Laserfiche WebLink
<br />Prior to collection of water-quality samples, all <br />sampling equipment was thoroughly cleaned with a <br />labomtory-grade detergent, rinsed sequentially with <br />tap water, a dilute hydrochloric acid solution, and <br />deionized water. The cleaned sampling equipment <br />was placed into two clean, clear plastic bags between <br />sampling events to avoid environmental contamina- <br />tion. Sampling equipment was thoroughly rinsed with <br />river water prior to sampling. All personnel involved <br />in sampling-equipment preparation and sample collec- <br />tion and processing wore latex gloves to minimize <br />sample contamination. <br />Water-quality samples generally were collected <br />using the equal-width increment method (Edwards and <br />Glysson, 1988). The equal-width increment method <br />provides a sample that is discharge weighted both <br />vertically and laterally and whose volume is propor- <br />tional to the discharge in the sampled zone. The <br />equal-width increment method results in a representa- <br />tive constituent concentration for the entire river cross <br />section. A US-DH--81 water-quality sampler was <br />used when the river was wadable, and a US-D--77 <br />water-quality sampler was used from the cableway <br />when the river was not wadable (Edwards and <br />Glysson, 1988). Both of these samplers use plastic <br />components in their design; therefore, the potential of <br />trace-element contamination resulting from sample <br />contact with metal surfaces is minimized. After the <br />samples were collected, aliquots of mw water for total <br />or total-recoverable (whole-water) analyses were <br />collected into a clean plastic bottle and acidified, using <br />nitric acid, to a pH less than 2; additional aliquots <br />were collected for dissolved-constituent analyses. <br />These aliquots were filtered through a 0.45-~m filter <br />into a clean plastic bottle and acidified using nitric <br />acid to a pH less than 2. After the samples were <br />collected, preserved, and processed, the samples <br />were sent using chain-of-custody procedures to a <br />U.S. Environmental Protection Agency contract <br />laboratory. The samples were analyzed for dissolved <br />(filterable through 0.45-~m filter) and total aluminum, <br />antimony, arsenic, barium, beryllium, boron, <br />cadmium, calcium, chromium, cobalt, copper, iron, <br />lead, magnesium, manganese, mercury, molybdenum, <br />nickel, potassium, selenium, silver, sodium, titanium, <br />vanadium, and zinc by using either inductively <br />coupled plasma (ICP) or graphite furnace atomic <br />absorption (GFAA) methods. <br /> <br />4 <br /> <br />Quality-controllquality-assurance samples <br />represented about 10 percent of the total samples. <br />These included replicate samples and equipment <br />blanks. Quality-controllquality-assurance samples <br />were analyzed for concentrations of dissolved and <br />total metals. Results from quality-control sample <br />analyses indicated that cleaning procedures were <br />acceptable and that cross contamination was not a <br />problem. <br />Transport of metals entering Terrace Reservoir <br />was evaluated using data collected at site AR34.5, <br />AlamoBa River above Terrace Reservoir (fig. I; <br />table I). From late April 1994 through March 1995, <br />52 water samples were collected at site AR34.5 for <br />total-metal analyses, and 34 water samples were <br />collected for dissolved-metal analyses. Because <br />previous investigations (Ortiz and others, 1995) <br />indicated that substantial metal transport occurred <br />in the AlamoBa River Basin during minfall runoff, <br />samples were collected using an automatic sampler <br />at a single point within the river cross section at <br />site AR34.5 during a few rainfall-runoff events <br />(table I). These samples were analyzed for total <br />or total-recoverable (whole-water) concentration <br />of trace elements. In general, discrete samples <br />collected during a runoff event were flow weighted <br />the following day into a single composite sample by <br />using guidelines described by the U.S. Environmental <br />Protection Agency (1991) so an event-mean concen- <br />tration could be determined. Additionally, selected <br />discrete samples collected during a few runoff events <br />were analyzed separately to provide information on <br />the variability of metal concentrations that occurs <br />during a rainfall-runoff event. To relate the metal <br />concentration of point samples to a concentration <br />that is representative of the entire cross section, <br />an additional 22 point samples were collected concur- <br />rently with equal-width increment samples collected <br />at various streamflows. <br />Transport of metals out of Terrace Reservoir <br />was evaluated using data collected at site AR31.0, <br />AlamoBa River below Terrace Reservoir (fig. I; <br />table I). From late April 1994 through March 1995, <br />25 water samples were collected at site AR31.0 for <br />dissolved- and total-metal analyses. Four samples <br />collected from November 1994 through March 1995 <br />were collected at this site during the period when the <br />reservoir outlet was closed. <br /> <br />As_sment 01 Metal Trsnsport Inlo snd Oul 01 Tsrracs R...rvolr, Con.jos County, Coloredo, V'I Ul3161 <br />April 1994 Through March 1995 <br />