DETERMINING WATER QUALITY

What is water quality?   How is water quality measured?   By volume? Temperature?  Color?  Smell?  Depth?  Cloudiness?

It can be measured by all of these, and many other characteristics.

Water has proven to be a very reliable indicator of the overall health of our environment.  Researching water -- where it is, where it isn't; how much of it is, its temperature, the amount of oxygen it contains, the type of aquatic life it supports helps us to answer questions about how much pollution is accumulating, its environmental impact, how long a water source will support a population of users, what types of aquatic life and ecosystems will be (or not) attracted.  Water quality data is an integral component in establishing a water quality norm.”  When gradual and sudden changes occur in water that alters its usual characteristics, it is the historical data that validates (or invalidates) the theory of the suspected changes.

As you study environmental science, chemistry, biology, etc., take note of the historical data that is incorporated into establishing scientific theory and conclusions.  Your text books and science curricula could not have been written without the use of historical data.

Keep this in mind as you explore the water quality data that MMSD has gathered and recorded from water samples taken within the six regional watersheds that make up our service area – the Milwaukee River, Menomonee River, Oak Creek, Root River, Kinnickinnic River, and Lake Michigan Drainage Area.  We encourage the use of this data to compare with water quality samples you collect in your classroom projects.