Owens Creek is a headwater stream that is valued by the Catoctin Mountain Park for its historical, recreational, and aesthetic qualities.  It is the home to populations of rainbow and brook trout which attract many visitors to the park for fly-fishing each year.  The stream begins within the park’s boundaries, then leaves the park for a span of about two miles before it re-enters the park.  During this brief detour, the stream passes through residential, agricultural, and cattle-grazing areas, where it is susceptible to the uptake of nutrient and effluent runoff due to anthropogenic impacts.  This potential eutrification can upset stream chemistry dynamics and compromise the water quality, which could adversely affect organisms in the park. For example, the pesticides and herbicides used by farmers can wash into the stream and then be carried into the park where it can harm the flora and fauna.  The waste from grazing animals also has the capacity to contaminate the water with fecal coliform thus posing a human health risk.  It is therefore important to protect the water quality of this stream to ensure the survival of the diversity of species that maintain the ecosystem services of the stream. 

In Spring 2011, a riparian buffer is scheduled to be installed along Owens Creek.  The applications of the riparian buffer include the facilitation of nutrient uptake and the maintenance of cool water temperature for water-temperature-sensitive organisms such as Rainbow and Brook trout.  I decided to assess the water quality to provide a data set that the park can use to observe the efficacy of the riparian buffer to be implanted.  With this information they can determine, throughout the coming years, if the buffer is adequate or if it needs to be expanded to produce the desired effect.  I took water samples upstream of the anthropogenic disturbance, within the disturbance, and at the point of re-entry into the park.  These water samples were collected at four different points throughout the months of October and November.  Field measurements were taken of the Dissolved Oxygen (D.O), Specific Conductivity, pH, Salinity, and Temperature, while Ammonia, Turbidity, and Alkalinity were tested in the lab.  My results indicated low levels of all parameters from each sample, with high D.O. levels and normal temperature levels (compared to those of past years).  All of my data demonstrates that the stream is in a healthy state, and that if there is nutrient runoff from the agricultural site, the ecosystem is able to facilitate dispersal and uptake to prevent overload and saturation.

My results are not what I expected as I hypothesized there would be elevated nutrient levels, which would, in turn, negatively influence other water quality parameters.  I attribute this to the fact that I took my samples after the harvest season when the farmers were not applying fertilizers to their fields.  There could still be some nutrient runoff in small amounts but it would be easily absorbed by the stream, as my results show.  I also wanted to test for fecal coliform to assess the potential contamination of the stream but I lacked the equipment and the time as I am an intern with a heavy course load.  The next step in the experiment is to continue to take water samples, especially in the spring and summer, so as to monitor the nutrient loads entering the stream.  I would also test for the presence of fecal coliform in the stream, which should remain relatively constant as the cattle are present year-round. 

For further questions or comments, please call the Resource Management Office at the Catoctin Mountain Park at (301) 416-0536 and request to speak to the SCA Intern, Michael Keating.