The Water Quality Data For Blair's Valley Lake, Maryland

    Students conducting tests on Water Quality

    North Hagerstown High School's Ninth Grade Interdiscipinary Team known as The New Millennium analyzed the data from their water quality tests of the Blair's Valley Lake in Washington County, Maryland. The lake is a man-made lake, but it is considered to be part of the Potomac River Watershed as the Conococheague Creek empties from the lake into the Potomac. The following table is an average of the tests done on October 29, 1996. The longitude and latitude coordinates for the lake are: 39, 41" 79' Longitude and 77, 56" 79' latitude.

    Blair's Valley Lake, October 1996

    Test

    Normal Values

    Average Found

    Dissolved Oxygen
    Milligrams per liter.

    		 75 10.08

    Fecal Coliform
    (colonies/100 ml)

    		 0-200 180

    ph (units: 1-14)

    		 6.8 - 7.9 6.91

    Biological Oxygen Demand (mg/l)

    		 9-11 3.73

    Change in Water Temperature (in degrees celcius)

    		   -1.7

    Total Phosphates (mg/l)

    		 0.00-0.07 0.05

    Nitrates (mg/l)

    		 0.00-2.30 <.1

    Turbidity (Lack of clarity) (NTU/ft)

    		 0-5.4 2.1

    Total Solids (mg/l)

    		 Varies 0.035

    Overall water quality=69.776. (In the medium range).

    		 For an explanation of these tests, please visit the Water Page.

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