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On average 20-25 flow measurements were taken within each creek to determine the flow discharge with 5 discharge measurements obtained per creek for a total of 25 discharge measurements. No issues occurred in implementing the sample design due to the resources available; the SonoTek Flow Tracker 2 helps eliminates sampling issues by providing quality control errors for flow measurements taken within the creek to help prevent flow measurement errors form compounding onto the discharge measurement.
Preparation for data collection was minimal as the only supplies needed in the field was a journal, SonoTek Flow Tracker 2, and spare batteries. I was not required to make tables prior to arriving in the field as the SonoTek Flow Tracker 2 stores all data that can then be downloaded onto a computer.
It has been observed that despite all the creeks being hydraulically connected to the Miracle Valley aquifer the drops in flow rate into low season of each of the creeks did not happen at the same rate. This allows me to infer that the creeks are hydraulically connected to the aquifer to varying degrees.
I also observed the presence of a fish farm in the area, west of Belcharton Creek before its confluence with Lagace Creek This did raise concerns that the algal growth observed within the creeks could be a result of excess nutrients from the farms; however, algal growth was more prominent in Seux Brook that is not within proximity of potential discharge from the fish farm. Also, since no algal growth was observed in Lagace Creek my concerns were absolved since Belcharton is a tributary of Lagace Creek.
