Article

Water Quality Monitoring, Fiscal Year 2023 at Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site

Map of park showing WQ sites
Water-quality monitoring sites at Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site in FY 2023.

CUPN staff

Overview

Water quality measured at four sites

The Cumberland Piedmont Network Inventory and Monitoring Program (CUPN) began long-term water quality monitoring at Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site (CARL) in fiscal year 2003. Sampling occurs quarterly in alternating years. Water quality is measured at four sites: Front Lake (FLFL; Figure 1), Side Lake (SLSL), Mountain Reservoir (MRFL), and Trout Pond Spring (TSSL; see map above). Based upon program requirements and specific park concerns, parameters were chosen for long-term monitoring including water temperature, specific conductance (SpC), pH, and dissolved oxygen (DO). Samples undergo laboratory analysis for Escherichia coli (E. coli). This brief summarizes data collected from November 1, 2022 through August 1, 2023 (FY23). Water quality data are available upon request to the Cumberland Piedmont Network.

Lake with smooth surface and a mudhole with trees in the background.
Figure 1. Front Lake in July 2022 (left) and drained in January 2023 (right).

NPS photos / Johnathan Jernigan.

Significant Findings

Dissolved oxygen is the only violation in FY23

In FY23 only one sample was collected from Front Lake due to pond drainage from an earthen dam bank failure (Figure 1 above). There was one violation of North Carolina’s water quality standards in FY23. Dissolved oxygen at Mountain Reservoir was 3.43 mg/l on August 1, 2023, below the North Carolina instantaneous state standard of 4.0 mg/l (Figure 2 below). On November 1, 2022, dissolved oxygen at Mountain Reservoir was barely above this criteria at 4.07 mg/l. There were eight apparent violations of North Carolina’s lower pH limit of 6.0 SU (standard unit), however, low pH is a natural condition of the waters of Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site. The granitic bedrock provides no natural buffering and surface water pH is very close to that of the precipitation. North Carolina stipulates that a water body is not in violation if it is a natural condition. There appears to be a slight increase in the pH of park waters since 2002, reflecting a regional trend in precipitation pH as measured at the nearest National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP) station NC45 at Mt. Mitchell, North Carolina (57 kilometers [36 miles] to the north). There were no violations of water temperature or E. coli in FY2023.

Chart showing DO data from CARL FY03 to FY23
Figure 2. Dissolved oxygen at Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site FY03–FY23. Red line indicates North Carolina instantaneous water quality standard minimum for dissolved oxygen.

CUPN staff

Future Monitoring

Sampling will resume in FY2025.

Water Quality Standards

CARL waters are North Carolina High Quality Waters

All CARL waters are considered “North Carolina High Quality Waters, WS II and WS IV,” a combination that gives Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site the highest standards under the Clean Water Act as promulgated by the state of North Carolina. The state currently does not impose a standard for Escherichia coli bacteria, so the network adapted the EPA recommendations for “Single Sample Infrequently Used Full Contact Recreation” standard of less than 576 MPN/100 mL. Most Probable Number (MPN) is a statistical method of estimating bacteria colony density. Specific conductance (SpC) is without state standards or federal guidelines. These parameters are useful in interpreting water quality.
Parameters and Standards
Parameter Standard
Water temperature Less than 29°C (84.2°F)
Dissolved oxygen Greater than 4.0 mg/L
pH Between 6.0 and 9.0 SU
Escherichia coli Less than 576 MPN/100 mL
Specific conductance No standard

About the CUPN

One of 32 NPS Inventory and Monitoring Networks

In 1999, the National Park Service initiated a long-term ecological monitoring program, known as “Vital Signs Monitoring,” to provide the minimum infrastructure to allow more than 270 national park system units to identify and implement long-term monitoring of their highest-priority measurements of resource condition. The overarching purpose of natural resource monitoring in parks is to develop scientifically sound information on the current status and long-term trends in the composition, structure, and function of park ecosystems, and to determine how well current management practices are sustaining those ecosystems.

  • The NPS Vital Signs Monitoring Program addresses five goals for all parks with significant natural resources:
  • Determine the status and trends in selected indicators of the condition of park ecosystem,
  • Provide early warning of abnormal conditions,
  • Provide data to better understand the dynamic nature and condition of park ecosystems,
  • Provide data to meet certain legal and Congressional mandates, and
  • Provide a means of measuring progress towards performance goals.

Effective long-term management and stewardship of natural resources in the Cumberland Piedmont Network begins with baseline knowledge of these resources. To acquire this knowledge, an inventory program was established by the National Park Service with the goals of acquiring baseline information for a variety of resources, from bibliographic information to species occurrence and distribution.

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Last updated: December 19, 2024