Minor: Energy Studies
Faculty Advisor: Jeremy Fein, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences
Research Area: Sustainable Bio/Fossil Fuels

Heavy Metal Pollution, Water Quality, and Land Use Change Analysis along the Little East Arm Calumet
Watershed (Spring 2024)

Heavy metals play a significant role in our freshwater systems, and are a byproduct of increasing human population, industrialization, and quickly changing land use. In particular, recent research has shown that significant deposition of many metals, such as mercury (Hg) and chromium (Cr), can be aerially deposited in regions near coal burning for power generation (particularly for the steel industry), which is then often distributed into soil and water sources via agricultural and urban runoff. High levels of heavy metal pollution can hinder regional biodiversity, but potentially more importantly, could pose significant health hazards on residents in the region. Heavy metal pollution at high levels has been shown to be carcinogenic, as well as posing threats of organ failure and stunted growth. In a region such as the Midwest with significant coal and fossil fuel usage for industrial processes, it is imperative to know the extent of pollution. 

This research will quantify the extent of the pollution, and using statistics analysis and GIS techniques, determine the extent of the relationship with different land use types (agricultural, residential, urban). The analyses will help decipher the role of energy production and industrialization in polluting the watershed with heavy metals, which has many major environmental and health risks. At the same time, this research project is being conducted in collaboration between the ND Center for Environmental Science and Technology (CEST) and local Shirley Heinze Land Trust (SHLT). The results will provide valuable information for residents who work and play in SHLT’s regional parks spanning the watershed and help inform the safety of water resources in the region, but also influence collaboration between SHLT and I in developing educational programs on pollution mechanisms and water quality in the south Lake Michigan region.

To achieve the stated research goals, field work is imperative. I have already gathered a single sample run of 20 sites, which has shown some evidence of Hg pollution greater than EPA standards. In the coming week, I will collect expanded direct water and soil samples from 24 sites along the East Little Calumet Watershed corridor, that will be stored for analysis later this semester and next semester.

Analyzing water samples requires use of extensive equipment within the ND CEST facilities, although specifically utilizes the ICP-OES, XRF, and mercury analyzers. I have already been trained and used the equipment multiple times and will simply need to run the samples. After analysis, I will use my experience with Python, and the GIS resources available at the library to quantify heavy metal pollution and water quality measurements along the corridor.

Outside of analysis, I will continue to work closely with SHLT to develop educational programs through the semester and provide them with a report on the water quality in the region, particularly on their land. I have already been in discussion with them and ND Environmental Science DUS Dominic Chaloner on developing an official Notre Dame and SHLT pathway for future research and internships with the nonprofits for those interests in the application based side of research.

This project will require some technical skills that I already have, significant amounts of communication and teamwork between the ND facilities and SHLT, and a large amount of planning and analysis. Next semester I will be a second semester senior, and anticipate being part-time, and therefore putting 15-20 hours/week into the project. I also hope to recruit an underclassman to continue the work after I graduate, and have an interview/informal meeting scheduled with an interested Junior in the coming week.

Final Report