GREAT LAKES 

ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH LABORATORY 

ANNUAL REPORT FY 1984 

December 1984 

Eugene J. Aubert, Director 

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 

Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research 

Environmental Research Laboratories 

Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory 

2300 Washtenaw Avenue 

Ann Arbor, Michigan 48104 
Mention of a commercial company or product does not 

constitute an endorsement by NOAAIERL. Use for publicity 

or adwrtising purposes, of information from this publication 

concerning proprietary products or the tests of such products, 

is not authorized. 
PREFACE 

The Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory 

(GLERL) has completed its tenth year of operation in Ann 

Arbor. GLERL's mission is to conduct research directed 

taward understanding the environmental processes and 

solving problems in resource management and 

environmental services in coastal and estuarine waters, 

with a special emphasis on the Great Lakes. The 

environmental information developed is made available 

to NOAA, other gmrnment agencies, universities, 

industries, and individual citizens to aid them in their 

environmental services, plans, and operations. 

Understanding the complex lakeland-atmospheresediment system of the areas in and around the Great 

Lakes and coastal and estuarine waters and the many 

interactions that influence the lies of those in these 

regions requires a team of scientists with different 

backgrounds working together on field, laboratory, and 

analytic imtigations of the limnological, hydrological, 

and meteorological properties of the lakes, their basins, 

and the mrlying atmosphere. The ultimate goal of the 

GLERL program is to understand the lakelandatmospheresediment system to the extent that 

environmental simulation and prediction models can be 

built that will provide sufficiently precise information on 

Great Lakes and coastal and estuarine processes and 

phenomena to support enlightened use of the 

regions' resources. 

This annual report is intended to inform the scientific 

community, decision-makers, and other interested 

individuals of GLERU capabilities, program, significant 

results, and plans for the future. It is also intended to 

encourage an exchange of information beween those in 

need of environmental information for operational, 

planning, or management activities. 

GLERL's multidisciplinary program reflects the need for 

improved understanding, prediction, and specific 

information about the Great Lakes. Biogeochemical 

studies of the cycling and dynamics of nutrients and toxic 

contaminants are needed to improve understanding and 

prediction of processes occurring in the Great Lakes 

ecosystem and to provide more precise scientific 

information relevant to the management of wastes, water 

supplies, and fisheries. Models to simulate and predict 

the transport and fate of contaminants as a function of 

human input to the lakes are needed to support 

management decisions on wastewater and regulation 

policies. More precise scientific information on lake 

water levels, connecting channel flows, and ice 

distribution is useful to those concerned with erosion 

control, transportation, recreation, and power generation. 

Studies of the lakes' physics impm understanding and 

prediction of the circulation, the thermal structure, and 

the transport and dispersjon of chemical and biological 

variables in the ecosystem; numerical forecast tools result 

in products applicable to pollution transport and 

dispersion. Research on physical phenomena like surface 

waws, seiches, and surges provides impd 

understanding and numerical prediction methods that are 

applicable to shipping activities, recreation, shoreline 

flooding, and erosion. 

GLERL staff continue to work with Great Lakes 

regulatory and management agencies, in both Canada 

and the United States, to provide them with the research 

products, data, and expertise they need. They also serw 

as officers, board members, or committee members of 

such organizations as the lnternational Joint Commission, 

the Great Lakes Commission, and the lnternational 

Association for Great Lakes Research. These activities 

provide an outlet for GLERL products and a means of 

identifying environmental problems requiring 

further study. 

Other outlets for GLERL products include requests from 

private organizations and individual citizens. The 

scientific community is informed of the products through 

journal articles, NOAA technical reports and memoranda 

and data reports, and presentations at society meetings. 

The location of GLERL in Ann Arbor near the University 

of Michigan provides the opportunity for cooperative 

research programs and for graduate student participation 

in GLERL projects. Visiting scientists participate in GLERL 

research studies on a continuing basis. 

iii 

TABLE OF CONTENTS 

Preface 

Highlights 

Synthetic Organics and Particle Dynamics 

Ecosystem and Nutrient Dynamics 

Lake Hydrology 

Physical Limndogy and Meteodogy 

Environmental Systems Studies 

Information Services 

International and Interagency Activities 

Facilities 

Publications 

Presentations 

Contractor Publications 

iii 

1 

5 

11 

17 

23 

29 

31 

33 

35 

41 

43 

45 
CLERL Organization Chart 

4""- E J. Aubert 

. - - - . . - - -. . 

ADHIWlSTM~ CaWUTEnFIcnrn 

R H. Bramlef Head 

F. H. Quinn. Head I -~EP6v I T. D. Fontaine. Head 

B. J. Eadie, Head W. S. Gardner. Head J. R. Bennett, Head 
HIGHLIGHTS 

For 10 years the Great Lakes Environmental Research 

Laboratory (GLERL) has been conducting research on significant processes and problems in the Great Lakes Region and 

other coastal and estuarine waters. GLERL research isdiversified in form. Process research is aligned along four primary 

disciplines. But problemriented multidisciplinary research, 

using staff from more than one group, is also conducted. The 

in-house research program is supplemented by grants and 

contracts with private institutions. In turn, GLERL supports 

the efforts of other government agencies. GLERL research 

products are disseminated by publications or presentations 

and discussions at scientific and user meetings. During FY 

1984,51 papers authored by GLERL staff and 15 papers by 

contractors were published, and 49 papers prepared by 

GLERL staff were presented at meetings. 

Research 

The GLERL research program continues to evolve. Some 

major research accomplishments during the past fiscal year 

are indicated below. 

.Ammonium excretion rates by ~ral life stages (nauplii 

to adult) of the marine copepod Eucalanus pileatus were 

measured in two controlled food environments to assess the 

importance of life stage and food abundance to nutrient 

regeneration by zooplankton. When food was abundant, 

animalsof all stages released ammonium at similar rates per 

unit ash-free dry weight, but at low food levels, late-stage 

juveniles and adult females released ammonium significantly 

more slowly than did nauplii or early stage juveniles. 

.A Temperature-Diffusion Model was calibrated for a 2Wr 

data set from Lake Washington, and estimates of vertical 

turbulent diffusion coefficients were completed. These 

diffusivities were used to model a nearly conservative 

substance--total alkalinity. 

.A final report documenting the results of the major, yearlong (197980) Lake Erie experiment using current-meter 

moorings was pub1 ished. Analyses of thermistor chain 

profile data define the seasonal dmlopment and decay of 

stratification in the central basin and its response to storms. 

'.studies have been conducted with current drifters in Lake 

Michigan to determine whether they can be used confidently as indicators of particle trajectories. A cluster ofthm 

drifters wasdeplayed in a patch of rhodamine B dye. Separation of the centroid of the drifters and the dye center of mass 

was compared with wind data and used to calculate the 

slippage velocity. 

.Recent laboratory experiments of the sorption process 

haw determined the equilibrium partition coefficient (Kp) 

for a series of radiolabeled organic compounds ranging 

mr four orders of magnitude in solubility onto the settling 

particulate matter collected monthly in offshore Lake 

Michigan sediment traps. Initial results indicate there is less 

than an order of magnitude change in Kp on the settling 

material mr a single season. 

.The survival and viability of the meroplanktonic diatoms 

Melosin granulata are being imtigated in cooperation with 

University of Michigan scientists. This diatom rernainsviable 

for periods of at least 100 years while buried in the sediments 

and is capable of photosynthesis immediately upon exposure 

to light. 

.The effeas of nutrient patchiness on the composition of 

natural assemblages of algae were examined in laboratory 

experiments. Patchy supply resulted in dominance of a single 

blue-green algal species, whereas homogeneous supply 

resulted in codominance among the blue-greens, flagellated 

greens, and a diatom. These results demonstrate that the 

mechanism of nutrient supply can affect algal composition 

in the Great Lakes. 

.A series of articles to synthesize knowledge and recent 

Lake Erie research accomplishments is being prepared jointly 

by GLERL and the Canada National Water Research Institute 

for publication in a special issue of the journal of Great 

Lakes Research. A key paper will be a synopsis of the Lake 

Erie current-meter studies described ah. A second paper 

will discuss analyses of the current-meter measurements 

done with a new objective analysis method and compare 

analyses with the results of a timedependent numerical 

circulation model. 

.A twodimensional, vertically integrated circulation model 

has been used to study the importance of Ekman layer physics 

tothe sedimentation patterns of southem Lake Michigan. One 

experiment used a circularly symmetric idealization of Lake 

Michigan's southern basin, a "typical" Great Lakes storm 

system, and a sediment source assumed uniform mr the 

surface of the idealized lake. The results of a comparison of 

sediment deposition and erosion for models with and without 

Ekman physics confirm the theory that deposition tends to 

occur preferentially in cyclonic gyres. 

.Correlation of benthic invertebrate abundance with 

measurements of nutrient release from intact sediment cores 

indicated that bntoporeia hoyi may suppress silica release 

from sediments by burying the silica-rich surficial floc layer. 

This increased understanding will lead to more accurate 

models of the dynamics of nutrient release from Great 

Lakes sediments. 

.Approximately 100 sediment traps were deplayed and 

retrieved throughout Lake Michigan over the past year to 

determine the rates of settling of particulate matter and the 

fluxes of various contaminants. Initial results indicate that 

during stratification traps deployed offshore above or 

immediatelybelow the thermoclineare useful in estimating 

the new load (predominantly atmospheric) of material entering the lakes, and that during the unstratified period 

(Nowmber-June) resuspension is very great and pnrvides a 
mechanism hr intimate coupling be- the water column 

and recent sediments. 

.Since most synthetic organic contaminants of concern 

adhere to particles and rapidly settle out into the sediments, 

the process of direct uptake by benthic invertebrates and 

transfer up the food chain to higher trophic lewls is of major 

concern. Field results indicate that the common benthic 

amphi pod bntoporeia hoyi and oligochaete worms haw 

significantly higher concentrations of polycyclic aromatic 

hydrocarbons (PAH) than do the surrounding sediments. 

.The field portion of the Hi-Sed program has been completed for all five Great Lakes with the collection of cores 

from the regions of high, recent sediment accumulation in 

Lake Superior. Results have supported previous reports of a 

near-surface layer of mixed sediments. A major advance is 

the development of a nonsteady-state model and an 

associated computer program to simulate the effects of 

zoobenthos feeding and mixing on sediment tracer and 

contaminant profiles. 

OAqualitative study of the temporal impacts of St. Clair River 

dredging on the flaws in the St. Clair, Detroit, and Niagara 

Rivers and on the 1-1s of Lakes Michigan-Huron, St. Clair, 

and Erie has been completed. The impact was greatest near 

the end of the dredging project for the St. Clair and Detroit 

Rivers and Lake St. Clair; this time of maximum impact lagged 

by about a year maximum impacts on Lake Erie and the 

Niagara River. 

.A series of software packages, from data acquisition through 

model application, has been dewloped for ultimate use in 

generating deterministic runoff outlooks in near real-time. 

Dewlopment of the near real-time data acquisition system 

is continuing. Procedures have been initiated for including 

substantial amounts of Canadian meteorological data on the 

National Wather Service (NWS) weather wire and for the 

rapid receipt of data from second-order stations. 

.Equivalent channel sections based on measured 

hydrography haw been used to revise the Upper Detroit River 

Unsteady Flw Model. The model is cumtly being modified 

to include thevarious islands and channels. A new dynamic 

calibration pmedure has been dewloped; it will significantly 

impm model results over those obtained from the static 

calibration procedure that has been used by all agencies in 

the past. 

.A computer forecast package for Lake Superior basin runoff 

was developed that uses near real-time meteorological data 

to produceoperational outlooks of value to lake leiel regulation. The package is composed of (1) data acquisition and 

reduction by a computer system that monitors interagency 

data links and updates provisional meteorological station 

networks, (2) the automatic computation of weighted sub 

basin meteorological data files from the provisional station 

data, and (3) the semiautomatic distributed-parameter 

application of GLERCs Large Basin Runoff Model with suitable 

graphic interpretations. 

Data analysis and evaluation from the 1983 Lake Michigan 

Ecosystem Experiment was completed for water column 

nutrients, sediment trap chemistry, community level 

phytoplankton growth, and zooplankton grazing. This data 

set is unique because all the processes known to contribute 

to grawth and loss of phytoplankton were measured simultaneously from the same water mass. Transparency of the 

water column has increased dramatically over the last year 

and suggeststhatthequality of water in the lake has imprcrved 

a great deal. One hypothesized reason for this change is an 

increase in large cladocerans and a reduction in algae due 

to increased salmonid predation on, and rapid declineof, the 

alewife population. 

@Studies of primary production in Lake Superior demonstrated that abundant small cyanobacteria (bacteria-sized 

phytoplankton) account for about one-half of the total primary 

production and exhibit growth rates of two to four divisions 

per day. Microzooplankton, such as protozoa, appear to be 

consuming this production. These very small organisms 

constitute an important, but previously unrecognized, part 

of the Lake Superior food chain. 

.Phosphate uptake kinetics and computer simulations 

suggest that mixed microbial assemblages haw! half-saturation 

constants from two to three orders of magnitude lower than 

those shown previously in laboratory cultures. Phosphorus 

stress apparently induces micro-organisms to produce highaffinity uptake systems, thus allowing relatively rapid growth 

rates at low ambient phosphate concentrations. This helps 

explain the controversial paradox of high phytoplankton 

growth rates when phosphate concentrations are very low in 

lake and ocean waters. 

.The relation betwen zooplankton feeding rate and food 

concentration for laboratory cultures of algae and for lake 

seston was determined in a study to test the Effective Food 

Concentration Model. Results validated the model and 

demonstrated that feeding rates determined with algal 

cultures cannot be applied directly to lake seston. 

Frame-kyframe analysis of 140 films of copepod feeding 

shd that the copepod Diaptomus sicilis is not an optimal 

forager (i.e., it does not necessarily select the most abundant 

available food), and supported the accuracy of the Effectiw 

Food Concentration Model. This information is needed for 

a quantitative understanding of how zooplankton obtain food 

and affect the composition of phytoplankton seston in the 

Great Lakes. 

0~ih-n analysis also shd that both the current field produced and the feeding behavior of Diaptomus sicilis differ 

from those of marine copepods. These results explain why 

D. sicilis can specialize on small particles for food and also 

why, for it, there is an invariant relation betven particle selection and particle size. Based in part on these results, a model 

is being developed to describe the feeding rate of this 

copepod in mixtures of various particles such as are found 

in lake water. 

Calcite particles at the same concentration and size found 

duringcalcitewhiting in LakeMichigan were found todepress 
zooplankton grazing significantly. Thisdepression was gmater 

than that observed for clay particles at the same concentration. Whitings in fecal pellets accelerate the downward flux 

of the pellets up to tenfold. 

Nutrient transformation studies on silty Lake Michigan 

sediments indicate that nitrogen released by macroiwrtebrates as ammonium is rapidly converted to nitrate 

(nitrification) and then comrted to nitrogen gas (denitrification) by microbes. These processes must be quantified to 

determine the importance of sediment mineralization as a 

nutrient supply mechanism in the Great Lakes. 

Microcosm experiments indicate that iwrtebrate mixing 

enhances phosphorus release from sediments, but that 

mixing beyond a threshold level has no effect on the rate 

of phosphorus release; i.e., phosphorus release is not 

related to animal density. This enhanced phosphorus 

release may explain why disproportionately high levels of 

primary production have been observed for nearshore 

regions. These studies are part of an effort to quantify the 

importance of aerobic sediments as a source of phosphorus 

in Lake Michigan. 

*Microbial transformation rates of labile organic materials 

dissolved in lake waters were examined by measuring 

concentration decreases of law levels of amino acids added 

to Lake Michigan water. Aminoacid tumrwas slaw during 

summer in offshore Lake Michigan. 

*First-order estimates of bacterial growth in the Lake 

Michigan Ecosystem Experiment also indicate that turnaver 

of organic carbon by bacteria is slower than previously 

expected. These results suggest that bacteria may play a less 

important role in nutrient and energy cycling in the nutrientpoor lakes than in nutrient-rich systems. 

*A wind-generated-wave prediction model has been 

developed theoretically and tested numerically against a 

2-month data set from a GLERL t-r and a NM Data Buoy 

Center (NDBC) NOMAD buoy in Lake Erie with remarkable 

agreement between observed and computed wave height. 

Validation and comparison with NWS operational forecast 

procedures are under way. Interactiw wave prediction software, implemented on the GLERL VAX 111780 computer, has 

been made available to fiw Great Lakes NWS Forecast Offices 

to facilitate model validation as a local marine weather 

forecast tool. 

*The 1981 Lake ErieCoastal Boundary I;ryer Experimentdata 

have been used to examine the probability distributions for 

both deep and shallow water waves. Results haw that both 

the Rayleigh distribution for wm heights and the LonguetHiggins distribution for waw period cruerpdicted the highest 

waes in a record and underpredictedthe inkrmediatewws 

By applying a two-parameter Wibull distribution to both 

height and period data and using pararnetersdetetmined from 

the data, the accuracy of the fit was impd significantly. 

@The representation ofshallaw waterwavespectra isa basic 

tool for Iinkingtheoretical analysis with measurements. The 

GLERL generalized spectrum representation yieldsexcellent 

agreement between model results and rneasumts for both 

deep and shallow water ms. 

Four satellite-tracked buoys deplayed in ice in the central 

and eastem basinsof Lake Erieduring January 1984 rewaled 

continuous ice mrnent, often at surprisingly high speeds. 

