/Turbidity – how well sun’s rays can penetrate to plants in lake. Caused by runoff and erosion. Temperature pH – acid rain Bacteria and other nutrients – waste, runoff from agriculture http://www.raleighpublicrecord.org/news/2012/08/20/raleigh-sues-the-state-to-protect-water-supply/

Why monitor nutrient, oxygen and sediment levels?

Eutrophication The process by which lakes become rich in nutrients from the surrounding watershed thereby resulting in a change in the kinds of organisms in the lake

Worsened by human activity

Why do we need water quality monitoring systems?

What human activities affect eutrophication?

How could hog farms benefit from wetlands?