NEW ENGLAND COASTAL BASINS NAWQA PROGRAM: GROUND-WATER STUDIES

ANALYTICAL STRATEGY for GROUND-WATER STUDIES

Field Parameters Nutrients Major Ions Trace Elements

Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) Pesticides Radionuclides/Isotopes/Tracers Dissolved gases

Field Parameters

• Water Level, in feet below land surface
• Temperature (°C)
• Specific Conductance (mS/cm at 25°C)
• pH
• Alkalinity (mg/L as CaCO₃)
• Bicarbonate (mg/L as HCO₃)
• Dissolved Oxygen (mg/L)
• Turbidity (NTU's, using a Hach 2100P Turbidity meter)
• Ferrous Iron (using a Hach 2001 Spectrophotometer)
• Sulfide (using a Hach 2001 Spectrophotometer)

Nutrients, filtered (all in milligrams per liter, mg/L)

• Ammonia (NH4+, as Nitrogen)
• Ammonia + Organic Nitrogen
• Nitrate-Nitrogen
• Nitrite-Nitrogen
• Dissolved Phosphorus
• Dissolved Orthophosphorus
• Dissolved Organic Carbon

Major Ions, filtered (all in milligrams per liter, mg/L)

• Hardness, total as CaCO₃ (calculated value)
• Calcium
• Magnesium
• Potassium
• Sodium
• Chloride
• Bromide
• Fluoride
• Silica
• Sulfate

Trace Elements, filtered (all in micrograms per liter, mg/L)

Volatile Organic Compounds Sch 2020, in mg/L (Laboratory Reporting Levels are variable)

Pesticides Sch 2001, in mg/L (Laboratory Reporting Levels are variable)

Radionuclides/Isotopes/Tracers (for most wells) (in pci/L)

• Radon 222 (gas)
• Radium 224
• Radium 226
• Radium 228
• Gross Alpha
• Gross Beta
• Deuterium
• Oxygen-18
• Tritium (on only 3 wells)
• Chlorofluorocarbons

Dissolved gases, in mg/L, except where noted

• Carbon dioxide
• Methane (in micrograms per liter)
• Nitrogen
• Argon