Flights wew made mry 2 weeks to obsene ice conditions 

and make ice measurements in the vicinity of each buoy. 

*The GLERL Hydrologic Response Model was used to 

predict the impacts of the record St. Clair River ice jam 

on lake levels and flaws. The analysis and results meid 

nationwide attention. 

*The recently published Great Lakes Environmental 

Research Laboratory Ice Atlas, an official NOAAatlas, will be 

the standard on Great Lakes ice mr tbr some years 

to come. It documents improved understandingoftheGreat 

Lakes ice cycle. 

Information Services 

During the past par, more than 4,200 research products 

wre prwided in response to almost 2,000 documented requests. Of these, 27% came from institutions d higher learning, 12% from private citizens, 31% from foreign gcnemment 

agencies, 7% from industry and private organizations, 16% 

from U.S. Federal Cknernment agencies, and 7% from State 

Gmmments. This was in addition to regular mailings to those 

interested in receiving semiannual lists of publications and 

any of the fiw types of GLERL publications. 

International and Interagency Mvities 

*GLERL staff wreactiw on several IJC boardsand committees including the &Is and Flaws Advisory Board; the 

Technical Information Network Board; the Wealth of Aquatic 

Communities Wrk Group; the Task Force for Lake Michigan 

Suneillance; the Task Force for In-Place Sedimentary Contaminants; the St. Marys, St. Clair, and Detroit Riwrs and Lake 

St. Clair Task Force of the Surveillance Work Group; the 

Aquatic Ecosystem Objectiw Committee Wrk Group; the 

Modeling Task Force of the Science Advisory Board; and the 

Lake Erie Task Force of the Suneillance Wrk Group. 

*A GLERL staff member sene on the Natural Resources 

Management Committee (Subcommittee on Land and Air, 

Subcommittee on Water) of the Great Lakes Commission. 

GLERL staff participated in the activities ofthe International 

Association of Sediment Water Science, the lnternational 

Coordinating Committee on Great Lakes Hydraulic and 

Hydrologic Data, the Regional Response Team for Spills of 

Oil and Hazardous Substances, the Joint United StatesCanadian Ice lnforrnation Working Group, the lnternational 

Association for Great Lakes Research (President, Secretaly), 

the Science Education Administration of the United States 

Pepmment of Agriculture, NOAA-United States Geological 

Sunq Coordinating Committee for Hydrologic Research, the 

lnternational Association for Hydrologic Research, the Inter- 
agency Great Lakes Hydromet Steering Committee, and 

the National Research Council Panel on Niagara Riwr Ice 

Boom Investigations. 

.The laboratory is participating in the planning phaseof an 

international (United States-Canada) and interagency, 

multiyear study on water quality and marine pollution problems in the upper Great Lakes connecting channels. The 

United States agencies are the Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA), NOW, the Corps of Engineers, the Fish and 

Wildlife Service, and the Michigan Department of Natural 

Resources. The Canadian agencies are the Environmental 

Protection Service, Department of the Environment; the 

National Wr Research Institute, Inland Waters Directorate; 

the Department of Fisheries and Oceans; and the Ontario 

Ministry of the Environment. 

.Activities imlving participation with other NOAA units 

included the Marine Environmental Quality Task Force, the 

Quality Assurance Mrking Group, the Manned Undersea 

Research and Technology Program-National Marine 

Fisheries Service, the New Bedford Harbor PCB Contamination Assessment Team, the Marine Environmental Quality 

Review, and the Estuarine Review. GLERL staff participated 

in seeral Sea Grant activities including the Uniwrsity of 

Wisconsin Site and Subprogram (Microcontaminants) 

Reviews and the Ohio State Uniwrsity Site Review. In a joint 

program with the Ohio State Sea Grant, GLERL is develop 

inga recreational atlas for Lakes Erieand St. Clair. GLERL has 

also worked extensiwly with the NWS in the United States 

and the Atmospheric Environment Service in Canada on an 

operational, interactiw waw model. 

OGLERL scientistswrealso actiw in pmiding information 

to wral local agencies, such as the Kalamazoo Riwr Pmervation Agency and theTechnical Advisory Committeeof the 

Huron Ri~r Watershed Council. 

Facilities 

.Two major types of compounds are analyzed by GLERCs 

chemistry laboratories: trace synthetic organics and 

nutrients The synthetic organics, primarily PAH, are extmckd 

from various ecological matrices, cleaned, and analyzed on 

glass capillary gas chromatographs. These chromatographs 

are currently being interfaced with GLERCs V! 1W80 to 

upgrade data analysis capability. 

.The uptake and release rates of selected PAH by benthic 

organisms are being foll<rwed through useof ca~bon-14 and 

tritium-labeled compounds. Compounds are extracted, 

cleaned, and counted by liquid scintillation. Numerous water 

samples from Lake Michigan were analyzed for various forms 

of phosphorus and silica and other water quality indicators 

as part ofthe Lake Michigan Ecosystem Experiment. Thepurpose was to define processes contributing to phytoplankton 

dynamics, bacterial gnrwth, and ecosystem carbon flaw in 

Lake Michigan. 

.The biology laboratories are nw in the process of acquiring and installing microcinematography apparatus similar to 

that used at the Skidaway Institute of Oceanography to make 

the first observationsof the feeding processes bra freshwater 

copepod. This will be used to study and quantify the feeding 

mechanismsof other Great Lakes zooplankton. The process 

of zooplankton feeding and other zooplankton-algal interactions occupies a central role in models of eutrophication 

and toxic organic cycling. 

.The GLERL computer facility supports data acquisition, 

data reduction, graphics, and modeling application sfor scientists and technicians in the research groups. A VAX 111780 

superminicomputer supports general purpose applications 

(e.g., graphics, data reduction and analysis, modeling, word 

processing) and a Hewlett-Packard 9603 minicomputer 

supports data acquisition tasks. Within a year, a link to 

the National Bureau of Standards (NBSI-ERL Scientific 

Computing Facility Cyber 205 in Gaithersburg, MD, 

is planned. 

.The RV Shenehon is the primary platform used in support 

of open lake field investigations. The msel is 65.6 feet long, 

with a6fifoot mean draft, a 600-nautical-mile cruising range, 

and a 1O-knot cruising speed. A hydraulic articulated crane 

is used for deployment and retrieval of heavy instrument 

moorings. Winches handle hydrographic wire and multiconductor cable for sample casts and in situ measurements 

of water variables. An onboard laboratory facilitates onsite 

physical, chemical, and biological experiments. A loran 

C navigation system pmides the capability and precision 

forthe boatto return toan exact site in the lakesforequipment 

retrieval. 

.The marine instrumentation laboratory staff selects, calibrates, repairs, and, when necessary, adapts or designs 

instruments to collect data in the lakes and their environs. 

This past year, a Wme Rider Information Processing Station 

(WRIPS) buoy was acquired to process waw statistics and 

spectra and transmit data to a GOES satellite. In addition, 

wral data acquistion systems using a Hewlett-Packard 75 

calculator wre acquired for use in the field. 

OGLERL library staff support laboratory activities by maintaining a tailored research collection and offering special 

retrieval services when the collection cannot meet the 

documentation or information needs of the researchers. The 

GLERL library made its collection more readily available to 

scientists with the recent impravements in the GLERL Library 

Automated Retrieval System (GLARES) and its implementation on the VAX 111780 minicomputer. The system now 

permits browsing, boolean logic, cross references, and 

multiple access points. 
SYNTHETIC ORGANICS AND sediment-water Process Model 

PARTICLE DY NAMICS S 

the areas of toxic organic cycling, the role of benthic invertebrates in the fate of pollutants, synthetic organic partitioning, lake particle flux dynamics, and studies of early 

diagenesis in Great Lakes sediments. 

With the increase in population and industrial activities Deep 

overthe last half century, more human-induced pollution has Sediments 

been added to the Great Lakes. Since many of these conThe Synthetic Organics and Particle Dynamics Groupconcentrates on understanding the processes that control the Water 

movement and fate of trace contaminants in the Great Lakes Column 

and coastal marine ecosystems. The work is organized into 

taminants are resistant to decomposition and are foreign 

and/or toxic to the biota, precise information on their 

behavior, fate, and effects is necessary to develop and 

implement cost-effective management strategies. The goal 

of this program is the development of the necessary tools 

(models, information bases, networks of experts, etc.) to 

enable us to predict accurately the consequences to the Great 

Lakes ecosystem of alternative toxic management decisions. 

This requires a systematic understanding of the major 

ecosystem processes that affect or are affected by the 

substance(s) under consideration. 

Since its creation in 1974, GLERL has specialized in the 

design and development of ecosystem models that simulate 

or predict the physical, chemical, and biological responses 

oftheGreat Lakes to imposed stresses. In this program, efforts 

todate have focused on the development of system models, 

supported by the specific process research required to 

improve, calibrate, and/or validate models that simulate the 

behavior and fate of persistent contaminants. Modelingexperimental interactions enables us to make stepwise 

improvements in our understanding of the ecosystem's 

response to contaminants. Such information is necessary to 

identify which contaminants pose the greatest threat to the 

P-4-t 2 4 3 

environment, which organisms or regions within the lakes 

are most affected, what can be expected in the years ahead, 

and what can be done to reduce the level of ecosystem stress. 

In August 1979, GLERL began a research program in 

cooperation with the Office of Marine Pollution Assessment, 

NOAA, recently renamed the Ocean Assessment Division 

(OAD) of the National Ocean Service, NOAA. The purpose 

of this program is to develop theability topredicttheenvironmental consequences of persistent synthetic organic contam inants in the Great Lakes ecosystem. The assurance 

of a long-term cooperative program with the OAD has 

allowed GLERL to develop cooperative agreements with 

several research institutions and to pursue a comprehensive 

research program focused on a few questions regarding the 

flow of selected organicswithin theGreat Lakes. The results 

will be transferable to coastal marine systems. 

A predictive capability requires models. Therefore, an inSimplified conceptual model of processes associated with the behavior of 

toxic organic contaminants. Prepments particle phase, D qnwmts dissolved 

phase, and B is an abbrwiated food chain. The six process arm are (1) 

sorption, !2) settling and resuspension, (3) transport and dispersion, (4) benthic 

food chain dynamics, (5) benthos-sediment interactions, and 6) bioturbation 

and burial.Thefateof toxic materialsentering theCreat Lakes has important 

implications for human health. 

house modeling team, consisting of chemical, toxicological, 

ecological, and physical scientists, has been established. This 

modeling group is supported by researchers working on 

primary ecosystem processes. 

Early GLERL modeling results indicated that the contaminant concentrations in biota appear to come into relatively 

rapidequilibrium with the water column and thatwatercolumn concentrations are mediated by sorption, settling, and 

resuspension. Benthic organisms appear to be somewhat 

different-they seem to acquire a substantial portion of their 

contaminant body burden from sediments. Thus they can be 

an important vector in transferring sediment-associated 

contaminants up the food chain. 

Settling and Resuspension Studies 

Most polluting and enriching substances in the aqueous 

environment have a strong affinity for fine suspended 

particles; thus their transport and fate are dictated by the fine 

particle dispersal system. Total suspended matter VSM) plays 

avital role in the solution chemistry of theGreat Lakes. TSM 

sorbs pollutants from the water, providing a potential 

mechanism for cleansing the lakes through sedimentation. 

In some cases, however, the sediments serve as only a 

temporary reservoir forthe sorbed contaminants, later releasing them into overlying water and exposing the ecosystem 

to "trapped" contaminants. It is necessary at this time not only 

to know theconcentrations of TSM and associated contaminants and nutrients, but to determine the net flux of these 

substances into the lakes and sediments and the rates 

of reentrainment. 
Some previous GLERL studies with sediment tram have SCIr(lfi0tl Studies 

shown &en Lake Michigan metalimnetic TSM fl;x to be 

about 0.7 grams per square meter per day during the stratified 

period. Thisagreeswell with lead-21 0 and cesium-1 37sediment accumulation rates from the same region, indicating 

that, during the period of stratification, GLERL near-surface 

traps measure something approaching net downward flux 

of suspended material and its associated contaminants. For 

stow and nonstratified periods, measurements show a TSM 

flux of about 4.6 grams per square meter per day. 

During the past year, GLERL scientists deployed and 

retried approximately 100 sediment traps throughout Lake 

Michigan. From measurementsofthe material in thesetraps, 

it is possible to estimate the rates of settling of particulate 

matter and, after chemical analysis, the fluxes of various 

contaminants. Sample analysis for several contaminants is 

currently underway. There have been two major results of 

initial analyses of the data. First, it appears that traps deployed 

offshore above or immediately below the thermocline during 

the period of stratification are useful in estimating the new 

load (predominantly atmospheric) of material entering the 

lakes. This extremely important measurement isa notoriously 

difficult estimate to make by other techniques. Second, these 

trap studies have shown that resuspension during the 

unstratified period (November-June) is very large and pre 

vides a mechanism of intimate coupling between the water 

column and recent sediments. 

In an ongoing extension of this work, profiles of sediment 

traps weredeployed (July) in offshore Lakes Superior, Huron, 

and Michigan. These traps were retrieved in September and 

have now been redeployed for winter collection. 

Trap Deployment 

In GLERL sorption modeling efforts, it is assumed that 

adsorption (probably) and desorption (possibly) occur at fast 

enough rates that an equilibrium approach is acceptable. In 

that case, anequilibrium partition coefficient (Kp) isdefined 

as the ratio of the particle-associated contaminant concentration (ppm) to the dissolved contaminant concentration 

(ppm). Kp has been shown to be inversely proportional to 

compound solubility and concentration of substrate and pre 

portional to the organic carbon content of the substrate. 

Recent work has concentrated on making laboratory 

measurements of Kp of the settling particulate matter collected monthly in our offshore Lake Michigan sediment traps. 

There were 1 1 such collections in the past year, and studies 

of them have provided much insight into the vertical flux of 

particulate matter in the lake. Unpoisoned samples of these 

trap materials were used as substrates for laboratory 

measurements of Kp with a spectrum of organic compounds. 

The seasonal variation appears to be about one order 

of magnitude. Further analysis of these data is currently 

under way. 

Compound Partitioning 

to Surface Trap Material 

TCB (16) 

4 L7-;I--- 

3 

45 67 891011 

Month (1983) 

The seasonal partitioning coefficient (Kp) for benzo(a)pyrene, 

tetrachlorobiphenyl, Wrene, and phenanthrene on near-surface collected 

trap material from LakeMichigan. Kp is the ratioofconcentration on particles 

todissolved compound. Numbers in parentheses arecompound solubilities 

in parts per billion. The hatched areas indicate 1 standard deviation. 

In addition to these measurements, it has been shown 

that a substantial fraction of the operationally defined 

"dissolved" contaminant is weakly bound to natural 

dissolved organic matter (DOM), and it appears that this 

bound material is not bioavailable, at least to the common 

benthic amphipod Pontoporeia hoyi. The bioavailability of 

GLERL sedimenttrapdeployment locationsfor 198485. Trapscollect material contaminants has important implications for their transfer 

settling out of the water column, which can be analyzed for various through the food chain. Studies indicate that the partition- 

-pounds. Sedimen~can sew assourcesand sinksforcontaminantsand ing of contaminant organics onto DOM is not related to 

nutrient& compound solubility. The Kp and Kb (defined as the ratio of 
the DOM-associated contaminant concentration to the 

dissolved contaminant concentration) for a wide spectrum 

of organics illustrate the strong differences in the solubility 

relationships. GLERL studies indicate that Kb is much more 

closely related to differences in the characteristics of the 

DOM; molecular weight appears to be an important factor. 

Laboratory and field experiments are currently being 

conducted in this area of research. 

HCBP HCB 

BaP DDT BaA 1 1 !~;CB m" I/"B~P 

Log K, 4 

3 ' PCP 

-101 2345 

Log Solubility 

(PP~) 

Partitioning (Kp) and binding (Kb) coefficients da spectrum d radiolabeled 

contaminant organic compounds to Lake Michigan sediments. Kp is the 

likelihood thatthecornpound will sorbonto particlesand Kb isthe likelihood 

that the compound will sorb onto organic matter. The compounds (in order 

of increasing solubility) are benzo(a)p/rene, hexachlorobiphenyl, Dm, 

hexachlorobenzene, benzo(a)anthracene, tetrachlorobiphenyl, Wrene, 

rnonochlorobiphenyl, phenanthrene, biphenyl, and pentachlorophenol. It 

is important that there be additional research on the relationship between 

Kp and Kb because it has important long- and short-term impacts on 

bioavailability. 

complex and that current theory is of little use in explaining 

the divergence of dye and buoy trajectories except under light 

wind conditions. The experiments consisted of monitoring 

the spatial separation of the centroid of a drifter cluster and 

the center of mass of a patch of fluorescent dye. 

Another accomplishment in this area is the development 

and calibration of the Coupled Lakes Contaminant Behavior 

and Fate Model (CLM). This model uses monthly rates of 

atmospheric deposition to the surface and drainage bajin of 

each lake to compute concentrations in the wellmixed water 

column and resuspended sediments. The special properties 

of the fallout radionuclides and excellent quality of the 

records of their loadings to the Great Lakes make them 

attractive for calibration of long-term response models such 

as the CLM. Records of the monthly deposition of 

strontium30 at some sites in the Great Lakes Region are 

nearly continuous over a 30-year period. The rate of deposition of cesium-1 37 may be reliably inferred from the 

strontium90 data. Tributaries add very little strontium-90 

(and considerably less cesium-1 37) to the total inventory 

in the water. Some data agree poorly with the model, 

especially for Lake Huron, but it should be noted that not all 

reported data are of comparable quality or accuracy. Some 

of theearly strontium-90data were obtained from water sub 

jected to treatment and filtration processes and thus 

underestimate actual amounts present. Strontium-90 is 

only weakly associated with the particulate phase and is 

essentially conservative in each of the lakes. 

