Date of Award
12-1992
Degree Name
Master of Science
Department
Geological and Environmental Sciences
First Advisor
Dr. W. Thomas Straw
Second Advisor
Dr. Alan Kehew
Third Advisor
Dr. Richard Passero
Access Setting
Masters Thesis-Open Access
Abstract
A study of ground-water contamination in a shallow, sandy, glacial drift aquifer was performed in a watershed dominated by swine feedlots and crop fields in Cass County, Michigan. Monitoring wells were installed and sampled to study the flow pattern, chemistry, and contamination of ground water.
Results of chemical analyses show contamination from fertilizers and other soil-applied chemicals as well as the infiltration of breakdown products from pig waste. Shallow wells in impacted areas show potassium and nitrate from the breakdown of fertilizers, calcium from field application of lime, and additional nitrate from pig waste. Elevated calcium, potassium, and nitrate concentrations were observed in shallow wells and decreased with depth. Contamination effects were generally confined to upper zones of the aquifer because of the local ground-water flow pattern and the stratigraphy of the glacial drift.
Recommended Citation
Stuk, Matthew Alan, "A Study of Ground-Water Quality in a Priority Agricultural and Livestock Watershed, Cass County, Michigan" (1992). Masters Theses. 846.
https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses/846