TY - JOUR
T1 - Five-year microbial and chemical assessment of the Blue Marsh Watershed in Reading, Pennsylvania
AU - Felker, Jill M.
AU - Weagly, Zachary T.
AU - Mysliwiec, Tami H.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2025 The Authors
PY - 2025/1
Y1 - 2025/1
N2 - Recreational, agricultural, and industrial utilizations of areas surrounding waterways provide opportunities for collecting chemical and pollutant runoff, which influence the chemical makeup of the waterways and connecting watersheds. Human activities within watersheds can result in conditions that enable pathogenic microorganisms to thrive and allow unique microbial communities to emerge. The study area consisted of three locations at the Blue. Marsh Watershed in Reading, Pennsylvania, with different surrounding land use and anthropogenic activities. The study areas were monitored monthly during the five-year project to assess seasonal variations in chemical levels and microbial count changes. Chemical testing included inorganic nitrates, inorganic phosphates, and dissolved oxygen. Additional microbial testing included monthly counts for Escherichia coli and Enterococcus spp. to assess potential pathogenic microbial populations. On most occasions, chemical analyses found nitrate and phosphate concentrations above natural environmental levels. During the five years, Escherichia coli and Enterococcus spp. concentrations were above the EPA recreational water recommendations 52% and 83% of the time, respectively. These results suggest that recreational, agricultural, and industrial utilization of surrounding waterways may influence chemical and microbial characteristics, including pathogenic microorganisms in the Blue Marsh Watershed.
AB - Recreational, agricultural, and industrial utilizations of areas surrounding waterways provide opportunities for collecting chemical and pollutant runoff, which influence the chemical makeup of the waterways and connecting watersheds. Human activities within watersheds can result in conditions that enable pathogenic microorganisms to thrive and allow unique microbial communities to emerge. The study area consisted of three locations at the Blue. Marsh Watershed in Reading, Pennsylvania, with different surrounding land use and anthropogenic activities. The study areas were monitored monthly during the five-year project to assess seasonal variations in chemical levels and microbial count changes. Chemical testing included inorganic nitrates, inorganic phosphates, and dissolved oxygen. Additional microbial testing included monthly counts for Escherichia coli and Enterococcus spp. to assess potential pathogenic microbial populations. On most occasions, chemical analyses found nitrate and phosphate concentrations above natural environmental levels. During the five years, Escherichia coli and Enterococcus spp. concentrations were above the EPA recreational water recommendations 52% and 83% of the time, respectively. These results suggest that recreational, agricultural, and industrial utilization of surrounding waterways may influence chemical and microbial characteristics, including pathogenic microorganisms in the Blue Marsh Watershed.
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105001794651
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105001794651#tab=citedBy
U2 - 10.1016/j.wsee.2025.03.003
DO - 10.1016/j.wsee.2025.03.003
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:105001794651
SN - 2589-4714
VL - 7
SP - 119
EP - 130
JO - Watershed Ecology and the Environment
JF - Watershed Ecology and the Environment
ER -