In contrast to strontium-90, the other nuclide of interest 

(cesium-1 37) is strongly particle associated. At present, only 

a small fraction of the activity in each is in the water. What 

Transport and Dispersion 

Transport and dispersion studies are being conducted 

jointly with the Physical Limnology and Meteorology Group 

and are partially described in that section. Satellite-tracked 

drifter buoys have been employed to refine the Pathfinder 

spill model. However, before any buoy configuration can 

confidently be used in Lagrangian studies, its effectiveness 

in tracking water parcels must be known. At this time, there 

is no buoy that is 1 OOOh effective. The combination of wind, 

wave, current shear, and buoy hydrodynamics influences 

drifter tracks, hampering identification of water particle 

trajectories. 

The appropriate value for wind slippage as a percentage 

of the wind vector forthe drifters was determined from theory 

to be 0.5%. Experimentsdesigned to test this hypothesis were 

conducted during summer 1983 and 1984 on Lake 

Michigan. Preliminary results indicate that the behavior of 

the mini-TOD (Polar Research Laboratory, Inc.) drifters is 

ONTARIO 

" 

1950 1960 1970 1980 

YEAR 

Response d the five Great Lakes to loadings of the fallout radionuclide, 

cesium-137. Measured concentrations are indicated as closed circles (open 

for Superiot). The cuurres are based on the Coupled Lakes Contaminant 

6ehaLior and Fate Model as calibrated by strontium-90. The persistence d 

cesium137 in lake water into the 1970's and 1980's is due to resuspension 

d the radionuclide from bottom sediments. 
little is left in the water appears to be largely the result of 

reuspension. Hence, the particleassociated radionuclides 

serve, in principle, todetermine the magnitude of resuspension and the size of the pool of resuspendable sediments. 

These values can be determined with minimum ambiguity 

because, for the radionuclides, thereare nodegradation terms 

except for radioactivedecay, which is precisely known. For 

lakes other than Lake Huron, the only data are from the 

19701s, when there was relatively little change in concentrations. The Lake Huron data, covering a 34year period, 

provide the best confirmation of the suitability of the CLM. 

The model can eventually be used for the simulation and 

prediction of contaminant organics. 

Role of Benthic Invertebrates 

in the Fate of Pollutants 

It is known that most contaminants of concern adhere to 

particles and rapidly settle out into the sediments. Their 

reintroduction into the water column via resuspension has 

been mentioned above. A second and apparently important 

process for remobilizing contaminants out of sediments 

involves direct uptake by benthic invertebrates and transfer 

up the food chain to higher trophic levels. 

A model being developed under contract uses the concept 

of bioenergetics to propagate caloric energy (and contaminants) up the food chain. Results from model calibration 

runs for alewife, a midtrophic level planktivore, indicate that 

a substantial fraction of the fish's PCB body burden is derived 

from feeding on benthos. Major source pathways are direct 

uptake from water and consumption of the benthic amphi pod 

Pontoiporeia hoyi; fish mortality and elimination to the water 

are major loss pathways for PCB's. 

PERCENTAGES OF TOTAL INFLUX 

AND OUTFLUX OF PCB IN THE 

LAKE MICHIGAN ALEWIFE POPUIANON 

(133 kg PCB's) 

Influx Percentage Outflux Percentage 

water 49% elimination 49% 

k? hoyi 24% mortality 48% 

other food - 27% spawning - 3% 

100% 100% 

The relative importance of these pathways is diffwent when 

one examines the total flux through an individual alewife 

averaged across 8 years of life. 

TOTAL FLUX OF PCB THROUGH 

AN INDIViDUAL ALEWIFE WHEN 

AVERAGED ACROSS 8 YEARS OF LIFE 

Influx Percentage Outflux Percentage 

water 43% elimination 87% 

P hoyi 39% (8yr old 

survivors) 

other food - 18% spawning - 

13% 

100% 100% 

Juvenile alewives do not spawn, and a smaller fraction of 

their diet is hntoporeia hoyi than in older, adult alewives. 

The relatively large biomass of younger alewives in the 

population thus reduces the population's awrage spawning 

losses and benthic food chain uptake of PCB's. 

It is important to consider such population awrages when 

assessing the contaminant flux through an aquaticecosystem. 

Extrapolation from an "m~rage" individual can result in biased 

estimates of the relatiw importance of different pathways of 

contaminant flux through an entire population. This contaminant model foralewiws is currently being linked to asimilar 

model for coho salmon. Also currently underway is an 

uncertainty analysis of the bioenergetics-based model of 

contaminant uptake. 

BentbSediment Interactions 

Benthdiment interaction studies are designed to determine the uptake, depuration, and biotransformation rate 

constants for various toxic organics in Great Lakes invertebrates and to determine the empirical relationships between 

the rate constants and environmental parameters such as 

temperature, pollutant concentration, and sorption to 

dissolved and particulate organic matter. The past yeats work 

has focused on alteration of bioavailability in the presence 

of dissolved organic matter. Bioavailability of organic 

xenobiotics from water is reduced in the pmenceofdissold 

organic carbon (DOC) as measured by short-term static up 

take experiments with the dominant Great Lakes benthic 

organism, the amphi pod hntoporeia hoyi. 

The biomilable fraction is the ''freely dissolved" compound, while thematerial associated with DOC is apparently 

not bioavailable. The total body burden in the hntoporeia 

hoyi can be accounted for from the uptake rate determined 

in the absence of DOC and the "freely dissolved" concentration based on the partition coefficient determined by the 

reverse-phase technique. The partitioning of organic 

xenobiotics to the DOC, determined biologically, correlated 

with the partitioning determined by mrse phase to yield 

a slope of the regression line of one. The intercept for the 

regression line indicated that there was a constant bias 

betwen the two methods of a factor of approximately three, 
with the biologically determined partitioning greaterthan that 

determined from the re\nerse-phase methodology. Therefore, 

the mrse-phase-determined partition coefficient can be 

used to predict the bioavailableconcentration of organics in 

the presence of DOC under the conditions that have been 

currently explored. Further work with other organisms, 

different natural DOC, morecompounds, and greater lengths 

of exposure will be necessary to describe fully the usefulness 

of the reverse-phasedetermined partition coefficient to 

predict the bioavailability of organic xenobiotics. Also, the 

binding to particulate organic carbon can be expected to 

influence the bioavailability of organic xenobiotics as much 

as DOC, and additional work is required to determine the 

influence of particulate sorption on bioavailability. 

/ Interstitial 

Waters 

Aldrich 

Humic 

Acids 

Log of Kb (the partition coefficient determined by reverse phase) versus the 

log of the partition cdcient determined from the uptake kinetics for binding 

or sorption of organic xenobiotia(material fo 

Aldrich humic acids and natural dissolved organic matter, both measured 

as dissolved organiccah (DOC). Them methods ofdetermining Kbagree 

ven/ well; thus if Kb determined by reverse phase is known, the log of the 

biologically determined partition coefficient can be predicted accurately. 

The seasonal toxicokinetics of PAH to Pbntopia hoyi are 

currently being studied with measurements of sorption to 

DOC, lipid content of the animals, and organism size. The 

thermal dependence of the kinetics is also under study. 

Preliminary results indicate that the major faaor affecting the 

seasonal variation in the uptake rate constant is binding to 

DOC. This binding results in underestimates of the uptake 

rate constant for benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) by as much as 61%. 

Correction for sorption to DOC yields a seasonal variability 

profile for BaP that is similar to that for phenanthrene. The 

phenanthrene uptake rate constant is not subject to the 

influence of binding to DOC by more than 1-2% because of 

its lower octanol to water partition coefficient and the 

relatiwly low collcentratioh of DOC in Lake Michigan water. 

In conjunction with the studies of laboratory kinetics, the 

concentrations of PAH in Pontoporeia hoyi, water, and 

sediments from a field study site off Grand Haven, MI, are 

being determined mrthe course of the season in an attempt 

to validate the seasonal change in the animal concentration 

predicted from theToxicokinetics Model. Thewaterand sediment data will be used to determine the parameters for the 

GLERL Current Model to permit predictions of the animal 

concentrations. The Current Model will have to be modified 

to take into account the fraction of the compound found in 

the water that is bioavailable. Therefore, threephase sorption 

studies are being performed over the course of the season to 

determine the bioavailable concentration of a suite of 

xenobiotics. It is hoped that this field validation will pointout 

the areas necessary for further study and prwide a better 

understanding of toxicokinetics as they apply to I? hoyi. 

In addition to these studies, GLERL supports two contract 

projects on the development of techniques to measure 

chronic effects of PCB's and PAH on benthic imrtebrates. 

The first of these involves the analysis of the distribution 

of free amino acids in the organism and changes when 

exposed to chemical stresses. The second procedure is 

designed to measure changes in the rate of activity (sediment 

mixing for the oligochaetes being tested) when exposed to 

chemical stress. In this procedure, a thin layer of 

cesium-137-labeled sediment is placed on top of a laboratory 

microcosm and the mavement of the cesium is nondestructively monitored. Techniques have been refined and field 

work is currently undetway. 

Bioturbation and Burial 

In an attempt todetermine the ratesof introduction of trace 

contaminants into the sediments and the postdepositional 

behavior of these contaminants, GLERL scientists haw collected and partially analyzed sets of sediment cores from the 

areas of maximum accumulation in each of the fiw Great 

Lakes. This could only haw been accomplished with the help 

of the Canada Centre for Inland Waters, which prwided ship 

and technical support. The collection phase was recently 

completed with work in Lake Superior. 

These cores haw been carefully subdivided and distributed 

to 23 researchers for analysis. At this time, radionuclide 

measurements (for "dating" purposes) are nearly complete, 

and analysis of trace organics (PCB's, PAH, dioxin, other 

chlorinated hydrocarbons) and one selected metal (lead) on 

a few of the cores is complete. Results have supported 

previous reports of a near-surface Iapr of mixed sediments. 

A major advance is the development of a nonsteadystate sediment mixing model (currently being calibrated and tested), 

which pides information on the rateof mixing in this mixed 

layer. This is necessary to simulate the mmment of sedimentassociated contaminants into and out of the region subject 
to resuspension and interaction with benthicorganisms. The 

model takes account of (1) sediment accumulation, (2) compaction, (3) depthdependent biodiffusion of particle and 

solution phases, (4) molecular diffusion, (5) advective 

transport and surface redeposition of tracers and contaminants due to depthdependent feeding of comrqror-belt 

feeders, (6) radioactive decay, and (7) ti me-dependent fluxes 

to the sediment surface. What makes the model at once 

unique and applicable to both freshwater and marine systems 

is the treatment of sediment redistribution by the comrqrorbelt deposit feeders. These organisms, prevalent in both 

Xd~graphsddistributions multingfrom introduction da bacerpulse 

into a nondispersive system with localized conveyor-belt feeding by 

oligochaetes. In the left-hand panel, the sedimentation rate is zero. After 8 

years, the pulse is buried, but has not encountered significant redistribution 

through feeding. By 16 years, the peak is in the feeding zone, and a surface 

peak hasappeared and md dawnward slightly. By 24years, thesecondary 

peak itself has encountered the feeding zone and produced a tertiary peak. 

Comp~ssion dthe peaks occurs on burial as the particle velocity approaches 

zero at the base of the feeding zone. After 40 years, the tracer is almost 

uniformly mixed within the feeding zone except for remnant peaks at its 

terminus. In the middle and right-hand panels are distributions in systems 

with nonzero sedimentation rates (0.25 centimeters per year and 0.5 

centimeters per year). Whilesuch rdectionscan, in principle, beproduced 

by cornqw-belt feeding, they are not expected to occur much in practice 

since they are tramient featuresobliterated by prolonged mixingand by both 

disbibuted keding and dispersive ptuces~e~ The model has also been applied 

to predict theeffect of particleselective feeding on radionuclide and pollen 

distributions used for sediment dating and to examine time resolution in 

nomlispenive systems. 

marine and fresh water, ingest sediments over a range of 

depths, while depositing gut contents from tails protruding 

above the sediment surface. This action transfers buried 

materials to the sediment surface and accelerates the rate of 

sediment and pore water burial within the feedingzone. Since 

this process is particle selective, it represents a mechanism 

for enhanced transfer of contaminants to the vicinity of the 

sediment-water interface. In the model, particle selectivity 

is handled by applying mass conservation separately to tracers 

and bulk sediments. 

Concentration (relative units) 
--- -- -

ECOSYSTEMAND NUTRIENT

DYNAMICS

The "health" of the Great Lakes is evidenced by the quantity and composition of biota in them. Benthic organisms can

indicate long-term trends in water quality, whereas pelagic

biota reflect water quality more immediately. Planktonic

plants and animals are of particular interest because they are

at the base of the aquatic food chain. The ability to predict

quantitatively types and amounts of these organisms in the

lakes is importantto assessing potential effects resulting from

human activities or natural changes in lakes or marine coastal

ecosystems. Basic research is needed to identify and understand critical first-order processes controlling: (1)the flowof

nutrients and energy through the ecosystem, and (2) the composition and successional patterns of biota in the lakes. Both

of these phenomena are affected by complex interactions of

physical (e.g., light, temperature, ice cover, water movements),

chemical (e.g., nutrient supply and availability, toxic

substances), and biological (e.g., food chain dynamics,

predation, nutrient uptake, and regeneration) factors.

Topredict accurately the effectsof human activities on the

Great Lakesor marine coastal ecosystems, critical factors

affectingthe biota must be recognized and quantified asparts

of mathematical models of the system. Conceptual and

mathematical models developed at GLERLand elsewhere

have demonstrated that nutrient limitation is a major force

controlling the quantity and composition of plankton in

photic zones of the Great Lakes.Mechanisms controlling

nutrient eyeling mustthereforebe understood beforechanges

in the biota and water quality of the lakescan be predicted.

The close interrelationships between nutrients, phytoplankton, and aquatic invertebrates require an interdisciplinary

researchprogram sothat critical processescan be quantified

and integrated into simulative and predictive models. The

Ecosystemand Nutrient Dynamics Group is investigatingfactors controlling nutrient and energy cycling and ecological

succession in the Great Lakesand is integrating experimental results into ecosystem models applicable to the Great

Lakes, as well as to other freshwater and coastal

marine ecosystems.

PelagicEcosystemDynamics

A comprehensive study on Lake Michigan (the Lake

Michigan Ecosystem Experiment) was conducted in 1983-84

to define and quantify biological and chemical processes

causing dynamic short-term and seasonal ecological changes

in Lake Michigan phytoplankton. A free-drifting, satellitetracked drogue was used for this Lagrangian study to minimize

the complicating influence of physical transport of water on

the interpretation of biological and chemical measurements.

Because large aquatic systems such as the Great Lakes are

- "" ~

physically dominated, it has previously been extremely

difficult to combine and simulate biological and chemical

processes in view of state-variable dynamics. Data analysis

and evaluation of the 1983 field season were completed for

water column nutrients, sedimenttrapchemistry, community

level phytoplankton growth, and zooplankton grazing. This

data set is unique because all of the processes known to contribute to growth and loss of phytoplankton were measured

simultaneously on the same water mass.

Data from the Lake Michigan Ecosystem Experiment suggest that the lake has undergone a large water quality change

over the last year. Transparency of the water column has

increased dramatically. One hypothesis to explain this change

is that increased salmonid predation on, and subsequent

rapid decli ne of, the alewife population allowed an increase

in large cladacerans and a reduction in algae. The alewife is

a pelagic fish that feeds on zooplankton in the Great Lakes.

Grazing rates measured in the Lake Michigan 1983 zooplankton assemblage (dominated by cladacerans) suggestthat

epil imnion clearance rates are 20-30 times greater than in the

previous copepod assemblage.

The 1984 field season was designed to focus specifically

on processes contributing to phytoplankton dynamics,

...

..",., - ..

Satellite-tracked drifter buCfy' with attached window-shade drogue and bottles

containing phytoplankton and lake water samples.This instrumentation was

used to gather data for the phytoplankton growth part of the Lake Michigan

Ecosystem Experiment.

11
120

.....

-

I 80

-

~

40

o

Total P

~ w

! ~

1976 1978 1980 1982

Year

Secchi Depth .

.

1976 1978 1980 1982

Year

Zooplankton · . Total

. .

Daphnia spp.

1974 1976 1978 1980 1982

Year

Total phosphorus (top), Secchi depth (middle), and zooplankton (bottom)

data collected in Lake Michigan offshore of Grand Haven, MI. CNerthe past

decade. Total phosphorus has decreased gradually. Secchi depth (a measure

01water clarity) also changed gradually unlil1983, when in July and August

it increased by CNer 4 meters from previous years. This increase may be

anributed to increased grazing of phytoplankton by zooplankton and linked

to a shift in the zooplankton community toward large-bodied Daphnia

pulicaria (shaded portion of the bottom graph). One explanation for this shift

is the final decline of the alewife, a planktivorous fish that prefers large

zooplinkton. .

bacterial gro.vth, and ecosystem carbon flow.As an outgrowth

of the 1983 field season, aspects of the above dynamics were

measured to provide a composite ecosystem perspective on

I,e factors controlling phytoplankton, bacteria, and carbon

(energy) flow. Methodology to determine extracellular release

of organic matter by phytoplankton, its uptake by bacteria,

and bacterial grazing by zooplankton was explored and

applied to studies of these processes in LakeMichigan during

the 1984 summer field season. Preliminary results suggest

that phytoplankton release less than 10% of the carbon fixed

by photosynthesis as dissolved organic products.

