Sapelo Research Application Form
Research Application ID: GCE-83-2017 (submitted: 04/20/2017, status: approved)
Provide a brief title for web display
Duplin River Groundwater Assessment
Investigator Information
On Island Sponsor: GCE SINERR UGAMI GADNR
| Principal Investigator: | Richard N. Peterson | ||
| Home Institution: | Coastal Carolina University | ||
| Award Information: | GCE-LTER sub-award to Coastal Carolina University for groundwater assessment, NSF, $75K | ||
| Mailing Address: | Center for Marine and Wetland Studies | Phone Number: | (843) 349-4057 |
| 1270 Atlantic Avenue, Room 111 | E-mail Address: | rpeters2@coastal.edu | |
| Conway, South Carolina 29526 | |||
| Co-investigators: | |||
Briefly describe the project goals and methodology
Our goals during this research effort will include: 1) continue our annual radon time-series measurements at 3 locations in the Duplin River to evaluate groundwater inputs to the Duplin River; 2) expand these time-series measurements to include the UGA boat dock on Post Office Creek; (3) survey radon activities throughout several tidal creeks to assess groundwater inputs at the creek-scale; (4) characterize the groundwater radon endmember composition at each site,
Geochemical time series: Three radon-222 monitoring stations will be placed along the Duplin River during the field excursion from existing docks at Marsh Landing, Lumber Landing and Moses Hammock. A fourth station will now be included at the UGA boat dock. At each site, a submersible bilge pump will be deployed about 1m below the surface. Pumps will be powered by two on-site 12v car batteries stored in a plastic box on the dock and changed daily. Water will be pumped continuously into an air-water exchanger through a short section of garden hose. The air-water exchanger is equipped with spray nozzles to equilibrate dissolved gasses form the water. Water will overflow from the air-water exchanger and return to the river. A closed air loop will connect the air-water exchanger to a commercial radon-in-air monitor (Durridge Co., Inc) and desiccant column, both will be housed in the on-site plastic box. A CTD probe will be anchored in the river at each site secured with rope for recovery.
In addition to the time-series set-ups, we will collect 250-mL groundwater grab samples from existing piezometers located at Moses Hammock and temporary piezometers we push into marsh mud at the other sites. The piezometers we install will be removed immediately after sample collection. We will coordinate sampling activities with other groups using the Moses Hammock wells to make sure our sampling does not interfere with their monitoring efforts. This effort will use a self-contained peristaltic pump and tubing to collect water into our gas tight radon analysis bottles.
Geochemical spatial surveys: Occassionally throughout our stay, we will survey along the length of two tidal creeks (Post Office Creek and one on the mainland side of the Duplin just downstream of Lumber Landing) in which we continuously measure dissolved radon and salinity from a small boat. The boat will slowly motor upstream and will continuously measure radon as per the methods described above. Surface river water will be pumped onboard via a bilge pump, then discarded back overboard after passing through the air-water exchanger.
Where will the project be located?
Dock and surrounding marsh at Marsh Landing: 31°25'4.11"N 81°17'46.51"W Dock and surrounding marsh at Lumber Landing: 31°27'35.92"N 81°16'38.46"W Dock and surrounding marsh at Moses Hammock: 31°28'44.14"N 81°16'23.11"W UGA boat dock: 31°26' 3.99"N 81°16' 52.54"W and throughout Post Office Creek Throughout tidal creek with mouth located at: 31°27' 36.49"N 81°16' 51.79"W
How will you provide GPS coordinates for study sites?
GPS coordinates are listed in the project location field
What are the expected start and end dates of the project?
Start Date: 07/05/2017 End Date: 07/27/2017
How many people will access the site and at what frequency?
A maximum of 3 people will access the sites several times daily during the fieldwork
Keywords that describe your project
What equipment will be deployed in the field?
One plastic box at each site containing radon measuring gear and power supply for bilge pumps. A weight will be deployed to the bottom that houses each water level logger. All of the field equipment will be removed at the end of the 3 week field effort.
For the electrical resistivity work, a 100m electrode array will be deployed in a transect from the upland across the marsh in short 24hr periods. At the same time, we will have 2 boxes with electrical control boxes deployed in the upland to control the measurements.
Will plants or animals be collected as part of this study?
No
What are the likely impacts of the project on the site?
There will be no impacts from this work.
Will the project design include boardwalks? If not, explain why not.
No. The length of time required for the field observations do not warrant the construction of boardwalks.
How long will impacts persist after the research is concluded?
n/A
Study Area Map:
Files attached to this application
GCE-83-2017_Maps_Radon_sites.kml (KML file, 4.34 kb, submitted 04/21/2017)
