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<br />008f3
<br />
<br />Suspended solids are the organic and inorganic particulate matter in
<br />water and are an important transportation mechanism for micro-organisms and
<br />suspended chemical constituents such as trace elements, Suspended solids also
<br />interfere with recreational use, aesthetic enjoyment, biological activity, and
<br />water treatment, Large concentrations of suspended solids can impair the use
<br />of water for irrigation because of formation of crusts on top of the soil,
<br />which can inhibit water infiltration, plant emergence, and soil aeration (V,S,
<br />Environmental Protection Agency, 1976, p, 212),
<br />
<br />Water-quality data in this report are summarized in illustrations that
<br />use minimum, 25th-percentile, median, mean, 75th-percentile, and maximum
<br />values. ~ater-quality data for the period of record are summarized in the
<br />"Supplemental Data" section in the back of this report using the mean,
<br />standard deviation, median, and interquartile range (75th percentile-25th
<br />percentile), Water-quality data collected on Fountain and Monument Creeks
<br />were not normally distributed, Therefore, the significance in differences of
<br />water-quality data that occurred between sites waS tested, unless otherwise
<br />noted, using the Wilcoxon rank-sum nonparametric test (SAS Institute, Inc"
<br />1982), Because the water-quality data are not normally distributed, the mean
<br />and standard deviation do not accurately represent the variation in the data.
<br />However, the mean and standard deviation are included in tables 3 through 6 in
<br />the "Supplemental Data" section at the back of this report; this information
<br />provides the reader a means of comparing water-quality data to the mean plus
<br />one standard deviation water-quality criteria established by the Colorado
<br />Department of Health (1982) for numeric water-quality standards.
<br />
<br />Fountain Creek
<br />
<br />Water temperature, specific conductance, pH, BODs, dissolved oxygen, and
<br />suspended solids were measured at nine sites on Fountain Creek between 1975
<br />and 1983, The period of record for the collection of water-quality data at
<br />the sites varies (table 2), Water temperature, specific conductance, pH, and
<br />dissolved oxygen were measured monthly at each site when water-quality samples
<br />were collected. Additional measurements of water temperature and specific
<br />conductance were made in conjunction with streamflow measurements at those
<br />sites that had streamflow gages (fig, 1),
<br />
<br />Water Temperature
<br />
<br />Measurements of instantaneous water temperature were made during daylight
<br />hours, and they indicate that substantial variations occur at every site on
<br />Fountain Creek (fig. 10), Water temperature generally undergoes a diel fluc-
<br />tuation, especially during the warmer months, Therefore, water-temperature
<br />measurements probably are somewhat warmer than the true mean daily water
<br />temperature,
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