Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve water quality data from January to December 1996. The dataset contains high-frequency measurements from two monitoring sites, one in a relatively pristine marsh and another adjacent to strawberry fields. Data collection was managed by the Elkhorn Slough Foundation and associated researchers from the University of California Santa Cruz Agroecology Program.
Use Cases
- Analyze temporal patterns of water temperature, salinity, and dissolved oxygen to assess seasonal estuarine dynamics.
- Compare turbidity and pH measurements between the pristine marsh site and the agricultural pond site to quantify runoff impacts.
- Model relationships between agricultural land use (specifically strawberry production) and nutrient concentrations like nitrate and ammonium in the water.
- Use water depth and specific conductivity time-series data to study tidal influence and freshwater input at the monitoring locations.
Strengths
- Data collected at high temporal resolution, with parameters measured at least every 30 minutes.
- Monitoring program provides context with a long-term baseline, with some stations active since 1988.
- Explicit comparison between a pristine reference site and a site directly impacted by agricultural runoff.
Limitations
- Dataset is temporally limited to a single year (1996), restricting long-term trend analysis.
- Spatial coverage is limited to only two specific monitoring sites within the Elkhorn Slough watershed.
- The raw dataset's exact row count, column structure, and completeness for 1996 are unspecified.
Provenance
- Source
- Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve and Elkhorn Slough Foundation, with researchers from the University of California Santa Cruz Agroecology Program.
- Collection Method
- In-situ monitoring using deployed water quality data loggers at fixed sites, supplemented by a monthly manual sampling program.
- Time Range
- 1996-01-01 to 1996-12-31
- Freshness
- null
- Geography
- Elkhorn Slough, Monterey Bay, California, USA, specifically at two sites: a Salicornia marsh site (SM) and Azevedo Pond (AP).