# Proceedings of the Federal Interagency Workshop on Turbidity and other Sediment   Surrogates, April 30-May 2, 2002, Reno, Nevada 

# U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1250  Edited by John R. Gray and G. Douglas Glysson  Sponsored by the Federal Interagency Subcommittee on Sedimentation

# A pdf is available for this report.

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## Abstract

The April 30-May 2, 2002, Federal Interagency Subcommittee on Sedimentation   Workshop on "Turbidity and Other Sediment Surrogates," held in Reno, Nevada,   brought together a diverse group from local, State, and Federal agencies, academia,   and the private sector with common interests in turbidity and other sediment-surrogate   measurements used for estimation of water clarity and (or) selected characteristics   of suspended sediment. The general goals of the workshop were to (1) propose   a technically supportable, unambiguous definition of turbidity, and (2) describe   the proper use, capabilities, and limitations of turbidimeters and other instruments   operating on bulk-optic, digital-optic, laser, acoustic and pressure-differential   principles for providing reliable surrogate data to characterize selected properties   of suspended sediment and associated flux computations. 

Findings and recommendations from the workshop were derived through two plenary   sessions, four breakout sessions, a blind reference sediment-sample measurement   session, and a pre-workshop questionnaire on "Uses of Turbidity by States   and Tribes." Among the findings of the workshop were the conclusion that   there is considerable ambiguity in the definition, meter calibration, and measurement   of turbidity; and that turbidity measurements can be unreliable and relatively   inaccurate. Workshop recommendations included calls for a new standard method   for measurement of the optical properties of natural water and wastewater; and   standard and reliable procedures for measuring and storing data on water clarity   and suspended sediment, and for computing sediment fluxes.

## Table of Contents

Executive summary 

Introduction to the proceedings of the Federal Interagency   workshop on turbidity and other sediment surrogates

Breakout Session 1: Definition of optical methods for turbidity   and data reporting 

Breakout Session 2: Use of optical properties to monitor turbidity   and suspended-sediment concentration

Breakout Session 3: Computing suspended-sediment records using   surrogate measurements

Breakout Session 4: Other fluvial-sediment surrogates 

Summary of blind sediment reference sample measurement session 

Uses of turbidity by states and tribes 

References 

Appendix 1: List of registrants and respective affiliation   for the “Turbidity and Other Sediment Surrogates Workshop,” April   30-May 2, 2002, Reno, NV 

Appendix 2: Papers submitted as part of the, “Turbidity   and Other Sediment Surrogates Workshop,” April 30-May 2, 2002, Reno, NV

Appendix 3: Questionnaire used to provide information on “Uses   of Turbidity by States and Tribes,” as part of the “Turbidity and   Other Sediment Surrogates Workshop,” April 30-May 2, 2002, Reno, NV

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