Surface-Water-Quality Monitoring and Reporting for the
Tongue River Watershed – 2005 Plan

March 2005

Surface-water-quality monitoring and reporting for the Tongue River watershed has been funded by Congress and cooperating agencies since 2004 to gather important monitoring data for areas of potential coal-bed methane (CBM) development in Montana and Wyoming.  Monitoring data are disseminated to all interested parties through a publicly accessible USGS website.  This document presents planned activities for fiscal year 2005.

Funding for 2005

Congress appropriated funding in fiscal year 2005 for the USGS to continue surface-water-quality monitoring and reporting for the Tongue River watershed.  The amount of funding was about 85% of the amount originally proposed.  With the continued support of Federal, State, Tribal, and local cooperators, most of the originally proposed work will be accomplished. 

Planned Activities for 2005

Maintain monitoring network – The USGS will continue operation of the 11-station monitoring network (table 1, fig. 1) established in January 2004.  Six monitoring stations are on the Tongue River, and five stations are on the major tributaries.  Continuous streamflow and specific-conductance data from each station will be collected and transmitted in real-time to the USGS Tongue River website (http://TongueRiverMonitoring.cr.usgs.gov/).  Similar data for a twelfth station (Tongue River above T & Y Diversion Dam), operated in cooperation with the T & Y Irrigation District, will be added to the network.  The specific-conductance monitors will be operated on a seasonal basis (generally from about April through October).

Collect water-quality data – The USGS will collect water-quality samples throughout the year.  The Tongue River mainstem stations will be sampled twice-monthly during the irrigation season (March-September) and approximately monthly during the remainder of the year.  The tributary stations will be sampled about monthly, with more frequent sampling during the irrigation season and less frequent sampling during the winter.  A total of 18 samples at mainstem sites and 12 samples at tributary sites will be collected.  Although actually on the mainstem, Tongue River at Monarch will be sampled at the same frequency as the tributaries because of its headwater position in the watershed and because of the similar size of its upstream basin to that of the other major tributaries.  Samples will be analyzed for major ions, nutrients, trace elements, and suspended sediment at the frequencies listed in table 2.    

Provide real-time SAR estimates and measurements – The USGS will provide real-time sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) data in two ways.  First, statistical relations between specific conductance (SC) and SAR will be used to estimate SAR from SC for eight of the stations.  For the other four sites, SAR will not be estimated from SC because sufficient data for recent years are not available to develop statistical relations or because recent data indicate that the SC-SAR relation is not statistically significant or is not consistent during different hydrologic conditions, and therefore is not suitable for estimating SAR in real-time.  Statistical relations developed for use during 2004 have been revised for use during 2005 by incorporating data from 2004 samples.  In addition, statistical relations have been developed for two sites where real-time estimated SAR was not provided during 2004. 

Second, field SAR instrumentation developed during 2004 will be deployed at two sites to provide automated measurements of the constituents (calcium, magnesium, and sodium) used to calculate SAR.  This instrumentation is planned for installation by May 2005 at Tongue River at State Line and a second site, which has not yet been determined. 

Provide information to the public – The USGS will maintain the web site specific to the Tongue River monitoring network (http://TongueRiverMonitoring.cr.usgs.gov/).  The site contains a fact sheet describing the network, project plans, water-quality data, and information about estimating and measuring SAR.  The web site provides an easy portal to access real-time data for streamflow, SC, and estimated SAR for each station in the network.  Additional information will be added to the website as it becomes available.

Project plan for fiscal year 2004

Table 1.  Stations and activities included in the Tongue River monitoring and reporting network in 2005.

[Streamflow gaging, continuous recording of specific conductance, and water-quality sampling are conducted at each site. Listing of one or more agencies other than the USGS indicates that the activity at the site is supported entirely or in part through other programs.]

Table 2.  Properties and constituents for which samples will be analyzed in 2005.  Tongue River at Monarch will be sampled at the same frequency as the tributaries.

Field parameters

pH, field
specific conductance, field
water temperature, field
dissolved oxygen, field

Major Ions (18 times/yr mainstem; 12 times/yr tributary.)

calcium, dissolved
magnesium, dissolved
potassium, dissolved
sodium, dissolved
alkalinity, dissolved
sulfate, dissolved
chloride, dissolved
fluoride, dissolved
silica, dissolved
total dissolved solids, calculated
SAR, calculated

Suspended Sediment (18 times/yr mainstem; 12 times/yr tributary)

concentration
percent finer then 0.063 mm

Nutrients (6 times/yr)

ammonia, dissolved
nitrogen, total recoverable
nitrite, dissolved
nitrite + nitrate, dissolved
phosphorus, total recoverable
orthophosphate, dissolved

Trace Elements (6 times/yr)

aluminum, dissolved
aluminum, total recoverable
arsenic, dissolved
arsenic, total recoverable
barium, dissolved
barium, total recoverable
beryllium, dissolved
beryllium, total recoverable
boron, dissolved
cadmium, dissolved
cadmium, total recoverable
chromium, total recoverable
copper,  dissolved
copper, total recoverable
iron, dissolved
iron, total recoverable
lead, dissolved
lead, total recoverable
lithium, dissolved
manganese, dissolved
manganese, total recoverable
mercury, total recoverable 
nickel, dissolved
nickel, total recoverable
selenium, dissolved
selenium, total recoverable
strontium, dissolved
zinc, dissolved
zinc, total recoverable 

Note: Mercury sampling frequency will be 2 times/year using a low-level analytical method.

Figure 1.  Water-quality sampling sites in the Tongue River watershed. All sites have continuous streamflow gages (full year) and specific-conductance monitors (seasonal).