STUDY NUMBER ; 10.1 



ORGANIZATION ; University of Montana (UM) 



TITLE OF STUDY ; Development and Application of Synthetic/ 

 Predictive Water Quality Modeling for the Clark Fork River 

 System 



CONTACT ; Vicki Watson - University of Montana, Botany/EVST 

 Department, Missoula - 243-5153 



OBJECTIVE: Utilize a suite of models to evaluate the impacts 

 of organic loading, nutrients and heavy metals upon the water 

 quality and the biological organisms of the Clark Fork River. 



CURRENT STATUS ; Most of the water quality information to be 

 used in these modelling efforts has already been collected or 

 is presently being collected by the Montana Water Quality 

 Bureau or the U.S. Geological Survey. However, a survey of 

 river morphometry and turbulence will be conducted during low 

 flow and during the falling hydrograph (following high flow) 

 to provide a better estimate of the physical reaeration 

 potential of the river and to help select the range of models 

 to be used. 



Variation of the QUAL II model will be used to assess 

 the impacts of organic loading upon the river ' s dissolved 

 oxygen levels. Potential impacts of changing nutrient loads 

 upon the trophic status of the lower river reservoirs and 

 Lake Pend Oreille will be estimated using modifications of 

 the Vollenweider input-output model. Metal species equilib- 

 ria will be assessed using the MINEQL model developed, in 

 part, by the Battelle Pacific Northwest Laboratory. 



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