Phosphates in

the River!!
Emmy Francell
Sarah Latham
Ryan Kern
Maddy Mccutchin
Test
Our Tests focused on the phosphate levels in the different bodies

of water. The test measures how much Phosphate is in the water. The most
phosphate, the faster plants and algae grow.

Pace Bend, Inks Lake and Mansfield dam all have a phosphate level of less than .2
ppm

Natural levels of phosphate are between .005 and .05 ppm

From the tests we couldnt properly find out whether or not there was too much
phosphate, but the data did show us that the levels were not abnormally high in any
area.
Causes and Solutions
A natural source that can cause abnormal results in the test could be
phosphate ions released from weathering rocks, which would be slowed down
by a dam. A dam would cause the rocks to slow down their process of releasing
phosphate ions from weathering. This could cause phosphate levels to decrease but could be solved by
decreasing the amount of dams along the river, if the levels get too low.
A man made source that can cause abnormal results in the test
could be partially treated and untreated sewage. Sewage can affect
the phosphate levels by adding pathogens to the water that could
possibly cause disease and cause the phosphate levels to increase.
This could be solved by decreasing the amount of waste and sewage
that can travel into the river.
An example of this in real life would be that in Chattahoochee River south of Atlanta, Georgia and in
West Point Lake the amount of phosphate has been greatly reduced from man-made wastewater facilities
because of state laws passed in efforts to reduce phosphate increase.
Effects on Biodiversity
Phosphate affects biodiversity by adding or losing plants and algae. So when
there is little phosphate the algae and plants will not grow, but when there is too
much algae blooms and plants will grow in large amounts. This can cause fish to die.
Having a healthy amount of phosphate will create a good balance between plants
and fish. Having too much phosphate affects us because then we are unable to get
one of our food sources.
 Historical Data
-Starting in 1988 they started discovering problematic phosphate levels in the Colorado River

-At the time Phosphate was typically found in laundry detergent

-Phosphate band (0.5 percent phosphate)

-In 1992, LCRA began to manage the Colorado River

Watch Network program

Sources
http://www.water-research.net/index.php/phosphate-in-water

http://www.waterencyclopedia.com/Po-Re/Pollution-of-the-Ocean-by-Sewage-Nutr
ients-and-Chemicals.html
http://www.lcra.org/water/quality/colorado-river-watch-network/Pages/default.asp
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