Agricultural Contamintants: Transport and Fate
The design for the Agricultural Contaminants: Transport and Fate (ACT) study incorporates the hydrological and land-use differences between the five watersheds across the Nation being studied. ACT: Sugar Creek study design. In the arid west irrigation dominates the hydrology. In the WHMI, located in the Till Plain Eastern Corn Belt, tile drains and overland flow are thought to dominate the movement of agricultural contaminants into streams. The WHMI study includes analysis of water quality in the vadose zone, rain, ground water, tile drains, overland flow, and a small first-order stream (Leary-Weber Ditch) nested within a larger third-order stream (Sugar Creek). The objective of the study is to monitor the application of fertilizers and pesticides and track their movement and transformation through the hydrologic system. By better understanding how these contaminants move into the surface and ground water, water-resource managers can more efficiently control their movement.
For more information about the National ACT study go to: http://in.water.usgs.gov/NAWQA_ACT/
Click on each of the components on the map to see pictures and descriptions of each compartment being studied in Leary-Weber Ditch.