Microbial transformation rates of labile organic materials

dissolved in lake water were also examined by measuring concentration decreases of low-level additions of amino acids in

LakeMichigan water. Amino acid turnover was slow (lessthan

1 nanomole per liter per hour) during summer in offshore

LakeMichigan, but cycling was more rapid in subsurface

waters than in the nutrient-poor epilimnion.

The abundance and importance ofsmall cyanobacteria in

Lake Superior were demonstrated. Bacteria-sized phytoplankton accounted for about one-half of the total primary

production and exhibited growth rates of 1-2doublings per

day. Microzooplankton, such as protozoa, appear to be

consuming this production. These verysmall organisms constitutean important, but previouslyunrecognized, part ofthe

LakeSuperior food chain.

Experimentaldata on the relativeimportance ofphosphate

and silicate limitation in LakeMichigan revealthat diatoms

Pl¥:oerythrin-containing cyanobacteria. These phytoplankton are very small

(0.4-0.9 microns) and are responsible for about 20% of the total primary

production in Lake Superior. They exhibit abundances of 30,000-50,000 cells

per milliliter and growth rates of 1-2 doublings per day.

12

10

8

.....

-

-I 6

C>

-:::t.. 4

2

0

1974

16

12

-

-

E 8

4

0

1974
outcompete bluegreen and green algae because they haw 

transport systems for phosphate uptake that operate more 

effectively on low substrate concentrations. This could 

account for diatom supremacy duringall periodsexceptwhen 

silica limits diatom growth. Studies on nutrient uptake 

kinetics, coupled with data on phytoplankton and zooplankton abundance in Lake Michigan, also suggest major 

causes of seasonal succession patterns in the lake. Bluegreen 

and green algae cannot compete with diatoms for bulk 

ambient phosphate and apparently coexist with diatoms 

during the late summer and early fall transition period 

because of high-phosphate plumes excreted by zooplankton. 

Results of a perturbation experiment on Lake Michigan phytoplankton 

showing the effects of silicon (Si) limitation on phos~hate (P) u~take rate. The 

two hyperbolas show the velocity (v)of uptakeaia fundon of 

phosphorus concentration in the control (closed circles) and a silicon-spikd 

sample (open circles). Theopen uptakedata are by thehlf transformation, 

where turnwr time [the inverse of phosphorus turnover rate (lm, right-hand 

ordinate] is plotted against phosphorusconcentration; v is more rapid in the 

silicon-spiked sample at low phosphorus concentrations than in thecontml. 

The higher vobsekd by adding silicon also shows that diatoms haw higher 

affinity uptake systems for phosphorus than bluegreen and green algae, since 

only diatoms are limited by silicon. 

Phosphate uptake kinetics and computer simulations suggest that mixed microbial assemblages have half-saturation 

constants from two to three orders of magnitude Imr than 

previously shown in laboratory cultures. Phosphorus stress 

apparently induces microorganisms to produce high-affinity 

uptake systems, thus allowing relatively rapid growth rates 

at lcrw ambient phosphate concentrations. This helps explain 

the contmrsial paradox of high phytoplankton growth rates 

when phosphate concentrations are very low in lake and 

ocean waters. Studies on phosphate uptake in control and 

organically enriched samples of Lake Michigan water show 

that phytoplankton, rather than bacteria, haw high-affinity 

transport systems for phosphate uptake. Bacteria, therefore, 

must be using dissolved organic phosphorus to support their 

grawth. This information will be useful indefiningandmodeling the relative role of bacteria versus phytoplankton in 

nutrient and energy cycling. 

Results of a perturbation experiment on phosphate (P) uptakeh lake Michigan 

phytoplankton showing that microorganisms take up phosphate at much 

higher rates than calculated by traditional analysis methods that depend on 

adding high phosphate concentrations. (A) A typical Michaelis-Menten plot 

showing the velocity (v) of phosphate uptake wrsus added phosphate 

concentration. (B) Analysisof phosphate uptake Wolf plot) using both law 

and high added P concentrations showing nonlinear uptake (solid points) 

at low P concentrations. The correct half-saturation constant (K1) (0.16 

micrograms phosphate per liter), obtained from the region d low phosphate 

additions (solid circles), is nearly ttw orders of magnitude lawer than the 

estimate obtained by using the traditionally accepted method, where 

values (7.4 micrograms phosphate per liter) are calculated fmm the region 

of high-level phosphorus additions (open circles). 

Zooplankton Wing and Particle 

Transport I 

It is necessaryto understand zooplankton feeding pmesses 

and rates to predict the role of these iwrtebrates in cycling 

nutrients and contmlling phytoplankton successional patterns 

in the lakes. The relation bewn zooplankton feeding rate 

ad,food concentration for laboratory cultures of algae and 

for lake seston was determined to test the Ektive Food 

Concentration Model published pmiously by GLERL scien- 
tists. Results supported the model and demonstrated that Microvideographic observations of Daphnia magna 

feeding rates determined with algal cultures cannot be feeding in suspensions of algae led to the conclusion that 

applieddimtlyto lake seston. Zooplankton grazing rateson many algal cells are drawn wry close to the animal (in fact 

Lake Michigan algae and seston were examined micro- throughthecarapace)andsubsequentlyflushed uneatenand 

scopically to provide information on haw copepod grazing 

afCects the removal of particular algal species. Results indicate 

that algal morphology affects grazing and that algae are 

grazed more rapidly than total seston in the lakes. Calcite 

particles at the same concentration and size found during 

calcite whitings in Lake Michigan significantly depressed 

zooplankton grazing. This depression was greater than that 

observed for clay particles at the same concentration. CCCC 

Whitings in fecal pelletsaccelerate thedownward flux of the 

pellets by up to tenfold. 

Microcinematography, a high-speed (500 frames per 

second) filming technique, was used to visually determine 

mechanisms of feeding by Diaptomus sicilis, an important 

Great Lakes copepod. This information is needed to understand how zooplankton obtain fwd and affect the composition of phytoplankton and seston in the lakes. Framehpframe 

analysis of 140 cinematography films sh& that 0. sicilis ,,, \, -. \\ .-. \. is not an optimal forager (i.e., does not necessarily select the /f .d%,c4i- K f ?C LI '\ \ 

most abundant available food) and supported the accuracy 

Ofthe Food Concentration Model' Film analysis also The current field around a tethered freshwater copepod, Diaptomus sicilis, 

that both the "current field" produced and the feeding determined by high-speed (500 frames per second) microcinematography. 

behavior of D. sicilis differ from those of marine copepods. The large forwardly located swimming feet (s) focus water flow close to the 

These results explain why D. sici/is can specialize on small body and into the mouthparts. This focusing enhances capture of small 

particles for food and also why it exhibits an invariant rela- pa~cles by the filteringapparatus formed by the mouthparts. In contrast, the 

swimming feet ofthe marinecopepod Eucalanuspileatus (shown in the inset) Mn particle selection and particle size' Based in part are posteriorly located. This results in water flow around the body and less 

on d-rese results a model is beingdmlo~ed to describe the &cient capture of small particles. Labels on figure are: first antenna (Al), 

feeding rate of this copepod in mixtures of various particles secondantenna W), mandibularpalps(MP),firstmaxilla(Ml)second maxilla 

such as would be found in lake water. (M2), swimming feet (S), and maxilliped (MXP). 

I 1 I I I I I 1 I 1 

0.4 0.8 1.2 1.6 2.0 

TFC (mm3. L-1) 

'10 C. oblonga A 0-15 

A 15-50 

A 70-100 

I I I I I I 1 I I 

0.4 0.8 1.2 1.6 2.0 

EFC (mm3 L-1) 

Gross feeding rate (GFR) of Diaptomus sicilis on mixtures of tw different sized species of Chlamydomonas (triangles) and on lake seston (circles). The size 

ofthetriangle is an indication of the percentageof C. oblonga (thesmaller algae). Food concentration isexpressed as total food concentration CTFC) (left-hand 

graph) or effective food concentration (EFO (right-hand graph). Effectiw food concentration is the wighted sum ofthe food concentrations in different size 

categories, where the wighting factors are theselectivit. Expression of food concentration as EFCallowed direct comparison 

between the feeding rate response for seston and that for Chlamydomonas mixtures since it corrects for effects of differences in particle size of the lake seston 

and algae. The faster saturation of the algae-EFC curve is due to the Imr food quality of the seston, that is, its lmr digestibility and sensory quality for 

zooplankton capture. 
presumedly unharmed. The amount of cells flushed this way 

as a percentage of cells entering the carapace increased from 

3% to 70% as food concentrations increased. Two implications of this work are that much of the saturation in ingestion 

rate as a function of food concentration may be due to this 

flushing mechanism rather than bolus rejection and that algal 

cells experiencing this nondestructiveencounter may benefit 

from increased nutrient stores. 

Current field near Daphnia magna as shown by 10-second trajectories of 

Chlamydomonas cells brought through carapace gape (I), released through 

carapace gape (R), and swept close by (S). Outline and trajectories, traced 

from video tapes displayed on a television screen, illustrate the close, 

nondestructiw encounters of algae with this zooplankter. 

Ecological Modeling 

A major problem in testing the predictiw effectiveness of 

ecosystem models is the limited amount ofcomprehensiw 

long-term field data milable for aquatic ecosystems. Physical, 

chemical, and biological data collected from Lake 

Washington over the last 20 years are being used to test a 

generalized ecosystem model for natural waters, including 

the Great Lakes. The long-term goal of this work is todwlop 

and test a "next-generation" ecological model of lakes. 

The TemperatureDiffusion Model was calibrated for the 

2war data set, and estimates ofwrtical, turbulent diffusion 

coefficients wre completed. These diffusivities were used 

to model a nearly conservatiw substance--total alkalinity. 

The results indicate the existence of previously undocumented 

sources of alkalinity in Lake Washington. 

Lake Washington "finescale" temperature simulations m 

performed using 1972 hourly meteorological data. Temperature and vertical diffusion profiles were generated at 

Zcminute intervals and nocturnal conwction for periodsof 

510 days to analyzedaily heating and mixing wles and their 

effects on such processes as mixed-layer depth, epilimnetic 

stability, and primary production. Thus, the TemperatureDiffusion Model can use hourly data to simulate small-scale 

processes (such as nocturnal convection) and use daily 

=raged data to simulate largescale processes (such as the 

annual heat budget) without sacrificing accuracy. 

The extinction coefficient for the penetration of solar 

radiation has been related to observed Secchi depths. This 

relationship is important because Secchi depths increased 

in Lake Washington from 1-2 meters in the early 1960's to 

greater than 10 meters in 1980, thus increasing the depth of 

penetration of dim solar radiation. The results indicatethat 

the Lake Washington extinction coefficient has decreased 

from 0.5 per meter to 0.15 per meter mr the 20year period. 

Light penetration is also being related to mixing depths as 

estimated by models driven by daily and hourly data. 

Nutrient and Energy Cycling 

Information on the sources and quantities of nutrients enteringthe photic zones from natural and anthropogenic sources 

is required for proper evaluation of the potential impact of 

changing inputs into the lakes. Chemical analysisofsedirnent 

trap material, combined with mass flux measurements, 

demonstrated that sediment resuspension may be the biggest 

source of "new phosphorus" in the epilimnion of Lake 

Michigan on an annual basis. Atmospheric input is another 

important, but little studied, source of phosphorus to Great 

Lakes surface waters. A joint study by GLERL and the U.S. Fish 

and Wildlife Service (Great Lakes Fisheries Laboratory, Ann 

Arbor) was conducted to evaluate the bioavailability of 

phosphorus in rain to Lake Michigan phytoplankton. Addition of untreated and acidified rain to low-phosphorus 

epilimnetic Lake Michigan water, folld b; laboratory 

incubations, indicated that phytoplankton grawth can be 

enhanced by phosphorus in rain. Phosphorus from acidified 

rain was more available than that from untreated rain. 

Nutrient regeneration in the epilimnion by zooplankton 

is an important process supplying phosphorus to phytoplankton in the Great Lakes. Phosphorus regeneration rates 

of the predatory copepod Cyclops biscuspidatus thomasi 

wre examined as functionsof temperature and prey density 

(under a grant to the University of Michigan). Temperature, 

prey density, and hunger 1-1 significantly and predictably 

altered the phosphorus release rates of this predatory 

copepod. 

Chemical and biological processes within the sediments 

and just ah thesedimentwater interface are important to 

nutrient cycling and energy transformations in the Great 

LakmMany substancesare incorporated into the sediments 

as part of particles settling to the bottom, but some are 

returned to the water column as a result of biochemical 
determine their role in transforming "potential energy" in 

sediment detritus and microbial biomass into "usableenergy" 

available to fish and other predators in the lakes. Lipids are 

also storage sites of many toxic organic chemicals and may 

affect the partitioning of these compounds in the lakes. A 

micromethod wasdeveloped to measure lipids in individual 

benthic invertebrates and a seasonal study of the lipid and 

caloriccontent of these animals in Lake Michigan was begun. 

Species known to be important prey for Great Lakes fish, 

Pbntoporeia hoyiand Mysis relicta, had higher lewlsof lipids 

relative to dry weight than did oligochaetes (Limnodrilus sp. 

and Stylodrilus heringianus) or insect larvae (Chironomids) 

occurring in the Great Lakes. 

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 

Days 

Chlorophyll a concentration versus time in lawphosphorusepilimnetic Lake 

Michigan water collected September 19, 1983, in mponse to additions of 

reagent-grade water (RCW; treatment I), acidified RGW (treatment 2), RGW 

containing phosphate (treatment 3), unmodified rain of pH 3.2 (treatments 

4 and 51, and filtered, unmodified rain of pH 3.2 (treatment 6). Each point 

is the mean of the indicated range of replicate chlorophyll a measurements. 

Ranges not indicated were less than 10% of the mean. These data indicate 

that phosphorus fmm acid rain can stimulate the gmvth of Lake Michigan 

phytoplankton in late summer when they are phosphorus limited. 

degradation, chemical reactions, and/or sediment resuspension. Experiments at GLERL are quantifying the importance 

of aerobic sediments as a source of phosphorus to Lake 

Michigan. A study of phosphorus release from intact sediment cores indicated that this source of phosphorus may 

explain disproportionally high levels of primary production 

observed for nearshore regions of Lake Michigan. 

Becauseoxygen is present in most Great Lakes sediments, 

benthic i-rates, as w11 as microbes, must beconsidered 

in examining nutrient and energy cycling processes in the 

lakes. Microcosm experiments indicate that inwrtebratemixing activities enhance phosphorus release from 

sediments, but that mixing beyond a threshold level has no 

effect on the rate of phosphorus release; i.e., phosphorus 

release is not related to animal density. Calculations based 

on sediment trap estimates of detrital input rates and 

measurements of Fbntoporeia hoyi biomass and ammonium 

excretion rates indicate that about 40% of incoming detritus 

ismineralized by f? hoyi in the hypolimnion of offshore Lake 

Michigan. Nutrient transformation studies in silty Lake 

Michigan sediments indicated that nitrogen released by 

macroimrtebrates as ammonium can be rapidly converted 

to nitrate (nitrification) and then converted to nitrogen gas 

(denitrification) by microbes. These processes must bequantified to determine the importance of sediment mineralization as a nutrient supply mechanism in the Great Lakes. 

A new study was initiated to measure the lipid content of 

benthic imrtebrates in Lake Michigan. This information is 

needed to assess the caloric content of these animals and to 

Lake Assessment 

Perhaps no other biological group of organisms is a better 

indicator of water quality than benthic fauna. Benthic communities respond to and reflect environmental changes mr 

long periods of time. GLERL scientists are continuing to 

evaluate presentday distributions of benthic inwrtebrates in 

southem Lake Michigan. By comparing the number and kinds 

of organisms now in the lake to those found 17-50 years ago, 

they are gaining insight into the lake's changingtrophic status. 

Thirteen hundred samples were collected from forty stations in southern Lake Michigan in 1980-81. The number, 

type, and biomass of the benthic invertebrates in these 

samples were determined. The data were incorporated in a 

computer file and will be statistically analyzed to determine 

the nature and extent of changes in community structure. 

Preliminary analysis of biomass data indicated that the 

amphipod Pbntoporeia hoyi is clearly thedominant form in 

southern Lake Michigan. The dominance of f? hoyi (70X of 

total biomass) illustrates the importance of this species when 

considering nutrient and energy transformations in Lake 

Michigan sediments. 

New studies of the feeding habits of Pontoporeia hoyi 

indicate that this amphipod feeds irregularly, but that feeding 

may bean important mechanism affecting particlecomposition and nutrient distribution in lake sediments. 

The distribution of epibenthic microcrustaceans in nearshore Lake Michigan was investigated to determine the 

relatiwoccurrenceoftheseforms in both the sedimentsand 

the water column. Many taxa were more abundant in the 

sediments, indicating that toquantify these forms in the nearshoreenvironment thesediments as well as the water column 

must be considered. This study provides the first record of 

a resting stage for Diacyclops thomasi in the Great Lakes. 

