Gabrielle Dohm and Samantha Johnson

Our stretch of the creek has some indicators of pollution. Some possible sources of pollution are shoreline residences and roads. The creek has been a brownish-yellow color consistently due to the muck on the bottom. However, when we fill our bottles, the water is fairly clear. The creek smells somewhat like decaying plants. We spotted some small fish and birds surrounding the water.  The banks of the creek are undercut and there is some pollen and oil on the surface of the water. There are a lot of down trees and it's very rocky in some spots. In others, it was very sandy, even feeling like quicksand. We didn't have a ton of large bugs but, in the rockier areas, there were small bugs. There is a drain but it's dry. We believe that the pipe could be a past problem that is no longer causing a threat to the water. 

We would like to thank the GVSU Department of Geology for providing us with equipment to take our measurements; Dr. Amanda Buday for her leadership; Lexi from AWRI's WET Lab for helping us conduct E. Coli tests, the Ravenna Conservation Club for paying for our E. Coli testing, and Swanson Pickle Company for buying our waders and dipnets. 

OUR WHY? -> Our goal is to inform and educate the public on our findings. 

PSA: This is just for educational purposes we are not trained professionals.

What we did was go out to our test sites regularly and take samples as well as measurements like water flow, conductivity, salinity, temperature, pH, and turbidity,  then we went back and turned these samples and info in. The E. coli samples we took were then taken to Grand Valley State University where the samples were examined and the results sent back to us, after receiving the information from them and the measurements we took we were able to calculate the quality and situation of the water.  During our research, we were able to gain more knowledge about our water and understand how many more aspects impact the water that we love and need.

Fall 2023 Stream Testing Data

OUR WHY? -> Our goal is to inform and educate the public on our findings. 

PSA: This is just for educational purposes we are not trained professionals.

What we did was go out to our test sites regularly and take samples as well as measurements like water flow, conductivity, salinity, temperature, pH, and turbidity,  then we went back and turned these samples and info in. The E. coli samples we took were then taken to Grand Valley State University where the samples were examined and the results sent back to us, after receiving the information from them and the measurements we took we were able to calculate the quality and situation of the water.  During our research, we were able to gain more knowledge about our water and understand how many more aspects impact the water that we love and need.