THE WEST GEORGIA WATERSHED ASSESSMENT AND UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH: FIELD AND LABORATORY EXPERIENCE WITH REAL WORLD RESEARCH

The West Georgia Watershed Assessment is a yearlong project to monitor the water quality of 38 streams in Carroll and Heard Counties in western Georgia. The watersheds of west Georgia with their high geologic and biologic diversity coupled with multi-land uses present an excellent opportunity for undergraduate research. The assessment includes measurement of 21 physical, chemical, and microbiological water quality parameters at 70 sample stations. Methods are USEPA and Georgia EPD approved, and results are made public through the counties supporting the analyses. In order to combine analytical research, and teaching goals of the department, undergraduate students have been involved in all aspects of the watershed assessment. Faculty and staff supervise student training, fieldwork, and laboratory analyses, but students participate in all project aspects. They attend public meetings, measure parameters in situ, collect samples, do laboratory analysis, analyze data, and present results at local, state, regional, and national meetings. Even through a research-team approach is employed each student’s research is focused so that the student concentrates on a set sub-basin and/or laboratory parameter(s) so that the student has a manageable sized research focus while they contribute to the overall success of the watershed assessment. The students produce a high-quality result that will help them gain jobs or entrance into graduate schools. The interdisciplinary nature of the project requires that students appreciate the interconnected nature of surface water quality. Several students have been involved with the project since its inception, and these students exhibit a high level of independence and are reliable team members. This project not only invigorates undergraduate research at West Georgia, it has greatly helped the public image of the geosciences, making the department, its faculty, and students highly visible in a practical application of several aspects of Earth Science.