River Turbidity and Nutrient Measurements for Guam's Achang Reef Flat Watershed

Monitoring results for nutrients and turbidity in three rivers draining to the Achang Reef Flat Marine Preserve in Guam. The dataset includes tables on nutrient monitoring, suspended sediment concentration, automated stream levels, rainfall, turbidity, and water quality measurements. Data was collected by NOAA NCEI from December 2016 to December 2018.

Use Cases

• Correlate rainfall measurements with turbidity and suspended sediment concentration data to model sediment plumes.
• Analyze nutrient monitoring data (e.g., nitrogen, phosphorus) against stream level measurements to identify pollution sources.
• Model the relationship between automated turbidity monitoring and discrete water quality measurements for sensor calibration.
• Assess seasonal trends in river discharge and nutrient loads from the Manell watershed to the Achang Reef Flat over the two-year period.

Strengths

• Two-year continuous monitoring period from 2016-12-01 to 2018-12-31.
• Includes multiple related data tables: nutrients, SSC, stream levels, rainfall, turbidity, and water quality.
• Focus on a specific, ecologically sensitive geographic area (three rivers in the Manell watershed, Guam).

Limitations

• Exact row counts and sample sizes for each measurement table are unknown.
• Limited temporal scope to two years, which may not capture long-term climatic or seasonal variability.
• Geographic scope is restricted to three rivers in southern Guam, limiting broader regional applicability.

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), under NCCOS (National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science) assessment.

Collection Method

Field monitoring, including automated sensors for stream levels, rainfall, and turbidity, plus discrete water quality and nutrient sampling.

Time Range

2016-12-01 to 2018-12-31

Freshness

Data collection ended on 2018-12-31; no updates are indicated.

Geography

Three rivers in the Manell watershed, southern Guam, draining to the Achang Reef Flat Marine Preserve.