Start Date
2019
Description
In 2013, Plaster Creek Stewards built Kreiser Pond, a green infrastructure bioswale in East Grand Rapids that flows into Plaster Creek. It has reduced the creek’s water flow, making the creek less prone to flooding. A similar green infrastructure project was completed at Shadyside Park in Dutton in 2019. At Shadyside Park, a floodplain was built to slow the flow of the creek when there is heavy rainfall and prevent erosion caused by flooding.1 Plaster Creek’s flow rate isn’t the only concern. There is also significant microbial (bacterial and viral) contamination in Plaster Creek.2 This project investigated whether the green infrastructure projects implemented at Kreiser and Shadyside influenced the microbial contamination, as well as developed and utilized a protocol for differentiating between human and animal sources of microbial contamination
Recommended Citation
Gibes, Sarah; Meer, Luke Vander; and DuBois, Kelly, "Plaster Creek Microbial Ecosystem and Source Tracking" (2019). Summer Research. 9.
https://digitalcommons.calvin.edu/summer_research/2019/Posters/9
Plaster Creek Microbial Ecosystem and Source Tracking
In 2013, Plaster Creek Stewards built Kreiser Pond, a green infrastructure bioswale in East Grand Rapids that flows into Plaster Creek. It has reduced the creek’s water flow, making the creek less prone to flooding. A similar green infrastructure project was completed at Shadyside Park in Dutton in 2019. At Shadyside Park, a floodplain was built to slow the flow of the creek when there is heavy rainfall and prevent erosion caused by flooding.1 Plaster Creek’s flow rate isn’t the only concern. There is also significant microbial (bacterial and viral) contamination in Plaster Creek.2 This project investigated whether the green infrastructure projects implemented at Kreiser and Shadyside influenced the microbial contamination, as well as developed and utilized a protocol for differentiating between human and animal sources of microbial contamination