Methods of Data Collection

A reconnaissance of the area was conducted 3 weeks before the start of data collections. Sites were selected to provide a dense spatial resolution that bracketed all visible surface inflows to the mainstem of Miller Creek, including all tributaries and seeps, and bracketed any streamside mine waste. Sampling sites were selected and marked with flagging. Their locations were determined in the field using a global-positioning system. Field locations were verified in the office by plotting each site by latitude and longitude on a topographic map. Forty-nine sites were selected for sampling along the mainstem of Miller Creek. The most upstream site, the tracer-injection point, was located just upstream from the Black Warrior Mine, site 0 on figure 2. Site numbers were assigned on the basis of the distance of each site, in feet, downstream from the tracer-injection point. Site locations and descriptions are presented in table 1. Reference to the left or right bank in the site descriptions and throughout this report refers to the bank of Miller Creek viewed while looking downstream.

Table 1. Location and general description of sampling sites in the Miller Creek watershed, Montana, August 30-31, 2000 (click here for pdf file) (click here for xls file)

Tables are presented in PDF (.pdf) format and as Microsoft Excel (.xls) files.  If you have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your computer, you may view and/or print the PDF version of these tables. If you do not have Acrobat Reader, you may download it here.

In addition to the mainstem and inflow sites sampled along Miller Creek, six sites were sampled upstream from the mouth of East Fork Miller Creek. East Fork sites were labeled with a prefix letter (E) to avoid confusion with mainstem sites (fig. 2). The most upstream site in the East Fork watershed, designated as site E0, was located about 50 ft downstream from a spring that flowed into the East Fork channel. Upstream from the spring the channel was dry. Sampling-site numbers for the East Fork watershed were designated according to the site's distance, in feet, downstream from site E0. The mouth of the East Fork (site 3,205) was designated in the same manner as other inflows to Miller Creek, thus its site number was not prefixed with an E.

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