“Identification and Enumeration of E. coli and the Impact of Climate Change and Variability to Determine the Water Quality in the Flint Creek Watershed (FCW)”.

Abstract

Studies are being conducted to evaluate the water quality of the Flint Creek Watershed (FCW) located in southeast Lawrence County, western Morgan County, and the northern part of Cullman County in Alabama. FCW is a one of the major tributary to the Tennessee River and also to the Wheeler Wildlife Reservoir. The major sources of waste discharge into the watershed are from surrounding communities, and public and private facilities within the area. The presence of cattle farms, goat farms, and cropland may be linked to the contamination of soil and water resources. This particular study evaluated the impacts of nutrients (Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Mercury), climate change/variability and land use and demographic change on the presence of E.coli, a fecal indicator bacterium in surface water of the FCW. Analysis was conducted on three (3) sites of Flint Creek (FC): Red Bank Road (Site 1), Highway US-31(Site 2), and Vaughn Bridge Road (Site 3) with six (6) samples taken in triplicate once a month for two (2) years. We hypothesized that the levels of E.coli fecal coliforms would be higher in the warmer months of May-September and decrease from October-April. Additionally, changes in climate and land use and the concentration for nutrients would have a significant impact on bacterial levels of E.coli. Initial results (April-August) indicate that Site 1(193 cfu/100ml vs.74 cfu/100ml) and Site 3 (298 cfu/ml vs. 80 cfu/100ml) have higher levels of E.coli fecal coliforms indicators in the month of May versus April. For Site 2, the levels in April (834 cfu/100ml) were higher versus the month of May (385 cfu/100ml).