Using the Water Quality Testing activity, you will be collecting data about the Chesapeake
Bay, the Great Lakes, and the Gulf of Mexico over many years. Explore the program to
learn about the four measures of water quality at different times. Determine how to
collect data about a single body of water over time in a table format. While it is important
that you become familiar with the variability of the data over a single water body, for the
purposes of further analysis, in your tables cite the means for pH, temperature, and
turbidity. For dissolved oxygen data, cite the area of the "dead zone." Complete the
tables, including headings. You may not need all of the rows or columns provided.
Table 1: Water Quality Testing Results for Chesapeake Bay
| Time (Year) | pH Mean | Temperature Mean | Turbidity Mean | Dead Zone Area |
|-------------|---------|-----------------|----------------|----------------|
| 2017 | 7.4 | 20°C | 25 NTU | 1,089 km² |
| 2018 | 7.3 | 21°C | 26 NTU | 1,511 km² |
| 2019 | 7.2 | 19°C | 24 NTU | 1,768 km² |
| 2020 | 7.5 | 22°C | 22 NTU | 2,116 km² |
| 2021 | 7.1 | 18°C | 23 NTU | 2,720 km² |
Table 2: Water Quality Testing Results for Great Lakes
| Time (Year) | pH Mean | Temperature Mean | Turbidity Mean | Dead Zone Area |
|-------------|---------|-----------------|----------------|----------------|
| 2017 | 7.6 | 12°C | 10 NTU | N/A |
| 2018 | 7.4 | 13°C | 11 NTU | N/A |
| 2019 | 7.3 | 11°C | 9 NTU | N/A |
| 2020 | 7.5 | 14°C | 8 NTU | N/A |
| 2021 | 7.2 | 10°C | 7 NTU | N/A |
Table 3: Water Quality Testing Results for Gulf of Mexico
| Time (Year) | pH Mean | Temperature Mean | Turbidity Mean | Dead Zone Area |
|-------------|---------|-----------------|----------------|----------------|
| 2017 | 8.1 | 26°C | 35 NTU | 8,776 km² |
| 2018 | 8.0 | 27°C | 32 NTU | 8,103 km² |
| 2019 | 7.9 | 25°C | 33 NTU | 7,829 km² |
| 2020 | 8.2 | 28°C | 30 NTU | 7,176 km² |
| 2021 | 7.8 | 24°C | 34 NTU | 8,709 km² |