Watched Waters—Little Bear River Hydrologic Observatory Project

Utah State University researchers David Stevens, David Tarboton, Jeff Horsburgh, and Nancy Mesner have been awarded a $350,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to develop tools for the design of environmental observatories and to test those tools on the Little Bear River Watershed in southern Cache Valley. This is one of eleven test bed projects awarded by the National Science Foundation that comprise the WATer and Engineering Research System network (WATERS network). A test bed project is a pilot study that allows key questions and methods to be tested before larger scale application. The WATERS network projects are part of a national effort by the Consortium of Universities for the Advancement of Hydrologic Science, Inc. (CUAHSI, http://www.cuahsi.org) to promote the science needed to address the nation’s critical water problems. Utah State University is a member of CUAHSI.

The Little Bear River test bed project will develop a set of “smart” sensors, connected to a central database, that will frequently collect data on the easily measured characteristics of streamflow, turbidity, conductivity, and dissolved oxygen. The control system will then use that information to intelligently perform intermittent sampling of other more difficult to measure constituents, like phosphorous. This approach is based on the theory that some changes in water are linked, and so changes in one characteristic, such as turbidity, may indicate the likelihood of changes in another, such as phosphorus. This sensing and control system will use advanced computer modeling and decision tools to optimize the collection of additional samples and provide information on how to improve water quality.

This project is part of the USU Water Initiative Laboratory Watershed program (http://water.usu.edu). It builds upon previous work that has established the Bear River Watershed Information System (http://www.bearriverinfo.org/) with funding from the EPA Targeted Watersheds Program and the Conservation Effects Assessment Project, which is examining (with support from the USDA) the impact that agricultural best management practices have on phosphorus loadings in the Little Bear River.

This project has a two year duration and will support environmental engineering graduate student Amber Spackman in her work to earn a Master’s degree.