Technical Services Section
Stream Biological Monitoring Program
The Stream Biological Monitoring Program examines the structural attributes of
aquatic macroinvertebrate assemblages and utilizes this information to provide a more refined picture
of the ecological status of streams in Kansas. Unlike water chemistry measurements alone, which reflect
conditions occurring at the moment of sample collection, biological monitoring provides an integrated
measure of environmental condition over time frames ranging from weeks to years, depending on the
biological assemblage of interest. The KDHE macroinvertebrate database contains some 58,000 high
resolution (predominantly genus/species level) records derived from surveys of 200 stream locations.
The 1,543 samples collected through 2005 correspond to 138 sites sampled multiple times and 62 sites visited
a single time. Forty-five sites have periods of record ranging from 10 to 26 years. Currently, the resources of
this Program are largely devoted to TMDL follow-up monitoring, long-term monitoring, and special projects.
A separate freshwater mussel database contains more than 11,000 species-level records derived from
sampling of nearly 300 monitoring locations, many of which have been sampled multiple times.
Program Manager:
, Environmental Scientist, 785-296-5571
Program Staff:
, Environmental Scientist, 785-291-3676
|