Environmental Monitoring of Algal Blooms in a River System - Sponsored Whitepaper

Stand-Alone Recording with Battery Backup
CHESTERLAND OH—May 31, 2012

CAS DataLoggers recently provided the data logging solution for an environmental organization monitoring an outbreak of algal blooms in a major river. The slime-colored blooms had formed as a rapid increase in the population of aquatic photosynthetic microorganisms (such as phytoplankton or cyanobacteria) to the extent that the water became noticeably discolored. First a research team was formed to ascertain all the factors contributing to the outbreak. Researchers hoped that there was a way of allowing the river’s natural forces to inhibit its algae growth, given that the river was also dammed at frequent intervals by a system of locks and weirs. To this end, they required detailed knowledge of weather conditions on the river’s surface and a highly- accurate temperature stratification profile within the river itself. The team began looking for a stand-alone datalogger with battery backup which could connect to a wide range of environmental sensors for unattended logging. High durability and easy USB data retrieval were also musts.