Title:
A Comparison of Escherichia Coli Levels in the Chattahoochee River Between Drought and Non-drought Years

dc.contributor.author Jackson, Thomas W. en_US
dc.contributor.author Smith, Amanda en_US
dc.contributor.author McMullan, George en_US
dc.contributor.author Orear, Ryan en_US
dc.contributor.author Fuller, Robert en_US
dc.contributor.author Dalman, Nancy Eufemia en_US
dc.contributor.corporatename North Georgia College & State University. Dept. of Biology en_US
dc.contributor.corporatename North Georgia College & State University. Dept. of Physics en_US
dc.contributor.editor Carroll, G. Denise en_US
dc.date.accessioned 2013-03-21T20:24:59Z
dc.date.available 2013-03-21T20:24:59Z
dc.date.issued 2011-04
dc.description Proceedings of the 2011 Georgia Water Resources Conference, April 11, 12, and 13, 2011, Athens, Georgia. en_US
dc.description.abstract The Chattahoochee River in northeastern Georgia is a popular summer recreational site. The section of the river that flows through the city of Helen, about eighty miles northeast of Atlanta, is visited by thousands of swimmers and “tubers” each year. Studies have been conducted in drought and non-drought years on Escherichia coli levels in the water before and after peak recreational use. Recreational river use may lead to increased levels of bacteria suspended in the water due to sediment disruption and subsequent dispersal of bacteria contained in the soil. Water samples were taken from five recreational sites in town and five secluded, nonrecreational sites in the Chattahoochee National Forest. Samples were collected on days known to have the highest volume of recreational users, from late June to mid- September. Sites were sampled in the morning and evening, before and after peak recreational use, respectively. E. coli levels were quantified using the Colilert® Quanti – tray® 2000 system (IDEXX), and the results from 2009 (a non-drought year) were compared with those from 2007 (a drought year). E. coli levels were significantly higher at recreational sites than nonrecreational sites for both years. Though 2009 sampling exhibited higher E. coli levels than 2007 overall, 2009 sites showed no significant difference between morning and evening samples. In 2007, however, E. coli levels were higher after peak recreational use. Furthermore, evening sampling at recreational sites revealed a correlation between suspended sediments and water-borne E. coli levels in 2007, but not in 2009. This dissimilarity between drought and non-drought years suggests that sediment bacteria, in drought years, are more dispersed in the water due to the lower water volume, and increased disruption of the sediment. These results indicate that users of the Chattahoochee River are exposed to higher water-borne E. coli levels during the summers of drought years. en_US
dc.description.sponsorship Sponsored by: Georgia Environmental Protection Division U.S. Geological Survey, Georgia Water Science Center U.S. Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service Georgia Institute of Technology, Georgia Water Resources Institute The University of Georgia, Water Resources Faculty en_US
dc.description.statementofresponsibility This book was published by Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources, The University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602-2152. The views and statements advanced in this publication are solely those of the authors and do not represent official views or policies of The University of Georgia, the U.S. Geological Survey, the Georgia Water Research Institute as authorized by the Water Research Institutes Authorization Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-307) or the other conference sponsors. en_US
dc.identifier.isbn 0-9794100-2-9
dc.identifier.uri http://hdl.handle.net/1853/46469
dc.language.iso en_US en_US
dc.publisher Georgia Institute of Technology en_US
dc.publisher.original Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources, The University of Georgia en_US
dc.relation.ispartofseries GWRI2011. Poster presentations en_US
dc.subject Water resources management en_US
dc.subject Escherichia coli en_US
dc.subject Bacterial counts en_US
dc.subject Chattahoochee River en_US
dc.subject Drought years en_US
dc.subject Non-drought years en_US
dc.title A Comparison of Escherichia Coli Levels in the Chattahoochee River Between Drought and Non-drought Years en_US
dc.type Text
dc.type.genre Proceedings
dspace.entity.type Publication
local.contributor.corporatename Georgia Water Resources Institute
local.contributor.corporatename School of Civil and Environmental Engineering
local.contributor.corporatename College of Engineering
local.relation.ispartofseries Georgia Water Resources Conference
relation.isOrgUnitOfPublication 8873b408-9aff-48cc-ae3c-a3d1daf89a98
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relation.isOrgUnitOfPublication 7c022d60-21d5-497c-b552-95e489a06569
relation.isSeriesOfPublication e0bfffc9-c85a-4095-b626-c25ee130a2f3
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