by Sydney Zinner
In Fall 2023, AWW was approached by Dr. Miriam Wyman with the Auburn University Office of Sustainability to do a project with her Sustainability Capstone Students in Spring 2024. The AU Water Resources Center (WRC) offers Auburn faculty opportunities for various experiences with their students to connect them with water resources, however, this was the first request to do a semester-long project with a group of students.
Capstone students were from various colleges at Auburn, including Patricia in Biosystems Engineering, Jaiden in Natural Resource Management, David in Building Science, Elizabeth in Horticulture, and Hart in Environmental Design.
Stream Biomonitoring
At the beginning of the Spring semester, students participated in Stream Biomonitoring certification training through AWW so they could monitor sites and submit data.
Biomonitoring is a crucial process that involves assessing the health of a water body through its biological components—for this project, specifically benthic macroinvertebrates living within it. Macroinvertebrates serve as indicators of the stream’s overall health, therefore, by studying their presence, diversity, and abundance, scientists and students can infer water quality and detect potential pollutants.
Parkerson Mill Creek
Parkerson Mill Creek has long been a focal point for environmental studies at Auburn University. Increased urbanization and campus expansion have raised concerns about its water quality, and recognizing this, the sustainability capstone students chose to investigate water quality through biomonitoring.
Stream Biomonitoring Blitz
Throughout the semester, students conducted field testing at six sites on Parkerson Mill Creek (PMC), which runs through the Auburn University campus. They conducted bioassessments in February and April along Parkerson Mill Creek at the Wellness Kitchen, W’Eagle Woods, Lem Morrison (Upstream/Downstream), City of Auburn Softball Complex, and the Auburn Wastewater Treatment Facilitiy off Lee Rd 10.
At the end of the semester, they gave a wonderful presentation on their results and what they learned throughout the project. They gave insights into what can be done to protect water quality, and therefore macroinvertebrate habitats, on PMC.
During the final presentation, students compared the sets of data collected at each site, included photos of the site, and provided their interpretation of what the data meant.
Connecting to Sustainable Development Goals
As part of the Sustainability Capstone, the group had to establish a “Sustainability Rationale” for their project, connecting their work with the Sustainable Development Goals.
In their final report, the students wrote, “stream biomonitoring helped to create research for the health and water quality of Parkerson Mill Creek while thinking of sustainability issues that can affect Auburn University. These sustainability issues involve stormwater management, infrastructure development, climate change, and aquatic habitats.”
They connected stream biomonitoring with the following goals (SDGs):
- 6 – Clean Water & Sanitation
- 11 – Sustainable Cities & Communities
- 13 – Climate Action
- 14 – Life Below Water
Project Goals
Students evaluated their project based on short and long-term goals established as a group. These goals included recommendations based on data collection for site improvements and education and outreach to protect water quality.
Short-term Goals
- Contribute biomonitoring data to AWW database
- Establish baseline data for new stream sites
- Facilitate productive conversations with management professionals
Long-term Goals
- Plan for continued biomonitoring for future groups with AWW
- Call to action to restore and conserve areas of Parkerson Mill Creek
- Observe the prolonged presence of healthy, sensitive bioindicators.
The students did a fantastic job applying what they learned from AWW to establish a project on Parkerson Mill Creek that will hopefully span many more students and semesters to come.