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<br />n 'l.} ~ --, <br /> <br />Blue ~iver - Page 36 <br /> <br />Surface :fater Quality <br /> <br />The quality of the surface :'!ater in the Big Blue River Basin <br /> <br />varies greatly during the year. Studies conducted by the Nebraska <br /> <br />St~te Departmer.t of Health indlc3te that the best quality of water <br /> <br />exists in the late winter and early spring before the spring run-off <br /> <br />occurs. The Big Blue River may r~r.k as the most polluted Interst~te <br /> <br />river in ::eb:-3Slt8 if ',-:e consider silt as a pollutar.t. ?rom October 1, <br /> <br /> <br />1961 until September 30, 1962, the U. S. Geological Survey1 made daily <br /> <br /> <br />measurei71ents of the suspended sedi!~ent (silt) in tl-;c Big Blue River near <br /> <br />lOeological Survey Water-Sup~ly Paper 1943. Qu~llty of Surface Waters of <br />the United States 1962, pp, 311-312, <br /> <br />Crete. During this year of study, 535,938 tons of suspended sediment <br /> <br />moved dm-m the river. Figure 1, chows the monthly variation in sus- <br /> <br />pended sediment at Crete. The yearly discharge at Crete was 139,631 c~s. <br /> <br />~ <br />, <br /> <br />In addition to the high load of suspended solids, the Big Blue River <br /> <br />receives municipal and industrial wastes from every community located <br /> <br />along the river. Since many of the existing waste water treatment <br /> <br /> <br />plants need upgrading within the next five years, it is difficult to <br /> <br /> <br />predict how much additional municipal and industrial waste water can, <br /> <br /> <br />in the future, be discharged into the Big Blue River and maintain Water <br /> <br />Quality Standards, <br /> <br />In discussing the water quality of the Big Blue River, there are <br /> <br />several r2~tors ~hich must be kept iro mind. First, fro~ the historical <br /> <br />viewpoint, there were at le3st 20 low head dams on the Big Blue River. <br />