Did You Know?

NPS Research

Research involving non-point source water pollution has been conducted in many areas. Of particular interest was a large-scale study conducted in Rhode Island that provides a model for our research. Data was collected from the storm drain of a 30.9 acre shopping center complex in Warwick, R.I. The drains discharged directly into the Pawtuxet River and eventually into the Narragansett Bay. Samples were taken from the storm drains and the results showed a linear correlation between petroleum hydrocarbons and total rainfall. These results suggested a relatively limitless supply of toxic water pollutants entering the Pawtuxet River and Narragansett Bay (Hoffman 1982).

A study in coastal South Carolina provides another model for our research. In this study, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were identified in non-point source runoff which may have stemmed from tire abrasion, automobile exhaust, and other combustion processes (Ngabe 1999). PAHs are known for their toxicity and mutagenic effects in aquatic environments and were found in higher concentrations in Murrells Inlet in both tidal creek water and caged oysters (Ngabe 1999).

Both of these studies not only provide models to follow but reveal the need to identify the harmful contribution our campus, USCA, is making to the environment. The experimental results obtained in our research will be used to access our harmful contribution to the environment and, if significant, will hopefully propagate and lead to corrective and preventive measures of toxic water runoff.