Charles River Watershed Association: Blue-green algae testing

Monday, August 8, 2011

Blue-green algae testing

Today Kyra, Doug, Alison and I went together as interns to do our first waterquality testing for blue-green algae concentration in the Charles River.

Blue-green algae is actaully cyanobacteria and not an algae at all. Cyanobacteria is a term for photosynthetic bacteria which get its energy from the suns light in the same way plants do, and like plants the light it doesnt absorb it reflects back (green) giving the bacteria its distinctive coloring. Using our water quality instrument, the multipurpose Minisonde a4, we can test for blue-green algae by shining a light into the water which the bacteria will then reflect back at a certain wavelenth. The minisonde can then analyze the amount of this reflected wavelength match it to a specific cell concentration.

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health defines a bloom as the presence of any of the following:
cyanobaceria concentrations >70,000 cells/ml of water
cyanotoxin levels >14 parts per billion (ppb)
presense of a visible cyanobacteria scum or mat

Today we tested water at the Charles River Esplanade and the MIT Sailing Pavilion. Blue-green algae levels were only slightly lower than the standard of 70,000 cells/ml of water which is not uncommon after a period of rainfall followed by sun which is ideal conditions for the bacteria.
for more information refer to: http://crwa.org/water_quality/algae.html

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Welcome to the Charles River Watershed Association's Intern Blog

CRWA's mission is to use science, advocacy and the law to protect, preserve and enhance the Charles River and its watershed.

One of the country's oldest watershed organizations, Charles River Watershed Association (CRWA) was formed in 1965 in response to public concern about the declining condition of the Charles. Since its earliest days of advocacy, CRWA has figured prominently in major clean-up and watershed protection efforts, working with government officials and citizen groups from 35 Massachusetts watershed towns from Hopkinton to Boston. Initiatives over the last four decades have dramatically improved the quality of water in the watershed and fundamentally changed approaches to water resource management.

While CRWA’s mission focuses on the Charles River, the implications and applicability of our science-based work go far beyond the watershed’s boundaries. Much of CRWA’s work is cutting edge and therein lies our unique strength and effectiveness: we use our scientific knowledge of the Charles to develop innovative, workable solutions to watershed problems. This knowledge allows CRWA not only to advocate persuasively for outcomes, but also to partner with government agencies and other environmental groups to protect the natural environment and to promote sustainable ecosystem policies and practices.