The survival and viability of the meroplanktonic diatom 

Melosiragranulata is being inestigated in cooperation with 

University of Michigan scientists. This diatom remains viable 

for periods of at least 100 years while buried in the sediments 

and is capable of photosynthesis immediately upon exposure 

to light. 
lAKE HYDROLOGY

The Great Lakes System contains 95% ofthe nation's fresh

surface water supplies. Variations in these supplies result from

fluctuations in the hydrologic cycle and anthropogenic

changes to the system. The hydrologic research program is

directed at improving our knowledge of the hydrologic and

hydraulic processes, at improving methods of forecasting and

simulating water supplies and lake levels, and at improving

large river dynamic flow models.

-Prediction and simulation information on water supplies,

lake levels, and flows are required for water resource planningand management and for the solution of problems with

water supply, water quality, shore erosion, flooding,

hydropower, navigation, and recreation. Primary users of the

hydrologic research results are the IJC, the u.s. Army Corps

of Engineers, the EPA,the Great Lakes States, power utilities,

navigation interests, and the general public.

Ice research is conducted to improve understanding ofthe

processes governing the formation, growth, and decay of the

Great Lakes ice cover: This research will lead to improvements

in the prediction of freeze-up, breakup, areal extent, and

thickness of ice in the Great Lakes and their bays, harbors,

and connecting channels. It wi II also improve our understanding of the natural variability of the Great Lakes ice cover.

Great lakes ice processes and related data are of interest

to all who use the lakes during winter. Ice forecasts and

information are of value for water supply management,

shoreline engineering, hydropower generation, and water

quality and fisheries management. Primary users of ice

information include the NWS, the u.s. Coast Guard, the St.

Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation, the u.s. Army

Corps of Engineers, the Great Lakes shipping industry, and

the general public, including riparian property owners.

Both ice and hydrologic research involve integrated programs of data collection, database development, analysis,

model development and testing, simulation and prediction,

and advisory services.

Winter Flowsin the St.Clair

and Detroit Rivers

Ice buildup and jamming in the St. Clair River is one of the

primary processes governing the seasonal cycle of the Great

Lakes water levels. Ice reduces the channel capacity of the

river, resulting in water storage in Lakes Michigan and Huron

and lowerflows in the St. Clair Riverduring winter and early

spring. This water is released later in the year, accentuating

the seasonal cycle of winter minimums and summer maximums. Accurate determination of the St. Clair River flows

is therefore required for lake level and water balance studies

and water quality assessments of the Great Lakes.

The river flows are currently computed with dynamic flow

models, wh ich are considerably less accurate for wi nter con-

""''''''''''''--

..

~

\.

~ .'i#!

-

Freighters trapped in the St. Clai r River ice jam. At the height of the jam, the

cost to navigation interests alone was over $6 million a day.

ditions than for open water conditions. An experiment was

begun in 1981 to assesswinter flows accurately by measuring variations in the flowvelocity attributable to dynamic ice

conditions. This past winter was the third and most successful

field season in the program. Severe cold spells during

December and January produced frequent episodes offrazil

ice in the river and contributed to a heavy ice concentration

in Lake Huron. The breakup of the Lake Huron ice cover in

April produced the largest ice jam, in both magnitude and

duration, in at leastthe past 50 years. During the peak ofthe

jam, the river was completely ice covered, and the flow

reduced by approximately 75%. This resulted in a O.6-meter

drop in Lake St. Clair water levels. There was relatively little

impact on the other lakes because of their large storage

capacities. During the latter part of the jam, it was estimated

that economic losses were on the order of $6 million a day

for navigation interests alone. Current-meter measurements

and real-time lake levels provided by the National Ocean

Service were used with the Great Lakes Hydrologic Response

Model to forecast the impact on downstream levels and flows

when the jam broke. The forecast predicted that Lake St. Clair

would recover about 80% ofthedropin levels during the first

3 days. This forecast proved accurate. The model also

indicated that the jams would result in higher Lake Erie and

Lake St. Clair levels by the end of the year because of the

additional water stored in Lakes Michigan and Huron.

The experimental study was expanded to the Detroit River

in August 1984 with the deployment of two additional electromagnetic current meters. These will provide simultaneous

flow velocity measurements in both the St. Clair and Detroit

Rivers during the 1984-85 field season. The St. Clair River

instrumentation will be augmented with an acoustical current profiler, which wi II permit continuous measurements of

the velocity profile atthe meter location. The experiment will

provide a better understanding ofthe role of ice in the natural

regulation of the Great Lakes and lead to improved flow

models of the connecting channels for use in both water

quality and quantity research on the Great Lakes.

17
175.6 r Lake St. Clair Level 

I.... p,/q- Lake Erie Level 

174.0 1 I I 

April uo 

March May 

received automatically and added to the provisional data 

base weekly. 

Data reduction has also been automated this year. 

Historical data are pmcessed with selfcontained pmedures 

to producedaily areally awraged climatic subbasin data files 

forusewith themodel. Whilethis isonlyrequiredonceewry 

2 years (as historical updates are received) for each large lake 

basin, it is now possible to consider any new large lake with 

a minimum of processing time. The pmess also includes the 

1984 modeling of basin storages; the extraction of storage, net basin 

supply, and meteorology quantiles for use in subsequent 

Lake St Clair and Lake Eriewater levels (in meters) and cunentineterwlodties outlod< perspecti\lles; and the estimation of historical climatic 

(incenti-npersecond)forMarch May lga4. Notethelowwter quantiles for use in selecting a meteorological scenario 

-levels in Lake St Clair in April 1984 due to the ice jam in the St. Clair Riwr. compatible with the forecast meteorology to use in the 

outlook determination. 

Production of outlooks is completely automated. The corn 

Forecasts of Net Basin Supply 

Deterministic forecasts (outlooks) of accumulated net basin 

supply (basin runoff plus lake precipitation minus lake 

evaporation) to a large lake are required in near real-time for 

use in regulating lake lewls. Runoff simulationsfrom GLERCs 

Large Basin Runoff Model (LBRM) are produced by dividing 

the lake basin into subbasins draining into the lake. The 

historical meteorological data from all milable stationsabout 

and in the subbasins are combined to produce areally 

awraned daily values for each subbasin. Then the model is 

puter program selects appropriate meteorological scenarios 

for the forecast; creates temporaw data files that run from the 

end of the climatic data sets'through 6 months into the future; 

extracts appropriate storage and meteorological quantiles to 

provide the outlook perspective; runs the model on all sub 

basins; accumulates subbasin storages, runoff, and 

meteorology over the lake basin; adds forecast lake precipitation and evaporation to the accumulated basin runoff; and 

plots the summary outlooks in terms of each of the total 

basin storages. 

used a distributed-parameter application by combining the -ining - of lntlwnce subbasins' runoff in a simulation of total net basin supply. 

Outlooks are possible in near real-time by using the LBRM 

with forecast meteorology. The model is first calibrated with 

historical data for all subbasins about a lake and then is run 

from the end of the historical data sets to the p-nt by using 

recent provisional data. This allom basin moisture storages 

corresponding to the present to be established and used as 

initial conditions in the forecast. Boundary conditions from 

field measurements are incorporated into these model runs 

as they become available. Forecast meteorological scenarios 

for each subbasin are then selected from the historical records 

that most closely match available weather forecasts and are 

used with the runoff model and the simulated initial conditions to forecast subbasin runoff. These are combined with 

cormponding historical lake evaporation and mipitation 

to forecast net basin supply for the lake. There are three parts 

to the outlook package: data acquisition, data reduction, and 

outlook generation. 

Data acquisition has been semiautomated at GLERL this 

past year. Currently, GLERL receimdaily historical data from 

about 2,000 stations in the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain 

Basins. Hmmer, there can be a 2year lag beheen when the 

data are collected and when they are available in computerized form. GLERL has established contacts and telecommunication links to receive provisional data from mral 

participatingagencies in the United States and Canada within 

1 week of measurement. Data from these linkages are 

GLERCs automated computer forecast package uses near 

real-time provisional meteorological data from a data 

collection network that changes frequently as stations are 

added, dropped, mad, or fail to report from time to time. 

As the network changes in near real-time, thedata reduction 

package must quickly adapt to consider the relative importance of each station in the new network to each subbasin, 

as determined by theareas of influence in each subbasin for 

each station. The area of influence for a station is taken here 

as the Thiessen area enclosed by a polygon whose sides are 

halfway between the station and its closest neighbor. The 

Thiessen areas are intersected with subbasin areas to find the 

station's area of influence in each subbasin. Existing methods 

of computing Thiessen areas on the computer either provide 

unacceptable approximations or haw large computational 

overheads. A method combining the accuracy of a fineresolution digital map and the evaluation of a small number 

of points is ideal. A new algorithm was derived for quickly 

computing Thiessen areas for all stations in a network for each 

of mral subbasins of interest. The algorithm determines 

areas by finding only the edges of the Thiessen polygons 

rather than wry point within the polygon. These edges are 

used as "windows" into the map of subbasins to find the 

intersections of d,e polygons with subbasin areas. Although 

comparisons of methods depend on particular network 

configurations, an example application to 18 stations caw- 
Lake Superior Basin 

oisture Content C 

Simulated and forecast Lake Superior Basin moisture storage (surface plus upper and l~r soil zbne plus ground water plus snow). The simulation and 

forecast wredone with the GLERL Large Basin Runoff Model. They can be used to forecast Lake Supeiiorwater lwls. The heavy line is thesirnulatithe thin lines are historical exceedances, meaning that historically 20%, 50%, and 80% of the tid the moisture storage will exceed that indicated brthe 

time of the year indicated. 

700 - 

3 600- 

C, 

a 

E . - -500 - 

- ' E 

+ g 400- 

C 

8 

g 300- 

1 

C, 

cn 

ing 22 watersheds, represented on a 760-kilometerby-516-kilometer map at 1-square-kilometer resolution 

(392,160 cells), requires only 10.0 cpu-seconds on a VAX 

111780 minicomputer (2 cpu-seconds on a CDC 750). This 

represents a 93% savings in computational time with no loss 

of accuracy when compared to conventional computer 

methods. The algorithm has wral applications, including 

areal averages of meteorological variables, lake-level 

estimations, ground water-level estimations, near real-time 

accounting of network changes, computer map generation 

. - f MO100 - 

0 

Algorithm for determining the area-of-influence polygon about a 

meteorological station on a map. Typically, a 20:l reduction in computation 

time is achieved by findingThiessen polygons by their edgecells instead of 

by finding wry cell within the polygon. This enables scientists to compute 

areal average hydrometeomlogy more accurately on a daily basis over large 

areas with many stations. 

- 20%, 50%, and 80% smoothed exceedame quantiles forecast - simulated and forecast storage * I Ill I I Ill 1 I I 1'1 I I I, I I I 4 

1. Start at any cell on edge with nothing to. its north (e.0.. cell 1) 

2.Begin wlth N-E-S-W 

search pattern. 

Degenerate 

Search 

rate 

3 Search in pattern order, 

starting with first direction 

in pattern, until next call 

in poQqon is found. 

4 Rotate search pattern after each degenerate 

search 

OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DqC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP 

1983 1984 
and real-time graphics, and even industrial engineering 

applications in computer-aided descriptions of cow shapes. 

Lake Superior Thermal Structure 

Fall and winter thermal structures for Lake Superior, defined 

from 46 bathythermograph surveys across the lake from 1973 

to 1979, were analyzed this past year. Three stages in the cooling period were identified. The first stage is when summer 

stratification is broken down by convectivecdngand wind 

mixing. During this stage, the mixed-layer depth increases 

at an approximately exponential rate. This stage starts in midSeptember and is nearly complete by mid-Nmmber. The 

second stage begins when the isothermal water column starts 

to cool to the temperature of maximum density. This stage 

is called the pressure-sensitive stage because the depth at 

which maximum density occurs varies according to small 

changes in temperature. Thus, the effectiveness of wind 

mixing near the end of fall mrturn is dependent upon the 

depth of maximum density because of buoyancy. The third 

stage is winter restratification. As the surface water cools and 

the water column stratifies, the mixed layer recedes toward 

the lake's surface. This stage can start as early as December 

or as late as February, depending primarily upon wind 

conditions. During this period, the water surface cools 

sufficently for ice to form. Once ice forms, the areal extent 

of the ice cmr dampens the effects of wind stress so that 

winter stratification is maintained. In winters when wind 

speeds are low following the end of fall overturn (such as 

January 1977 and January 1979), extensive ice cmrs form 

early. In winters when winds speeds are high following the 

end affall wmtm (such as January 1975), extensiw icecmrs 

usually do not form until February or March, if at all. 

Spatial divisions in the lake's thermal structure reflect an 

east lake basin and a west lake basin, both divided into nearshore and offshore areas. Separate thermal regimes are 

attributable to variations in lake bathymetry and the prevailing counterclockwise shore circulation. Temperature ranges 

for both surface and column temperatures are smaller and 

lag time betwen the occurrence of extreme temperatures in 

the surface layer and in the entire column are longer for 

midlake areas relative to shore areas. This is a direct result 

of the greater depth and greater thermal resew in midlake 

areas. During summer stratification, the general counterclockwise shore circulation pattern produces lmr epilimnion temperatures in shore areas along the nodwestem shore 

and in the western end of the lake awing to advection of 

u~llingwaters from thedeep trough alongthe norhestem 

shore. Theepilimnion temperatures in areas adjacent to the 

western shore of the Keweenaw Peninsula and the southeastern shore are Imr than those in adjacqt areas west of 

them because of upwelling as water from these areas mms 

tcrward shore. Results of this study are useful for thedewlop 

ment and wrification of temperature structure simulation and 

Area 2-Nearshore Area 5-Mid Lake 

VAT - 

Surface 

to10m Y 4 . . 

VATSurface c 

to Bottom 4 

- 4 

0 100 200 300 0 100 200 300 

Days After July 31 

krtically averaged temperature (VAT) for the 10-meter surface layer and for 

the entire water column at nearshore and midlake areas of Lake Superior. 

The least square trends (solid lines) illustrate the thermal regime dichotomy 

bebeen neatshoreand midlake regions. (R2 isthecoefticientofdetermination; 

SE is the standard ermr of estimate for least squares analysis.) 

i Stage 2-Isothermal Cooling j 

i. ...... to Maximum Density ,..... i ".._.. .... _,__.... ,... 

Stage I-LO~~'; .'stage 3- 

of Summer i : Winter 

Stratification ; Stratification 

1160 

AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR 

Mean thermal structuretrendsfor Lake Superiorduringfall and wintercooling 

periods. 

forecast models, including the time of initial ice formation 

for various locations in Lake Superior. 

Optical Properties of Ice 

Tw different approaches were used to continue field wrk 

in support of characterizing the spectral reflectance of snow 

and freshwater ice types last winter. The first approach 
- - - - - -

emplayoed an existing dual spectroradiometer system to make

simultaneous measurements of incident and reflected global

(sun plus sky) radiation in the visible and near-infrared region

from a height of approximately 1.5 meters. Measurements of

global radiation, as well as separate measurements of incident

and reflected diffuse (sky) radiation, were made to test an

algorithm that could be used to calculate reflectance values

of various ice types for various sky conditions. Measurements

of additional surface types under differing illumination angles

are still needed. Such an algorithm could be used to rapidly

expand a library of spectral signatures for major freshwater

ice types.

-- --

The second approach employed a programmable band

radiometer to make airborne reflectance measurements of

homogeneous and heterogeneous ice types. Mounted in a

Sikorsky built U.S.Coast Guard helicopter, the instrument was

used to measure the spectral reflectance of open water and

four major ice types located in the southern end of LakeHuron

from an altitude of 300 meters under clear skies. The surface

area measured was 80 meters in diameter and approximates

a Landsat multispectral scanner pixel (56 meters 17y79 meters)

in area. Such data would be particularly valuable as ground

truth for use in the interpretation of satellite imagery and as

input into overlake energy balance models.

Large ice floes in a black ice matrix. These appearto be pieces of refrozen slush or snON ice frozen into black ice. TheirspectJal reflectance (43()'1,ooo nanometers)

is plotted in the graph to the right Because of its composition and large areal extent, this type can only be measured accurately from the ground by individually

measuring the spectral reflectance of each ice type and then artificially integrating those values, but can easily be sensed from satellite and aircraft altitudes,

where spatial integration is automatically obtained.

21

1.0 I : : : : u --- L8nd88t

NOAA-7

I

0..

I

0..

.

a: 0.4

0.2

0.0 400.0 100.0 _.0 _.0 _.0 _.0 _.0 1100.0

W8Y8I8ngth InmI

PHYSICAL LIMNOWY 

AND METEOROLOGY 

The Physical Limnology and Meteorology Group studies 

the physical variables describing the lake environment and 

the way they change with external forces. The relevant 

variables are currents, temperatures, waves, water-level 

fluctuations, sediments, and suspended matter. The primary 

drivingforcesarethe wind actingon the lakesurface, the heat 

exchanged between the lakes and the atmosphere, and the 

riwr flm. W and water lewl oxi llations are hazatds that 

may result in loss of Iiws and in damage to shoreline pm, 

shipping, and recreational activities. The purposeofthisgmup 

is to dewlop and test models that impm prediction of these 

variables. In addition, these models will allw estimates of 

the chemical and biological properties of the lakes that are 

important in waste disposal, power generation, fisheries 

management, and water supply planning. 

