assignment 1

Question 1

acidity

Answer 1

acidity of water is its quantitative capacity to react with a strong base to a designated pH. acidity is a measure of an aggregate property of water and can be interpreted in terms of specific substances only.

Question 2

Alkalinity

Answer 2

The Alkalinity or the buffering capacity of a stream refers to how well it can neutralize acidic pollution and resist changes in pH. Alkalinity measures the amount of alkaline compounds in the water, such as carbonates, bicarbonates and hydroxides. These compounds are natural buffers that can remove excess hydrogen, or H+, ions

Question 3

BOD

Answer 3

The Biological Oxygen Demand, or BOD, is the amount of oxygen consumed by bacteria in the decomposition of organic material. It also includes the oxygen required for the oxidation of various chemical in the water, such as sulfides, ferrous iron and ammonia. While a dissolved oxygen test tells you how much oxygen is available, a BOD test tells you how much oxygen is being consumed.

Question 4

Conductivity

Answer 4

a measure of how well water can pass an electrical current. It is an indirect measure of the presence of inorganic dissolved solids such as chloride, nitrate, sulfate, phosphate, sodium, magnesium, calcium, iron and aluminum.

Question 5

state factors affecting dissolved oxygen and briefly show their effects

Answer 5

1. temperature
   The amount of oxygen disolved increases when temperature increase
2. Flow:
   oxygen concentration is high (rich) in areas of fast flow and low in stagnant areas (poor)
3. Aquation plants
   Green plants increase the release of oxygen into water using photosynthesis.
   Oxygen concentration level is highest in the late afternoon and lowest by early mornings
4. Altitude:
   oxygen is not disolved easily at high altitudes (high oxygen concentration)
5. Dissolved or suspended solids:
   oxygen is easily disolved in waters with low levels of suspended and dissolved solids.
6. human activity
   
   1. removal of riparian vegetation = high temperature = low canopy shade = high erosion = high suspended solids = low oxygen
   2. high urban activities = high runoff = high suspended solids = low oxygen
   3. high runoff carrying organic waste = low oxygen
   4. dams = low oxygen

Question 6

fecal coliform

Answer 6

Human and animal wastes carried to stream systems are sources of pathogenic or disease-causing, bacteria and viruses. The disease causing organisms are accompanied by other common types of nonpathogenic bacteria found in animal intestines

Question 7

hardness and metals

Answer 7

• metals:
  
  • Include all metals, inorganically and organically bound, both dissolved and particulate.
• hardness:
  
  • frequently used as an assesment to the quality of water supplies.
  • The hardness of water is governed by the content of calcium and magnesium salts (temporal hardness) largely combined with bicarbonate and carbonate.

Question 8

state types of nitrogen

Answer 8

1. Nitrate (NO₃^-)
2. Nitrite (NO₂^-)
3. Ammonia (NH₃​)

Question 9

what is the effect of temperature and turbidity on aquatic life?

Answer 9

1. turbidity
   
   1. moderately low levels indicate
      
      1. healthy, well-functioning ecosystem
      2. moderate amounts of plankton present to fuel the fuel the food chain
   2. high levels of turbidity poses several problems for stream systems:
      
      1. blocks out the light needed by submerged aquatic vegetation.
      2. can raise surface water temperatures above normal because suspended particles near the surface facilitate the absorption of heat from sunlight.
      3. may also be low in dissolved oxygen.
2. temperature
   
   1. Water Temperature is a controlling factor for aquatic life: it controls the rate of metabolic activities, reproductive activities and therefore, life cycles.
   2. Temperature affects the concentration of dissolved oxygen in a water body. Oxygen is more easily dissolved in cold water