Gravity pulls solid particles out of flowing water, letting them collect on the bottom — that process is sedimentation. In this project, you compare suspended sediment in Umptanum Creek and Wenas Creek using an Imhoff cone. You let water from each creek sit still inside the cone so particles settle downward, revealing how much solid material each waterway carries.

Nitrate is a nitrogen compound that dissolves in water and feeds plant growth. When farms and homes sit near a creek, fertilizer and waste wash into the flow and raise nitrate levels. Wenas Creek passes through more developed land; Umptanum Creek flows through open rangeland. Both start from the same snowpack and feed into the Yakima River — yet when you test each for nitrates, turbidity, and suspended sediment, the readings diverge. Wenas shows higher nitrate and turbidity levels, while Umptanum carries more suspended sediment. That pattern points to human land use as the source of extra nitrogen in nearby waterways.

Rain and snowmelt flowing over land pick up substances from the ground before reaching waterways. This project compares two creeks — Umptanum and Wenas — that both start from the same snowpack and feed into the Yakima River. Wenas Creek passes through more developed land; Umptanum flows through open rangeland. Water samples from each are tested for nitrates, turbidity, and suspended sediment. Wenas Creek showed higher nitrate and turbidity levels, while Umptanum had more suspended sediment. That difference suggests human activity raises certain chemical levels in the waterways nearby.

Rain washes soil, fertilizer, and fine debris off nearby land and into creeks and rivers. When you measure that cloudiness with a turbidimeter, the reading reflects how many tiny particles are floating in the water. Wenas Creek, which flows through a more developed area, showed higher turbidity and nitrate levels than Umptanum Creek — suggesting that human activity raises the particle load in nearby waterways.