Document Type

Thesis - Open Access

Award Date

2008

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department / School

Biology and Microbiology

First Advisor

W. Carter Johnson

Abstract

Wetlands provide many goods and services to society free of charge. Goods and services include the support of diverse floral and faunal habitat, biomass production, groundwater recharge, carbon sequestration, environmental pollutant filtration, flood control, and recreation. Over one-half of the wetlands in the United States have been drained. Remaining wetlands are accumulating sediment at various rates depending on their position in the landscape and landuse practices in the watershed. Current restoration efforts focus on quantity rather than quality. Additionally, many wetland restoration projects produce deep ponds which function differently from wetlands. An efficient and inexpensive method of measuring and mapping wetland bathymetry at the time of EuroAmerican settlement is needed to provide restorationists with a target to recover wetland function. Sediment markers permit estimation of the age, amount, and pattern of sediment in prairie wetlands. Commonly used sediment markers include isotopes, such as Cesium-137 and Lead-210, and pollen grains such as Salsola spp. and Ambrosia spp. Fly ash, derived from coal burned at high temperatures, is present in wetland sediments but has not been evaluated as a sediment marker. These pollen-size, spheroid, magnetic particles may be found up to 20 km from the point of dispersal. Fly ash from steam locomotives appeared in the prairie landscape at the same time as the prairie sod was being broken for agriculture. Extraction of fly ash from wetland sediments requires only basic lab equipment, little training, and is inexpensive compared to isotope or pollen sample preparation. Most importantly, fly ash is not subject to decomposition. The use of fly ash as a marker to identify the pre-agricultural horizon in wetland sediments is evaluated in a semi-permanent wetland near Colman in east central Moody County, South Dakota. Sediment cores were obtained with a modified Livingston piston corer. Thirteen cores were taken throughout the wetland basin. The cores were cataloged and analyzed for fly ash content. Sediment accumulation was found to be greatest around the edges of the wetland and the least in the center of the basin. Post-settlement sediment depth ranged from 15 cm to 48.5 cm with an average of 28 cm. Sedimentation rates were calculated for a 126 year period and ranged from 0.12 cm y(1 to 0.38 cm y(1 with an average of 0.22 cm y(1 . These results are similar to other postsettlement sedimentation rates reported for similar wetlands in the region. Gleason (2001) reported an average of 0.26 cm y(1 for 58 seasonal and semipermanent wetlands in the Prairie Pothole Region. Pizzolato et al. (1995) reported 0.12 - 0.41 cm y( 1 averages for three semi-permanent wetlands in North Dakota. Vll A GIS map of sediment depth and distribution was prepared to guide the process of sediment removal should that be chosen as a restoration method. Results from this study indicate that fly ash can serve as an inexpensive yet effective marker for wetland restorations.

Library of Congress Subject Headings

Fly ash 
Sediments (Geology) 
Wetland restoration -- Prairie Pothole Region 
Wetland restoration -- South Dakota 
Prairie Pothole Region 
South Dakota

Publisher

South Dakota State University

Download

Share

COinS
 

Rights Statement

In Copyright