During the 1960s, pollution from upstream carpet factories heavily affected the connected rivers of the Coosa River Basin. The Clean Water Act of 1977 and actions by local and municipal authorities led to significant efforts to restore the river. The purpose of this experiment was to monitor how well these efforts have continued in the following years. This study details trace metal analysis of 84 samples collected by Adopt a Stream volunteers during the 2016 Paddle Georgia journey. Samples and blanks were collected at 84 individual sites over a 100-mile span along the three rivers. They were prepared according to EPA 200.9 acid digest method. Once digested, they were analyzed for 16 different metals and their isotopes utilizing a Nexion 350D ICP-MS located at the PerkinElmer Technical Center in Johns Creek. The NexION ICP-MS was configured with helium gas to eliminate polyatomic interferences, which could lead to inaccurate data and false positive results. Although a few sites contained levels of certain trace metals above the advised EPA Drinking water threshold, none of these are considered particularly harmful. This seems to demonstrate that the efforts of Adopt-a-Stream, local government, and volunteers is continuing to have a positive effect on the health of this river system.

Analysis of heavy metal content in the Conasauga, Oostanaula and Coosa Rivers utilizing the PerkinElmer NexION 350D ICP-MS

253rd National Meeting (2017)

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