The scales of the variables that need to be modeled and 

predicted range from years to seconds and from the size of 

the lake dawn to a few meters. In view of this tremendous 

range in time and space, the various phenomena must be 

separated according to their scales to understand and model 

them better. Hence, research in the Physical Limnology and 

Meteorology Group is in the areas of water mowments and 

temperature, which encompass studies of lakewide and nearshore circulation, seasonal changes in circulation, and 

upwlling; and surface waws, water-lewl fluctuations, and 

owrwater winds, which deal with wind-generated waws, 

storm surges, and seiches. Both areas involw prediction on 

a real-time basis and climatological studies. The group also 

contributes to studies of particle dynamics conducted by the 

Synthetic Organics and Particle Dynamics Group and scientists at the Uniwrsity of Michigan. This program was initiated 

because many toxic organic substances and nutrients enter 

the lake attached to particles. Hence the pathways and 

ultimate fate of these pollutants in the lakes depend on the 

mowment of various types of particles through the lake. 

The approach used in studying the ah problems is a 

combination of experimental (laboratory and field), 

theoretical, and modeling efforts. Experimental data provide 

information on what happens in the lake. Theoretical studies 

predict new phenomena and help plan new experiments. 

Modeling studies incorporate the important physical 

processes into governing mathematical equations and 

extrapolate the equations owr time to predict the future state 

of the lake. Experimental data, in turn, can validate the 

accuracy of these predictions. 

Wter Movements and Temperature 

A report describing the results of a joint United StatesCanadian study of Lake Erie's cuurtnts was recently published. 

A shorter wrsion of this work will appear in a special wlume 

of thelournal of Great Lakes Research. This volume, which 

is jointly funded by GLERLand the National Water Research 

Institute of Canada, will summarize the status of the lake's 

ecosystem 10 years after completion of Project Hypo-the 

last major measurement program. It will document the 

interrelationships of lake physics with chemistry and biology. 

This research is expected to be useful in evaluating the 

massive inwstment in waste water treatment during the 

last decade. 

In the Lake Erie study, thermistor chains measured the 

dewlopment and decay of central basin stratification. First, 

a fragile stability dewloped, which was wry susceptible to 

high wind stress. For example, a strong wind impulse in late 

May 1979 completely mixed the central basin and postponed 

dewlopment of stable stratification for 3 weeks. Currents 

measured in the laver half of the central basin water column 

were mostly return flows (beneath the surface wind drift) 

driwn by the surface pressure gradient. There was a complex 

system of circulation gyres, but occasionally one of them 

became dominant. This caused the entire basin to circulate 

either clockwise or counterclockwise. The currents were 

somewhat more vertically uniform than predicted by full 

Ekman Iaprcurrent models. In the island passages betwleen 

the wtem and central Lake Erie basins, tidelikecurrents are 

driwn by the longitudinal seiches of Lake Erie. 

A second GLERL paper to be published in the Lake Erie 

wlume analyzes the network of current-meter measurements 

with a new objectiw analysis method and by comparison 

with the results of a timedependent numerical circulation 

model. The objectiw analysis method provides automatic 

interpolation of low-pass filtered current-meter data to a 

regular grid cmring the lake. It uses the observed currents 

as constraints on a wrticity minimization scheme to arriw 

at a two-dimensional stream function field. The numerical 

model is used to demonstrate the sensitivity of the circulation pattern in the flat central basin of Lake Erie to the 

horizontal variability of the wind. A difference of 3 meters 

per second in the eastward component of wind speed mr 

a north-south distance of 100 kilometers is sufficient to 

generate a one-gyre circulation pattern in the central basin. 

Both objectiw analysis results and timedependent model 

results will be compared to theobsed currents. Early results 

of this comparison indicate that there are some situations for 

which the model results may be more representatiw of the 

lakewide circulation pattern than the objectively analyzed 

observed currents. 

During summer and fall, research was completed on currents and water temperatures in the four main passages 

between Green Bay and Lake Michigan and at wral sites 

within the bay. The usual southwesterly winds are associated 

with acounterclockwisecirculation in the bay, whileepisodes 

of northeasterly wind bring a rapid rewrsal of this pattern. 

Oppositely directed two-layer flow through the mouth is a 

common featureduringthe stratified season. Cold water from 

Lake Michigan enters through the mouth and extends far 
-- 

-3O1III1 lIIII1ll.J 

2 4 6 8 10 12 14 

August 1979 

Hourly recorded water lmls (in meters) at Toledo, OH, (solid line) and at Buffalo, NY, and current speeds (in centimeters per second) through island passages 

that connect the -tern basin of Lake Erie with the central basin. Positiw current speeds are directed along the channel axis of each passage and taward 

Buffalo. Seiches drive currents that are similar in all of the passages and are the major currentproducing forre in that section of the lake. 

into the bay; warmer Green Bay water flaws outward. This 

process maintains stratification and promotes flushing. 

Oscillatory flaws of a variety of periods were also observed 

in the currents at the mouth of the bay. 

Current meters deployed in Lake Michigan in summer 1982 

to study rotational waves were successfully recowred in July 

1983. Magnetic tape cassettes on which thedata are recorded 

were read and translated, and the data series was edited. All 

current meters were recovered and about 85% of the data 

were of acceptable quality. 

Spectral and cross-spectral analyses of the long data time 

series will be performed first. Past experience suggests there 

will be high coherence in the period range of 38 days for 

some station pairs. To understand this, scientists plan to use 

rotary spectral analysis. The seasonally varying mean flw 

structure in the lake will also be studied by comparing this 

year's data with earlier data and with model simulated 

patterns. 

In addition to understanding water flow patterns, it is 

important to know the distribution and movement of 

suspended material to predict the fate of pollutants. Many 

long-lived pollutants become attached to solids and settle to 

the bottom. Ewntually, they become incorporated into the 

sediments of the lake; but before that happens, they may 

become resuspended by currents many times. The physics 

of this process is being studied with models that include the 

effects of currents in ming and resuspending solids. Thus 

far during this research, it has also been found necessary to 

model the effect of the Earth's rotation on thevertical profiles 

of currents and suspended matter. The resulting model has 

been shn to reproduce theobserved sediment patterns in 

Lake Michigan's southern basin with considerable accuracy. 
Period (hours) 

h7R Clockwise 

0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 

Frequency (cph) 

Kinetic energy spectra of current flow through the island passages connecting the western basin of Lake Erie with the central basin. The three energetic peaks 

meal that the first three longitudinal seicbes of the lake are the main current driving forces. The clodwise and anticlockwise rotary spectral components 

show that the seiche-driwn currents have two to three times as much energy in the clockwise component as theory predicts. 

46.00r 20 July 1977 

Daily Green Bay multantcurrents 12 meters belowthesurfaceand 5 meters 

above bottom (ab) for July 20,1977, with a soutiwesterly wind. Cold water 

from Lake Michigan enters through the mouth and extends far into the bay, 

while warmer Green Bay water flows outward. This process maintains 

stratifaion and promotes flushing. 

GLERL has completed an imprcxred version 04 the Great 

Lakes Trajectory Model to replace the previous wrsion, which 

Suspended matter concentration in water for a cross section d a circular model 

of Lake Michigan's southern basin. Depth (Z) is in meters and distance from 

thecenter(r) is in kilometers Theconcentration is high neartheshorebecause 

of resuspension by the strong shallow water currents; the concentration is 

high near the bottom because the particles tend to sink. 

has been in use for 4 years. The model is intended to be used 

as a tool in surface pollutant tracking, surface pollutant 

trajectory prediction, and search-and-rescue operations. 

Some of the improvements in the model are more accurate 

numerical methods for lake circulation prediction and particle trajectory prediction, multiple spill trackingcapability, 

more versatile output display methods (including "zoom" 

capability), and two different restart options. The model is 

beingused by the NWS, the U.S. Coast Guard, the NOAA 

Hazardous Materials Response Team, and some Canadian 

agencies. 
Satellitetrackeddrifterbuoyswereused in 1984 in sewral Drifter Tracking Ability different projects. All of the data gathered will continue to 

be used to calibrate the pathfinder Trajectory Prediction 

System. In addition, each of the drifter projects has separate 

goals. In winter 1984, drifters were used to study the mowment of ice in Lake Erie. Four drifters were deployed in the 

ice of thecentral and eastern basins in January with the help 

of Coast Guard helicopters. Flights were made every 2 wed<s 

toobsem ice conditions and make ice measurements in the 

vicinity of each drifter that was successfully located. All four 

of these buays were eventually retrieved. Two of the bur are 

still operable. The longest continuous ice "track" was over 

2 months long. The tracks meal constant ice mment, often 

at surprisingly high speeds, correlated strongly with the 

mrlake winds. Analvsis of these results continues. 

This previous summer, GLERL scientists used a tracer, 

rhodamine B fluorescing dye, to determine how accurately 

satellite-tracked drifter drifter buqs track water parcels in Lake 

Michigan. Releasing a cluster of drifters with the dye and 

following the movement of each over a period of days yielded 

important information about the Lagrangian effectiwness of 

these satellite-tracked drifters. Dye concentration was determined by fluorometry, and the center of mass calculated from 

continuous sampling profiles. Separation of the centroid of 

the drifters and the dye center of mass was compared with 

wind data and used to calculate the slippage wlocity. The 

results are still being analyzed. 

Drifter buoys are also quite useful in riwr plume studies. 

CLERL is again involved in a cooperatiw wnture with the 

National Water Research Institute, Canada Centre for Inland 

Waters, to study the physics of the Niagara Riwr plume in 

western Lake Ontario. In addition, drifters are being used to 

determine the path of the Detroit River plume in Lake Erie. 

These physical problems are of crucial significance because 

of the implications for toxics transport modeling. 

Surface Wwes, Wter-hl Fluctuations, 

and Ovennrater Winds 

An interactiw wrsion of the Wind Waw Model developed 

last year has been implemented on the GLERL VAX 111780 

computer. It can be accessed over telephone lines from 

remote computer terminals. The model is being used by NWS 

forecasters for operational wave forecasting. The system has 

been used over 150 times this year by United States and 

Canadian weather forecasters, scientists, and uniwrsity staff 

and students. The response to the forecasts generated by the 

system has been wry favorable. 

The Wind Wave Model was tested against observed 

synoptic waw data from Lake Michigan. The observations, 

consisting of two sets of waw height measurements obtained 

from the NOAA C-130 aircraft during the passage of a cold 

front across the lake in Nmmber 1977, were assembled into 

waw height maps covering the lake and compared to similar 

maps produced by the model. The results showed that the 

Dye Interval = 1 ppb 

Date = 840815 

29 hours Duration 

/' 

Release Point 

Y001234567 - 

- Dye Interval = 0.5 ppb 

Date = 840815 Direction 

-1 

12345678 

1 

East (km) 

Comparison dthe mment of six closely spaced satellitetracked drifters 

(OD tocentroid ddrifters) with dye (OP to center d mass) released at the same 

time. The gross slippage d the bucys was calculated to be 0.5%; this agrees 

with thetheoretical cakulation, wlidatingthe theory for lightwind conditions. 

A good unde~tandingdthefactors influencing movement ofthedrifters is 

important fortheir meaningful use in studies folluwingthe mmrnent ofspills, 

toxic contaminants, or water parcels. 

model predicted almost all the synoptic features. Both the 

magnitude and the general pattern of the predicted wave 

height contours compared wII with the measurements. The 

model also predicts the direction of wave propagation in 

conjunction with the waw height map, which is useful for 

practical ship routingand can be significantly different from 

the prevailing wind direction. 

A satellitereporting wa\~ buoy was deplqed in the wstem 

part of Lake Erie to prwide further wrification and calibration data for GLERL wave modelingefforts. The buoy extends 
88'

46'+

+

;.:."LAKEMICHIGAN

/.::::.'.+ 20 Nov.1977

43'

:~..

J

100

20:00

20 Nov 1977

Observed synoptic (left-hand side) and simulated (right-hand side) significant wave height contours for lake Michigan during a south wind, November 20,

1977. This indicates that the Wind Wave Model, used to simulate the wave height contours, is fairly accurate.

the range of GLERLwave measurement systemsfurther offshore. Earlier systems required line-of-sight transmission to

a shore recording station, but the new systemcouples

onboard recording with GOES and ARGOS satellite reports

to allow deployment in any part of the lakes.

Continued analysis of wind and wave data recorded from

the eight NDSC NOMAD buoys during 1981 led to two fruitful studies: the development of a generalized wave spectrum

representation and a detailed testing of parametric correlations for wind waves in the Great Lakes. For over three

decades, oceanographers have endeavored to develop a

realistic model of wind wave spectra. A number of spectral

forms have been proposed; they generally consist of empi rical

coefficients and exponents that differ among various authors.

When applying one of these formulas in practice, it isseldom

certain how close the representation isto the actual modeling or design conditions. GLERLscientists have developed

a generalized form that avoids predetermining any coefficient

and exponents in the spectrum representation. They can all

be obtained from known parameters. The usefulness of this

representation has been demonstrated with over 2,000

measured wave spectra recorded from a NOMAD buoy

deployed in eastern Lake Superior during 1981. Combining

this generalized spectrum representation with GLERL:sWind

27
M Model provides results similar to those produced from 

a conventional spectral model except that GLERCs has a 

simpler approach and greater computational economy. Data 

from the 1981 GLERL-Uniwrsity of Michigan Lake Erieatperiment has been used to extend this model to shallow water 

waw. It is significantly better than other proposed formulas. 

GLERL studies of the nearshore transformation of waws and 

currents have concentrated on two aspects of wave 

characteristics infinitewater depth: probability distributions 

and spectral shape. The probability distributionsof wind wax? 

height and period are of practical and theoretical interest to 

oceanographers and ocean engineers. A number of wave 

period distributions have been proposed, but none is 

uniwrsally accepted. GLERL scientists haw used Lake Erie 

Coastal Boundary Layer Experiment 

Surf Zone GLERL 

Experiment wR3 Tower 

... Ill 

0 1 2345678 

Distance Offshore (km) 

Cmss section of the Coastal Boundary Layer Experiment instrument array. 

CMAE qwsent the five vector averaging current meters, WR-3 a~UBvwider 

buoys, and TR is a transmissometer, an instrument for measuring water 

transparency. In addition, there were four Zwartz wave gauges mounted on 

the solar-pwred tmr to record directional wave information and mean 

water level and meteomlogical instruments to measure wind velocity and 

direction. 

data to examine the probability distributions for both deep 

and shallow water waves. It was found that both the Rayleigh 

distribution for waw heights and Longuet-Higgins distribution forwaw periodsowrpredicted the highestwaws, while 

underpredictingthe intermediate w. Application of a ~MO 

parameter Wibull distribution to both height and period data 

with parameters determined from the data improved the 

accuracy of the fit significantly. 

200 I ( Longshore ) 

200 ( Longshore ) 

Significant 

, o 1 waveheight 

attower(m) 0123 

Histogramsfor significant wave height (in meters) for various wind directions 

at the GLERL tmr deployed in Lake Erie during July-October 1981. These 

datawtecolleaed as part ofthe Lake ErieCoastal Boundary lxpr Experiment 

Data from that experiment have been used to examine the probability 

distributions for both deep and shallow water waves. 
ENVIRONMENTAL SYSTEMS 

STUDIES 

The focus of the Environmental Systems Studies Group is 

on synthesis and applied modeling. The objectiws of the 

group are (1) to predict the effects of management alternatiws 

and human-induced changes on Great Lakes ecosystems, (2) 

to develop and apply optimization, uncertainty, and risk 

analysis methods to the solution of water resource problems, 

(3) to develop strategies that will minimize the risks to human 

and ecosystem health resulting from pollutant inputs or other 

perturbations to the Great Lakes, and (4) to dewlop models 

that will facilitate the development of wise and costeffectiw 

environmental management strategies. 

Program Development 

The Environmental Systems Studies Group, formerly 

known as the Special Projects Group, was reactivated at the 

end of FY 1984 and is currently undergoing program dewlop 

ment. Research to be conducted by the Environmental 

Systems Studies Group wiII be holistic in scopeand directed 

toward understanding and optimizing relationships bewen 

the human, economic, and ecological systems of the Great 

Lakes Region. By necessity, this group will draw heavily on 

the knowledge generated by other groups, both insideGLERL 

and from outside the laboratory. Research wiII cmra variety 

of temporal and spatial scales as dictated by the questions 

under investigation. 

Central to the Environmental Systems Studies approach will 

be the premise that cost-effective management of the Great 

Lakes requires that the lakes be managed as an integrated 

system. Management actions applied to one lakeor one use 

will affect theother lakes or other uses. For example, afisheries 

management plan for Lake Michigan should not be 

developed without taking into account the influences it will 

haveon Lake Erie fisheries. Nor should a toxics contaminant 

control program be implemented without weighing the 

economic implications of such a program. Just as modern 

medicine isbeginning todew(op an approach called holistic 

health care, whereby nutrition, stress management, biofeedback, and other approaches are all used to maintain and 

promote good health in humans (as opposed to the conmntional approach of treating symptoms only), so too will a 

holistic management approach be needed to ensure the longterm health of the Great Lakes and theeconomy of the region. 

