Water Quality Monitoring
Microbial Source Tracking
In the summer of 2021, Kelsey Ruehling, a University of Wyoming graduate student, collected and analyzed microbes in water, fecal, and wastewater samples to identify and quantify sources of fecal pollution in Fish Creek and Flat Creek. Ruehling’s research indicates that increasing land development in the Flat and Fish Creek watersheds has a negative effect on microbial diversity and that human wastewater is the dominant fecal source contributor to the creeks. Interestingly, her study also quantified E. coli—a standard indicator for fecal pollution in waterbodies—but E. coli did not correlate with fecal microbe source contributions. These results are preliminary and will be subject to the peer-review process. Teton Conservation District supported this research with grant funding. Watch Ruehling’s May 26, 2022 presentation of preliminary results below.
Teton Conservation District looks forward to continued coordination with Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality to monitor Flat and Fish Creeks, as well as ongoing collaboration with partners on the Teton County Water Quality Master Plan.
Flat creek sampling
Teton Conservation District regularly monitors water chemistry, suspended sediment loads, aquatic macroinvertebrates, stream bed substrate and temperature in Flat Creek. Our Flat Creek water quality sampling program began in 1996 in order to build a long-term database of baseline chemical, biological, and physical information. In 2000, we implemented an accepted water quality sampling and analysis plan in conjunction with the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (WDEQ). The monitoring plan was revised in 2015.
After more than 20 years of collecting credible data under the WDEQ sampling and analysis plan, sufficient water quality data exists to monitor changes occurring within the watershed. Stream improvements projects in the Flat Creek watershed include the installation of the Karns Meadow Stormwater Treatment Wetland, the Flat Creek Enhancement Project, and improved stormwater mitigation within the Town of Jackson. To learn more Flat Creek, read the 2019 Flat Creek Watershed Management Plan.
Fish Creek Sampling
Fish Creek, a 15-mile long tributary to the Snake River, is located in western Wyoming near the town of Wilson. To better understand Fish Creek’s water quality and biological health, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with Teton Conservation District, conducted the following series of studies starting in the early 2000s:
Fish Creek data is being analyzed. Results will guide further monitoring and help assess the need for further protections to the stream.