Water sources are threatened by both point and nonpoint source pollutants. Studies of the chemical impacts of these pollutants on ecosystem health are made by the Center's researchers and can lead to best management practices for nonpoint source pollution control. Potentially cancer-causing chemicals from nursery or industry runoff can be analyzed through their fate and transport through the soil. Center researchers are studying these characteristics to limit the effects of the chemicals on aquatic and human life.
Wetlands perform the important functions of surface water storage, nutrient cycling, and pollutant and sediment trapping. Natural wetland systems are being classified based on hydrology, plant and animal ecology, and soil composition to develop functional assessment models for these ecosystems. The following are ecological assessment-related projects that were activated in the 2007-2008 fiscal year. For descriptions of specific projects, click on those with links.
(To view pdf files, you will need Adobe Acrobat software for Macintosh, Windows or Linux. This software is available free at www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep.html.) Assess the Fish and Mussel Communities Associated with the Green River/Glenview Natural Preserve (pdf file) J.B. Layzer Funding by: Green County, Kentucky Black Swamp Hydrogeomorphic Bottomland Hardwood Functional Assessment (pdf file) T.H. Roberts and K.L. Morgan Funding by: Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency Collection of Data at Deer Check Stations (pdf file) T.H. Roberts Funding by: Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency Cookeville Sinkhole Flood Plain Map Project (pdf file) H. Mills, P. Li and E. Hart Funding by: City of Cookeville Development and Testing of a Protocol for Monitoring Mussels (pdf file) J.B. Layzer Funding by: United States Geological Survey Development of a Georeferenced Database to Identify and Inventory Wetlands at Little River Canyon National Preserve (pdf file) T.H. Roberts and K.L. Morgan Funding by: National Park Service Ecological Assessment of Wetland Inventory at Fort Campbell, Kentucky (pdf file) K.L. Morgan and T.H. Roberts Funding by: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Monitoring Groundwater Hydrology and Selected Plant Communities at the Three Rivers Mitigation Bank (pdf file) T.H. Roberts and K.L. Morgan Funding by: Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency Monitoring the Hydrology and Selected Plant Communities at the Hatchie River Wetland Mitigation Bank (pdf file) T.H. Roberts and K.L. Morgan Funding by: Private Monitoring the Plant Community at the Yuchi Waterfowl Project in Rhea County (pdf file) T.H. Roberts and K.L. Morgan Funding by: Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency Mourning Dove Recruitment and Crippling Loss in Tennessee (pdf file) S.E. Hayslette Funding by: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Research Directed at the Recovery of Endangered Mussels (pdf file) J.B. Layzer Funding by: U.S. Geological Survey Threatened or Endangered Aquatic Insect Survey (pdf file) S.B. Cook Funding by: National Park Service Waters Organic Farm Startup (pdf file) G.K. Stearman Funding by: Tennessee Department of Agriculture