Skip navigation
  • Home
  • Browse
    • Communities
      & Collections
    • Browse Items by:
    • Publication Date
    • Author
    • Title
    • Subject
    • Department
  • Sign on to:
    • My MacSphere
    • Receive email
      updates
    • Edit Profile


McMaster University Home Page
  1. MacSphere
  2. Open Access Dissertations and Theses Community
  3. Open Access Dissertations and Theses
Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: http://hdl.handle.net/11375/28599
Title: Monitoring water quality for recreational use in nearshore waters of Eastern Georgian Bay
Authors: Vinden, Jacqueline
Advisor: Chow-Fraser, Patricia
Department: Biology
Publication Date: 2023
Abstract: Georgian Bay is well known for its excellent water quality and recreational beauty; however, some regions are showing signs of degradation and eutrophication, threating the way of life for residents and cottagers. The goal of my thesis is to provide the Township of Georgian Bay (TGB) with updated resources, including information on their water quality and a sampling protocol that local community members can use, so water quality can be effectively managed and protected. First, we investigated the changes in water quality from a historic period (2001 – 2009) to the current period (2020 – 2022). We found that 80% of sites had a decrease in E. coli (EC) between periods, likely associated with increased dilution from an approximately 1 m increase in water levels. Secondly, we examined regional variation within TGB and found that Honey Harbour and Oak Bay had the highest mean EC and total phosphorus (TP) concentrations and therefore are of greatest concern. Next, we wanted to understand what potential factors could be influencing this regional variation and found that mean EC and TP were positively and significantly correlation with road density and the percentage of modified area. Lastly, we designed a novel method for monitoring nutrient status in nearshore waters using periphyton that can be used by local community members. We found that the periplate results are sensitive to areas of high human disturbance and may be used in volunteer monitoring programs. The results of this study can help the TGB and other similar municipalities make informed management decisions and policies to protect the excellent water quality of Georgian Bay.
URI: http://hdl.handle.net/11375/28599
Appears in Collections:Open Access Dissertations and Theses

Files in This Item:
File Description SizeFormat 
Vinden_Jacqueline_LP_2023_MSc.pdf
Access is allowed from: 2024-04-27
6.73 MBAdobe PDFView/Open
Show full item record Statistics


Items in MacSphere are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.

Sherman Centre for Digital Scholarship     McMaster University Libraries
©2022 McMaster University, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, Ontario L8S 4L8 | 905-525-9140 | Contact Us | Terms of Use & Privacy Policy | Feedback

Report Accessibility Issue