Optimization, uncertainty, and riskanalps will be integral 

parts of work performed by the Environmental Systems Studies 

Group. Although used sparingly to date, these analyses 

should play a key role in environmental decision-making 

processes, just as they do in the decision-making processes 

that lead to the safe design of buildings and bridges. For 

example, building designers rnustdeterminea priori the risk 

(i.e., the probability) of structural failure and related human 

mortality that might result from a given distribution of earthquake tremors. Similarly, environmental managers must 

determine the risk of lowered water quality and related harm 

toeconomically important fish species that might resultfrom 

a giwn distribution of pollutant inputs. 

With increasingly uncertain estimates of model inputs (e.g., 

the magnitude and timing of pollutant loads) and structural 

attributes (i.e., how well the model corresponds to the real 

system), the focusing power of a model for predicting the 

future becomes moreand more blurred; under highly uncertain conditions, the predicted statistical distribution of future 

ecosystem states will be wider than when inputs and model 

structure are known perfectly. The output from a model that 

has highly uncertain inputs (as is often the case with 

pollutants) might be norrnallydistributed: some future states 

wiII be more likelytooccurthan others. The probability (risk) 

of an undesirable state occurring can be determined from 

such adistribution. If the risk is higher than is acceptable, then 

the environmental manager can recommend that the 

magnitude and timing of pollutant inputs be changed until 

an acceptable lewl of risk can be attained. Of course, creating 

an environment in which there are no risks from pollutants 

is not economically feasible. In reality, risks must be kept at 

acceptable lwls while keeping within economicconstraints. 

By combining risk analysis techniques with optimization 

techniques, minimal cost schemes can be devised that result 

in acceptable levels of risk. 

Upper Great Lakes Connecting 

Channels Study 

The Environmental Systems Studies Group will be the lead 

group in GLERL in this international (United StatesCanada) 

and interagency (see the International and Interagency 

Activities Section for a list of agencies involved), multiyear 

study of water quality and ecosystem dynamics in the upper 

Great Lakes connecting channels. Areas to be studied include 

the St. Marys Riwr, the St. Clair River, Lake St. Clair, and the 

Detroit Riwr; all haw been classified Class A areas of concern because they hm previously received or now receiw 

significant amounts of toxic industrial wastes and point and 

nonpoint inputs of pollutants from urban and rural areas. A 

detailed study plan that includes optimization, risk, and 

uncertainty analyses of ecosystemeconomic models for the 

region is now underdevelopment. The plan will address such 

questions as (1) What combinations of inputs, outflows, 

ecosystem processes, and remedial actions will lead to 

acceptable (low risk) concentrations of toxic chemicals in the 

study area? (2) How cost effective are present nutrient and 

toxic substance control measures and how might cost effectiwness be impraved! (3) What are the relatiw effects of toxic 

substances, nutrient loadings, and habitat modification on 

aquatic food chain dynamics? (4) To what extent do the 

channel's extensive submersed and emergent macrophyte 

wetlands influence circulation and sedimentation patterns, 
pollutant fate and transport, and the long-term survival of 

regional fisheries? 

Lake Erie Area Environmental and 

Recreation Atlas 

As part of a project started before formation of this group, 

the Ohio State Sea Grant and GLERL are collaborating to produce a Lake Erie Area Environmental and Recreational Atlas. 

This combined effort represents anew venture for GLERL and 

is based on the premise that much of the information 

developed and actively used by the Great Lakes scientific 

community can be used to great advantage by the general 

public if it isexpressed in aslightly different format. Theatlas, 

to be published in 1987, will show how data on natural 

atmospheric and hydrospheric phenomena can be used 

beneficially by recreational users. The main chapters will 

contain sections on (1) natural features and processes, (2) 

meteorological conditions, (3) lake and river conditions, (4) 

biotic character, (5) recreational facilities and points of 

interest, and (6) recreational planning. Coastal tours, shoreline 

vacations, and specific types of outing son both land and water 

will be highlighted. 

Pollutant Loadings to the Great Lakes 

Sound information on the timing and magnitude of pollutant inputs is necessary for understandingthe behavior of the 

Great Lakes ecosystem. Understanding the relative importanceof pollutant inputs isessential if the most cost-effective 

management strategy for the Great Lakes is to be found. 

Therefore, a portion of the Special Projects Groupefforts was 

directed toward updating loading estimates of chloride, 

suspended solids, and various forms of nitrogen and 

phosphorus. Analyses were conducted for Water Years 

197980 and complement previous analyses made by the 

Great Lakes Basin Commission for Water Years 1975-78. 

Because billions of dollars were spent on pollution control 

during the 197O1s, a future comparison of these analyses 

can be used to evaluate the effectiveness of recommended 

pollution abatement measures. 

Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar 

Month 

Snow depth probability (P) as a function of the date (last day of the month) 

for a station in the area cued by the Lake Erie Area Environmental and 

Recreational Atlas. The cum are for various snow depths in inches. 
INFORMATION SERVICES 

The dissemination of scientific products in a form compatible with user needs is vital to fulfillment of the GLERL 

mission. Since research costscannot be justified if the results 

are unused, a principal GLERL activity is maintenance of an 

advisory service as a means of providing scientific inforrnation in a form geared to user needs. 

This past year, as part of that service, GLERL provided mr 

4,200 research products in response to almost 2,000 

documented requests. Of these, 27% came from institutions 

of higher learning, 12% from private citizens, 31% from 

foreign gmrnment agencies, 7% from industry and private 

organizations, 16% from U.S. Federal Gmmment agencies, 

and 7% from StateGmrnments. This is in addition to regular 

mailings tothosewho haw indicated interest inasemiannual 

listing of available publications and one or more of the fiw 

types of GLERL publications: chemistry and biology, 

environmental systems studies, ice, lake hydrology, and 

physical limnology and meteorology. But publications are but 

one form of environmental information. Also included are 

predictions and simulations produced from environmental 

models, forecasts and forecast techniques, descriptive or 

analytical information on the present or past status of one or 

more limnological characteristics of a lake or of the system, 

and data bases. Many of these involw what might be termed 

"technology transfers." A partial list of GLERL technology 

transfers effected this year and users is giwn below. 

Water Supply Forecasting Procedure. 

Users: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and IJC 

b&l Radiometric Measurements for Sedimentation 

Studies. 

Users: Pacific Marine Instrumentation Laboratory, 

NOAA, and Battelle-Northwest Laboratories 

Autoradiographic Measurements. 

User: University of Michigan 

Lipid Analysis in Small Samples. 

User: Uniwrsity of Michigan 

Lake Ontario Phytoplankton Model. 

User: Uniwrsity of Minnesota 

Nutrient Measurements. 

Users: University of Michigan, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service, and U.S. EPA 

Impraved Wind Direction Measuring Instruments for 

Shipboard Applications. 

User: R.M. Young Co. 

Waw Forecast Model. 

Users: NWS, Canada Centre for lnland Waters, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and University of Michigan 

Impraved Hazardous Spill Model. 

Users: U.S. Coast Guard, NWS, and University of 

Michigan 

Commercial Fishing Zone Area Calculations. 

User: NOAA Sea Grant 

Technology Transfers GLERL reviews and critiques Draft Environmental Impact - - 

Sediment Trap Design, Deployment, and Recmry Statements in support of NOAA's Office of Ecology ind 

Techniques. Envi*ronmental Conservation. The Draft Environmental 

Users: Coastal Studies Institute, Louisiana State Unier- lmpactstatementsare required by law to be submitted by the 

sity; Uniwrsity of Michigan; Argonne National company or agency planning the activity for review by all 

Laboratory; National Water Research Institute, lnland interested or affected entities. They are intended to ensure 

Waters Directorate; and Canada Centre for lnland Waters that proposed activities in and around the lakes haw been 

designed - to have little or no long-term - adverse effects on 

Dynamic Mixing Model for Sediment Tracer Distribution. the environment. 

Users: Case Western Resem University and Pacific Other responsibilities carried out under this activity include 

Marine Environmental Laboratory, NOAA identification of, and communication with, potential users; 

Sedimentation Estimation Methods. determination of user interests and needs; and liaison 

Users: University of Michigan, University of Indiana, between the laboratory and users. Committee and board 

University of Minnesota, Electric Power Research In- memberships and attendance at workshops, conferences, and 

stitute, and Canada Centre for lnland Waters other scientific gatherings are some means of informing 

people about GLERL; certain special publications, such as 

Water Column Sediment Monitoring Procedures. the technical plan and this annual report, are others. Advice 

User: IIC was ~rovided to such widelv diverse users as the Council on 

~nviknmental ~uality-~x&utiw Office of the President; the Large Basin Runoff Models. White House Office of Science and Technology Policy; the Users: IJC, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and con- NWS (an impd waw forecast model); several committees sulting engineers and boards of the UC; numerous Great Lakes area radio 

Climatic Water Balance Models. stations, newspapers, and magazines; and an Egyptian 

User: Atmospheric Environment Service-Canada scientist. 
International treaties and agreements between the United 

States and Canada, such as the Water Quality Agreement of 

1978 and the Boundary WatersTreaty of 1909, areconsidered 

and agreed to at the Federal level. Legislation pertaining to 

navigation, water quality, and water 1-1s has been enacted 

by the Congress. GLERL has advised both the legislative and 

executive branches on these and other matters. 

Publications Unit 

Publications area major GLERL product, and acritical part 

of the effort is to make research findings available to a broad 

spectrum of users for application to environmental problems 

and decisions. The publications unit has responsibility for the 

preparation of manuscripts, including editing, typing, proofreading, and procurement of graphics. Manuscripts are 

edited, typed, and proofread in house, while graphics and 

photographic services are procured under contract. Manuscripts are formatted according to the requirements of the 

publication form: articles and notes in professional journals, 

NOAA technical reports and memoranda and data reports, 

or in-house reports. During the last fiscal year, 44 manuscripts 

were processed. 

This past year, the publications unit purchased spelling 

checker software to further upgrade their word processing 

equipment. Advances in software and hardware are constantly being evaluated to find more efficient ways to produce 

GLERL output. 

Every 6 months, a listing of GLERL publications is sent to 

a mailing of individuals who haw requested that list, and 

requests are filled until supplies are exhausted. Copies of 

publications are also available through the National Technical 

Information Service, Springfield, VA. 
INTERNATIONAL AND 

INTERAGENCY ACTIVITIES 

The GLERL program includes support activities for, and 

participation in, the work of many agencies in both the United 

States and Canada. This is one of the mechanisms whereby 

research products are used; in addition, GLERL obtains 

information on requirements for environmental information 

to support planning and management activities. This user 

need information is helpful in shaping future research 

programs. 

International Joint Commission 

GLERL staff members wre active on several IJC boards and 

committees including the Levels and Flows Advisory Board; 

the Technical lnformation Network Board; the Health of 

Aquatic Communities Work Group; the Task Force for Lake 

Michigan Surveillance; the Task Force for In-Place Sedimentary Contaminants; the St. Marys, St. Clair, and Detroit 

Rivers and Lake St. Clair Task Force of the Sumillance Work 

Group; the Aquatic Ecosystem Objective Committee Mrk 

Group; the Modeling Task Force of the Science Advisory 

Board; and the Lake Erie Task Force of the Surveillance 

Work Group. 

Great Lakes Commission 

A GLERL staff member serm on bw subcommittees ofthe 

Great Lakes Commission's Natural Resources Management 

Committee--the Subcommittee on Land and Air and the Sub 

committee on Water. The Natural Resources Management 

Committee is responsible for initial commission consideration of all natural resource issues and legislation. The two 

subcommittees cover broad spectra of related resource 

management and environmental protectiodpollution control 

programs administrated at both Stateand Federal Gmmment 

lew2ls. 

International Association for 

Great Lakes Research 

representative to the Regional Response Team (RRT) and 

supporting the NOAA National Ocean Service regional 

Scientific Support Coordinator (SSO. The RRT is a standing 

committee that evaluates and revises the regional contingency 

plan for response to spills of oil and hazardous materials. It 

may be called upon to provide specialized resources in 

response to a spill. A full-time SSC is assigned to work at 

GLERL. The SSCestablishes and maintains contacts with all 

U.S. Coast Guard Marine Safety Officers in Coast Guard 

District 9, chemical manufacturers, and the regional scientific community; identifies vulnerable resources in conjunction with State, Federal, and Canadian agencies; and assists 

in the preparation of regional and local contingency plans. 

When a spill occurs, the SSC acts as liasion between the 

on-scene coordinator and the scientific community and 

suppliesoil spill trajectory information, chemical and safety 

data, and immediate, localized resources-at-risk information. 

As part of this work, a Great Lakes-wide environmental 

sensitivity mapping program has been initiated. Work is 

underway on the St. Lawrence Riwr, Lake Erie, and the DetroitSt. Clair River System. GLERL scientists haw provided 

assistanceto the U.S. Coast Guard and the U.S. EM in regional 

spills and have participated in drills conducted by the 

U.S. Coast Guard and NOAA's Office of Marine Pollution 

Assessment (now OAD). 

Joint United States-Canadian Ice 

Information Mrking Group 

A GLERL scientist is the U.S. Cochairman of this group, the 

primary mission of which is to coordinate the gathering and 

dissemination of ice information and data for theGreat Lakes. 

Interagency Great Lakes Hydromet 

Steering Comm'hee 

The Interagency Great Lakes Hydromet Steering Committee was established to coordinate the efforts of the 

participating U.S. Government agencies in planning and 

implementing a Great Lakes Hydrometeorological Forecast 

System. Participatingagencies are NOAA, the U.S. Geological 

Surwy, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. 

Scientists at GLERL actively participate in activities of the 

lnternational Association for Great Lakes Research, a major Interagency Upper Great Lakes 

mechanism of scientific communication. Senior GLERL Connecfing Channels Study scientists sem as President and Secretary of the Association. 

The laboratory has recently become imlwd as a member 

of the Management Committee in an international (United 

RegioMl Response Team for Spills of Oil ~tate~anada) and interagency, multiyear study on water 

and Hazardous Substances qualitymarine pollution problems in the upper Great Lakes 

connecting channels (the St. Clair River, Lake St. Clair, the 

GLERLcontinues to playa role in spill response in theGreat Detroit River, and the St. Marys River). The United States 

Lakes by providing the alternate Department of Commerce agencies are the EM, NOAA, the Army Corps of Engineers, 
the Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Michigan Department 

of Natural Resources. The Canadian agencies are the 

Environmental Protection Service, Department of the Environment; the National Water Research Institute, Inland Waters 

Directorate; the Department of Fisheries and Oceans; and 

the Ontario Ministry of the Environment. The primary marine 

pollution problems to be studied are synthetic organic 

pollutants and nutrient overenrichment. 

International Coordinating Committee on 

Hydraulic and Hydrologic Data 

Because much of the Great Lakes data base is used 

internationally, Canadian and United States users of hydraulic 

and hydrologic data formed a coordinating committee in 

1953. Theobjectiws of this committee are to reach agreement 

on hydraulic, hydrologic, and related physical dataconcerning the Great Lakes; to assist agencies in pursuing studies 

requiring international data; to provide basic data to anyone 

with a recognized need; to reach agreement on methods and 

procedures for measuring, collecting, and storing pertinent 

data; and to publish coordinated data. GLERL participates on 

the Riwr Flaw Subcommittee, which is charged with coordinating data on tributary stream inflaw to the Great Lakes 

System, coordinating studies of flow in the connecting 

channels and the St. Lawrence River, and establishing 

procedures for updating and disseminating riwr flaw data. 

NOAA Sea Grant 

A joint project between GLERL and the Ohio State Sea 

Grant Program to dewlop an environmental and recreational 

atlas for Lakes Erie and St. Clair was continued. GLERL staff 

participated in the University of Wisconsin Site and Sub 

program (Microcontaminants) Reviews, and the Ohio State 

Uniwrsity Site Review. 

Activities involving participation with other NOAA units 

included the Marine Environmental Quality Task Force, the 

Quality Assurance Wrking Group, the Manned Undersea 

Research and Technology ProgramNational Marine Fisheries 

Service, the New Bedford Harbor PCB Contamination Assessment Team, the Marine Environmental Quality Review, and 

the Estuarine Review. GLERL has also worked extensively with 

the NWS in the United States and with the Atmospheric 

Environment Service in Canada on an operational, interactiw 

waw model. 

Other Activities 

GLERL scientists participated in a number of other international and interagency activities, including the activities 

of the International Association of Sediment Water Science, 

Science Education Administration of the U.S. Department of 

Agriculture, N0AAU.S.Geological Survey Coordinating 

Committee for Hydrologic Research, and the International 

Association for Hydrologic Research. GLERL scientists were 

also active in providing information to wral local agencies, 

such as the Kalamazoo Riwr Preservation Agency and the 

Technical Advisory Committee of the Huron Riwr Watershed 

Council. 
FACILITIES

GLER~slaboratoryandsupport facilitiesare an integralpart

of its research program. These are housed in four leased

buildings in Ann Arbor containing offices and support

facilities,at the Universityof Michigan North Campus, and

in a warehouse and dock facility at Monroe, MI.

Marine Instrumentation Laboratory

The marine instrumentation laboratory staffselects,

calibrates,repairs,and, when necessary,adaptsor designs

instrumentsto collectdata in the lakesand theirenvirons.

Engineersand technicians in this unit workcloselywith

GLERL researchers to ensure that instruments are compatible

with the purpose of the experiment.

