Water Quality Monitoring to Assess Pollutant Loadings in Brownsville Ship Channel Watershed

Author

Ivan Rene Santos Chavez, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

Date of Award

5-2022

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Civil Engineering

First Advisor

Dr. Abdoul Oubeidillah

Second Advisor

Dr. Andrew Ernest

Third Advisor

Dr. Chu-Lin Cheng

Abstract

The Brownsville Ship Channel (BSC) was listed as an impaired waterway from 2010 to 2018 due to screening levels of bacteria concentration. This study aims to address water quality at the three main tributary ditches draining into Brownsville Ship Channel to model present along with future pollutant loads within Brownsville Ship Channel Watershed. Load Duration Curves (LDCs) and Spatial Explicit Load Enrichment Calculation Tool (SELECT) models were developed to determine if current pollutant loads meet water quality standards stablished by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), and to estimate average daily potential E. Coli loading contribution from sub-watersheds within BSCW. Findings from this study indicate that E. Coli, Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen, Nitrate/Nitrite Nitrogen and Total Phosphorus daily loadings had been exceeding the maximum allowable loading criteria in most of the observations.

Comments

Copyright 2022 Ivan Rene Santos Chavez. All Rights Reserved.

https://go.openathens.net/redirector/utrgv.edu?url=https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/water-quality-monitoring-assess-pollutant/docview/2699740654/se-2?accountid=7119

Recommended Citation

Santos Chavez, Ivan Rene, "Water Quality Monitoring to Assess Pollutant Loadings in Brownsville Ship Channel Watershed" (2022). Theses and Dissertations. 1102.
https://scholarworks.utrgv.edu/etd/1102