Deep Creek Atmospheric Deposition Study

Program Description

The Deep Creek Lake Monitoring Program was a four-year (September 1980 through August 1984) field study conducted at Deep Creek Lake in Garrett County, Maryland. Deep Creek Lake, which is actually a 3,900-acre reservoir, is Maryland’s largest freshwater impoundment. The field study was designed and conducted in a joint project between Garrett Community College (GCC) and Versar, Inc. (Versar) (formerly Martin Marietta Environmental Systems), under contract to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Power Plant Research Program (PPRP). The major objectives of this study were to determine if acid deposition posed a significant threat to the lake and to assess the significance of specific acid inputs, especially those due to air emissions from sources in Maryland and surrounding states.

The deposition sample monitoring site was located on the campus of Garrett Community College, which is within the lake’s watershed. The monitoring site (sampler elevation 2,600 ft msl) was located at latitude 39º 33' 40" north and longitude 79º 20' 30" west.  Deposition sample collection activities at the site included:

• Collection of wet deposition samples on an event basis using an Aerochem Metrics Model 301 collector, and bulk (wet plus dry) deposition samples on an event basis using an open Aerochem Metrics collection bucket,

• Measurement of precipitation amount and type,

• Measurement of wind speed, wind direction, and temperature,

• Determination of cloud cover type and ceiling approximately three times daily, and

• Classification of storm type and direction of origin (for special studies).

The chemical parameters measured in deposition samples were ions of sulfate, nitrate, chloride, sodium, potassium, ammonium, and hydrogen; pH; specific conductance, total acidity, and strong and weak acidity. All chemical analyses of deposition samples were performed in Versar’s laboratories.

Additionally, lake and streamwater sampling activities conducted for this program included:

• Monthly surface and bottom water samples from five locations in Deep Creek Lake,

• Monthly streamwater samples from 12 tributaries to Deep Creek Lake (only in the first year; in subsequent years sample collection took place at only two streams on a daily basis), and

• Annual surface water samples (between 30 and 40) from 18 sites in the Cherry Creek Watershed (Cherry Creek drains an active coal mining area and is the most acidic of the 12 tributaries studied).

For additional specific information about the precipitation, lake, and stream sampling and analysis programs, consult the documents listed below.

Related Reports

The following documents associated with the Deep Creek Lake Monitoring Program are available from the Maryland PPRP.  For further information, email Dr. John Sherwell at the PPRP, or call him at 410-260-8660.

• Assessment of Acid Inputs to Deep Creek Lake, Garrett County, Maryland, First Annual Report, Prepared by Garrett Community College for the Maryland Power Plant Research Program, 1981, Report No. PPSP-MP-37.

• The Effect of Acid Precipitation on Deep Creek Lake, Garrett County, Maryland, Year Two, First Quarterly Report, Prepared by Garrett Community College for the Maryland Power Plant Research Program, 1982.

• The Assessment of Acidic Inputs to Deep Creek Lake, Garrett County, Maryland, Year Two, Second Quarterly Report, Prepared by Garrett Community College for the Maryland Power Plant Research Program, 1982.

• The Assessment of Acidic Inputs to Deep Creek Lake, Garrett County, Maryland, Year Two, Third Quarterly Report, Prepared by Garrett Community College for the Maryland Power Plant Research Program, 1982.

• An Assessment of the Chemical Composition of Rain and Surface Water Samples Collected at Deep Creek Lake, Garrett County, Maryland, Prepared by Martin Marietta Environmental Systems for the Maryland Power Plant Research Program, June 1982, Report No. PPSP-MP-39.

• Assessment of Acid Inputs to Deep Creek Lake, Garrett County, Maryland, Second Annual Report, Prepared by Garrett Community College for the Maryland Power Plant Research Program, 1983, Report No. PPSP-MP-46.

• An Assessment of the Chemical Composition of Rain, Lake, and Tributary Water Samples Collected at Deep Creek Lake, Garrett County, Maryland, Second Annual Report, Prepared by Martin Marietta Environmental Systems for the Maryland Power Plant Research Program, April 1983, Report No. PPSP-MP-47.

• Assessment of Acid Inputs to Deep Creek Lake, Garrett County, Maryland, Third Annual Report, Prepared by Garrett Community College for the Maryland Power Plant Research Program, 1985, Report No. PPSP-AD-8.

• Chemical Composition of Precipitation and Watershed Samples Collected at Deep Creek Lake, Garrett County, Maryland, Third Annual Report, Prepared by Martin Marietta Environmental Systems for the Maryland Power Plant Research Program, August 1984, Report No. PPSP-AD-9.

• Assessment of Acid Inputs to Deep Creek Lake, Garrett County, Maryland, Fourth Annual Report, Prepared by Garrett Community College for the Maryland Power Plant Research Program, May 1985, Report No. PPSP-AD-10.

• Analysis of Air Mass Trajectories Associated With Rain Events at Deep Creek Lake, Maryland 1981-1982, Prepared by Martin Marietta Environmental Systems for the Maryland Power Plant Research Program, May 1985, Report No. PPSP-AD-11.

• Chemical Composition of Precipitation and Watershed Samples Collected at Deep Creek Lake, Garrett County, Maryland, Final Report, Prepared by Martin Marietta Environmental Systems for the Maryland Power Plant Research Program, October 1985, Report No. PPSP-AD-12.

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