This past year, marine instrumentation laboratory personnel deployed and retrieved four Marsh McBirney, Inc., model

585 electromagnetic vector averaging current meters

(VACM's)in the St.Clair and Detroit Rivers.They also deployed

32 EG&G model 610 VACM'sand 13 model 314 acoustical

releases in Lake Michigan. They have now recycled the inventory of eight mini.:rOD buoys numerous times. A "crushproof' package for these units is under development. Itwill

be valuable for ice tracking applications.

Various biological and chemical sampling and laboratory

instruments were designed, fabricated, and maintained.

Effortsto integratethese laboratory instrumentswith GLER~s

computer facilities continue.

In addition to a normal inventory of 45 VACM'sand 15

acoustical releases,some new instruments were acquired to

advanceGLERLcapabilities.Theseincludea WRIPSbuoy

that processes wavespectra and wavestatisticson board and

transmits data to a GOES satellite; an acoustical Doppler

current profiler; four ACM-2acoustical current meters; a

Hewlett-Packard 75 calculator-based system installed on

board the RVShenehon for acquisition of meteorological

data, as well as transparency, temperature, and depth casts

and conversion of navigational coordinates; and a similar

Hewlett-Packard 75 systemused for recording and processingtestdata forcurrentmetersin GLER~sflowtank.

Chemistry Laboratories

There are two majoi' types of compounds analyzed by

GLER~schemistry laboratories: trace syntheticorganic

materials and nutrients. The synthetic organics, primarily

PAH,are extracted from variousecologicalmatricesby

Soxhlet extraction and cleaned on Sephadex and silica.

Separationand analysisare done on glasscapillary-equipped

Hewlett-Packardgas chromatographs equipped with photo

and flame ionization and electron capture detectors and on

a Watersliquidchromatograph equipped with ultravioletand

fluorescent detectors.

_ _ __~.._ hO_. ,,.

- - -

...

lilt

) ,

' .

-. ~ ~

..

..

Vector averaging current meter. The marine instrumentation laboratory

deployed 36 current meters this past year, including 4 in the SI. Clair and

Detroit Rivers and this one in lake Michigan. The work done by this group

in maintaining and calibrating current meters and other instruments is vital

to the success of field experiments.

The uptake and release rates of selected PAHby benthic

organisms and the sorption of PAH onto Great Lakes

particulate matter are being followed through carbon-l4-and

tritium-labeled compounds. Compounds are extracted,

cleaned on thin layer or high-performance liquid

chromatography, and counted by liquid scintillation.

A great many water samples from Lake Michigan were

analyzed for various forms of phosphorus, silica, and other

water quality indicators(e.g.,transparency)as part ofthe Lake

Michigan Ecosystem Experiment to define processes contributing to phytoplankton dynamics, bacterial growth, and

ecosystem carbon flow in LakeMichigan.

Micromethods have been developed to measure the lipid

content of individual benthic animals. The lipid contents of

major species of benthic invertebrates are being examined

to help estimate the importanceofthese animalsinconverting

detrital energy into a form (invertebrate biomass) available

to fishand other predators(e.g.,Mysisrelicta).

Studies are being done to demonstrate the quantitative

importance of animals relative to microbes in converting

organic nutrients in the sediments into inorganic forms.

35
Biology Laboratories 

The biology laboratories' equipment and instrumentation 

include a multichannel Coulter Counter used to measure 

particle-size selection and zooplankton grazing on natural 

lake algae and seston. An array of instruments, including a 

liquid scintillation spectrometer, is used to imtigate nutrient 

uptake, growth rates, competition for nutrients by algae, and 

cycling rates of selected algal nutrients. Facilities also ihclude 

a full complement of sampling gear and instrumentation, 

growth chambers, stereoand inverted microscopes, and 

cultured populations of phytoplankton and zooplankton 

species for model studies. A mobile trailer has been fitted for 

lakeside imestigations of the physiology and feeding rates of 

planktonic and benthic organisms. 

Shipboard and shoreside incubators haw been constructed 

to simulate ambient light and temperature climates for as 

many as tw dozen 20-liter growth chambers and ham been 

used for zooplankton grazing experiments. Submersible light 

meters with hemispherical and spherical sensors are used to 

recprd incident and underwater photosynthetically active 

radiation. 

The process of zooplankton feeding and other zooplanktonalgal interactions occupies a central role in models of 

eutrophication and toxic organic cycling. Progress in &lop 

ing mechanistic models has been hindered by the inability 

to observe the feeding process directly because of the small 

size of both zooplankton and algae and the high frequency 

(50 Hertz) of zooplankton appendate mmment. Using the 

recently dwloped tool of high-speed microcinematography, 

GLERL scientists, working with scientists at Skidaway Institute 

of Oceanography, made the first direct observations of these 

processes for a freshwater copepod. These observations and 

those of others on marine copepods suggest the occurrence 

of zooplankton-food interactions not previously suspected. 

To study the feeding mechanisms of Great Lakes zooplankton 

in detail, GLERL is now in the process of duplicating the 

microcinematography apparatus at Skidaway Institute. A 

special feature of this laboratory will be accurate temperature 

control. Because many Great Lakes zooplankton are boreal 

species, the apparatus will be placed in a cold room at 

controlled temperatures between 2" and 20°C. 

Ice Laboratory 

The ice laboratory makes it possible to extend the winter 

measurement season and to expand opportunities for 

measurements of ice characteristics. The facility consists of 

awork room and an ice storage room. The work room, held 

at -7.0%, can be used to conduct experiments on natural ice 

harvested in previous field seasons, as well as to calibrate 

instrumentation for the ice research program in an environment similarto that encountered in the field. The interior walls 

are painted flat black to facilitate optical experiments. 

I *Teflon tube 

(70 mm x 3.1 mm 0. D.) 

(50 mm x 6.0 mm O.D.) 

(100 ml beaker) 

w loop l P 

I calibration I 

marks 

Supernatant + supernatant 

,Centrifuged 

particles 

Unmodified Clay plug 

ca~illa~ Capillary pipet centrifuge 

tube Micro- transfer 

pipet 

Schematicdiagram of microtissuegrinder (top) and capillary centrifuge and 

transfer tubes (httorn) developed to analyze individual benthic invertebrates 

for lipids. Lipid measurementson these animals provide information needed 

to understand energy and contaminant dynamics in the Great Lakes. 

Ancillary equipment includes a highintensity light source, 

a mercury linesource, and an optical bench. Adjacentto the 

work room is a smaller room held at -29.0°C. In addition to 

providing Iw temperature storage for ice samples and a 

limited number of field samples from the chemistry and 

biology programs, the facility serves as an additional 

calibration room. 

Particle Dynamics Laboratory 

Natural and artificially produced radionuclides introduced 

into the Great Lakes serve as excellent model contaminant 

and process indicators. The particledynamics laboratory has 

equipment to measure very low levels of many such radioactive substances present in water, sediment, and biota. The 
laboratory was established in 1981 as part of thecooperatiw 

program with the Uniwrsity of Michigan, Great Lakes and 

Marine Waters Center. 

Facilities include several gas-flow proportional counters 

with automatic sample changers for total alpha and beta 

counting. These systems are used both for Iwlewl counting 

of environmental samples and for laboratory radiotracer 

studies. The laboratory has one absolute geometry alpha 

spectroscopy system and has recently added four additional 

alpha spectroscopy modules. This addition is a significant 

improvement in capability for extremely low-level, high 

resolution measurement of alpha emitting radionuclides, 

such as the plutonium and thorium isotopes and 

polonium-210. There is now an extensive capability for 

gammaanalysis. Awell-shielded 3-bplinch sodium iodide 

detector is used for routine measurement offallout cesium137 , 

in sediment and in trap samples. Wral2-bp2-inch sodium 

iodide detectors are presently used in gamma scan systems. 

In these systems, the detectors are housed in extremely wellcollimated lead shields mounted on hydraulically operated 

platforms. The gamma-scan systems are used to determine 

the wrtical distribution of gamma emitting tracers added to 

laboratory microcosms containing sediments, water, and 

zoobenthos. In addition, the laboratory includes a major 

gamma detection system-a high volume, high resolution, 

well-shielded lithiumdrifted germanium detector coupled 

to a state-of-the-art multichannel analyzer. The system is 

interfaced with the GLERL VAX 11/780 computer, allowing 

online data processing. The system is designed for simultaneous determination of many radioisotopes, including 

beryllium-7, potassium-40, cesium-137, and other fallout 

radionuclides. The system may also be used for quantitatiw 

determination of stable element concentrations via neutron 

activation analysis. The alpha spectroscopy facility is used 

primarily to date sediment cores from the Great Lakes and 

other lakes, as well as coastal marine systems, by means of 

the lead-210 method. The gamma spectroscopy system is in 

constant use for analysis of tracers that characterize recent 

sediment mixing and deposition processes. Also analyzed 

by both methods are numerous trap samples, which allow 

comparison of in-lake radionuclide fluxes with atmospheric 

deliwry rates. A new project on radionuclide transport and 

storage in the dynamic system of Lake St. Clair and its 

connecting channels will require an expanded gamma 

counting facility. 

Computer Facility 

The GLERL computer facility supports data acquisition, 

data reduction, graphics, and modeling applications for 

scientists and technicians in the research groups. 

In December 1983, a superminicomputer was installed to 

support general purpose applications (e.g., graphics, data 

reduction and analysis, modeling, wrd processing). The new 

system is a VAX 111780 with 14-megabyte memory, 

1,iW-megabyte disk storage, two 1,600/6,25O-l~ytesper-inch 

tape drim, fiw input-output channels, 48 asynchronous and 

one synchronous port, and three printers. Graphics peripherals supported by the system include a Calcomp plotter, 

Tektronix terminal with hardcopy, a Printronix printer1 

plotter, and 20 graphics terminals. 

The GLERL VAX 111780 communicates with the NOAA 

Cyber 750 mainframe in Boulder, CO, via a dedicated 

9,600-baud circuit. Within a year, it is expected that the 

Boulder link will be replaced by a link to a Cyber 205 at the 

NBSERL Scientificcomputing Facility in Gaithersburg. This 

facility will offer a wry powerful computing capability and 

will support GLERL modeling applications. 

A Hewlett-Packard 9603 minicomputer is used to support 

data acquisition tasks. It is used to collect data from NWs 

weather and marine circuits; to process tapes from field 

instrumentation, such as tracking satellite-transmitting drifter 

buoys; and to obtain data from instrumented towers. 

Research Wl Shenehon 

The Shenehon is the primary platform used in support of 

open lake field investigations. The ~ssel isa 65.6-foot-long 

converted T-boat, with a 6.5-foot mean draft, a 600-nauticalmilecruising range, and a 10-knot cruising speed. A hydraulic 

articulated crane with a 1,630-pound lifting capacity at 21-foot 

extension is used for deployment and retrieval of heavy 

instrument moorings. Winches handle hydrographic wi rr! and 

multiconductor cable for sample casts and in situ 

measurements of water variables. An onboard laboratory 

facilitates onsite physical, chemical, and biological 

experiments. A loran C navigation system provides the 

capabilityand precision forthe boat to return toan exactsite 

in the lakes for equipment retrieval. 

During FY 1984, the Shenehon was based at the U.S. Army 

Corps of Engineers' boat yard at Grand Haven, but made two 

extended cruises through the upper Great Lakes. The corps 

also provided warehouse facilities and space for a mobile 

shore-based laboratory at that location. 

In a study to quantify the ertical mass and chemical flux 

during thermal stratified and nonstratified periods, sediment 

trap moorings were deployed at four locations in Lakes 

Michigan, Superior, and Huron during July and September 

1984 for collections during the stratified period and winter. 

These traps will be retrieved in July 1985. 

Sedimenttrapsand an instrument tripod supportinga current meter, transparency meter, and temperature sensor were 

deplqred west of South Hawn, MI, to study bottom currents, 

resuspension of sediments, and thediffusion of soluble ions 

in the near-bottom water. The study was done in cooperation with Dr. Barry Leshtof Argonne National Laboratoryand 

Dr. Thomas Tisue of Clemson Uniwrsity. 

Biological wrk supported by the Shenehon duringthe past 

year included benthic, planktonic, and bacterial experiments 
studying nutrient cycling in the aquatic environment and the

long-term effects of toxic material inputs. As part of a toxics

materials study, specimens of the organisms Pontoporeia hoyi

and Mysis relicta were collected in Lakes Huron and

Michigan to measure uptake of PAH. The Shenehon also

supported a Lagrangian study that used a satellite-tracked

surface drogue to follow and ensure sampling in the same

water mass. Sedimenttraps were suspended below the drifter.

Other operations included the deployment and retrieval of

moorings, light and temperature studies, plankton net tows,

and collection of water samples by hydrographic casts

and pumping.

In continued cooperation with the University of Michigan,

the Shenehon was used to collect water and bottom sediment

samples and light and temperature data in the vicinity of

Grand Haven and Muskegon, MI, and to train students in

oceanographic techniques.

In supportofthe Physical Limnology and Meteorology program, the Shenehon crew took measurements at the N DBC

NOMAD buoy in southern Lake Michigan for verification of

output of meteorological and underwater sensors. These buoy

data are used in GLERL investigations and are routinely used

in NWS forecasts. As part of another cooperative program with

NDBC, the vessel was used to deploy and retrieve satellitetracked drogues that tracked water current trajectories in

Lake Michigan.

In the data collection phase of an investigation of the rotational mode currents induced in Lake Michigan in May and

June by suddenly imposed wind stresses, the vessel was used

to deploy eight current-meter moorings located west of South

Haven. Sedimenttraps were al so deployed near the cu rrentmeter moorings to take advantage of the water current data

to provide greater insight into the mass movement of settl ing

of resuspended particles in Lake Michigan.

A "wire line" sweep technique designed by GLERL personnel was used successfully four times during FY 1984 to recover

submerged sedimenttraps. These recoveries resulted in little

or no loss of data and a considerable savings because divers

were not used.

This past year, a Hewlett-Packard 75 calculator-based data

acquisition system using a cassette recorder was installed on

the Shenehon to record depth, temperature, transparency, and

meteorological data in digital format. This has resulted in a

significant time savings since the data from the cassette can

be quickly entered into the VAX 11/780 computer and is then

readily available to all users.

Library and Information Services

GLERLlibrary staffprovideslibrary and information services

necessaryto laboratory researchactivities by maintaining a

tailored research collection and offering special retrieval

services when the collection cannot meet the documentation or information needs of the researchers.The current

i

Deployment of a water sampler tripod for a near-bottom experiment. One

important function of the RV Shenehon is the deployment and retrieval of

the instruments used to collect basic data.

collection consistsof researchmaterials in the areasof

climatology, hydrology, hydraulics, ice, limnology,

mathematical modeling, meteorology, oceanography,

sedimentation, and wave motion, with emphasis on the Great

Lakes Basin. Contaminant organics and nutrients are now

being included as major subject areas. Holdings include

almost 3,000 books, over 3,500 unbound periodical volumes,

and over 2,700 technical reports (excluding an estimated 200

books, 2,300 reports, and 1,200 unbound periodical volumes

kept in a remote storage location). Space limitations have

necessitated both local and distant storage facilities.

Library staff performs reference, interlibrary loan, photocopying, acquisition, circulation, and bibliographic services,

including online information retrieval, for laboratory-affjliated

personnel. In addition, the staff expedites on-demand document retrieval and increases reference capability on behalf

of GLERLscientists though onsite access arrangements with

the University of Michigan library system. Limited services

to nonlaboratory-affiliated individuals are provided upon

special request.

During FY 1984 the GLERL Library Automated Retrieval

System (GLARES) was rewritten, over 230 current periodical

titles received, over 400 interlibrary loans retrieved, and over

100 online bibliographic searches performed. GLARES, an

in-house technical report catalog, was converted to the new

GLERL VAX 11/780 superminicomputer and enhanced to

38
permit interactiw searching by researchers using their desk 

terminals. The system now permits browsing, boolean logic, 

cross references, and multiple access points. 

The Michigan Library Consortium (MLC) was added to the 

list of networks through which the library seeks tocooperate 

with other libraries and information centers to improve 

services and share resources. 

In FY 1985 the library plans to further expand online 

bibliographic searching capabilities through theaddition of 

another database collection-*Usearch. The Canadian data 

bases in QUSearch are expected to provide valuable access 

to additional environmental reports on the Great Lakes Basin. 

Staff will also continue refining formats in portions of the 

GLARES catalog and adding records. Further, the library 

hopes to upgrade itselectronic communication by theaddition of a specialized microcomputer. The new equipment wi I1 

enhance communications for interlibrary loans, cataloging, 

and bibliographic searching. 
STAFF AS OF SEPTEMBER 30,1984 

Part Time and 

Full Time Intermittent 

Office of Director 11 3 

Lake Hydrology Group 10 1 

Ecosystems and Nutrient 

Dynamics Group 9 4 

Synthetic Organics and 

Particle Dynamics Group 9 4 

Environmental Systems 

Studies Group 1 

Physical Limnology and 

Meteorology Group - 11 - 4 

mAL 51 16 

Assel, R.A. 

Aubert, E.J. 

Bell, G.L. 

Bennett, J.R 

Berry, J.S. 

Bolsenga, S.J. 

Booker, H.L. 

Bramlet, R.H. 

Bums, W.R. 

Campbell, J.E. 

Carrick, B.J. 

Cichocki, E.A. 

Clites, A.H. 

Croley, T.E., II 

Del Proposto, D.J. 

Derecki, J.A. 

Dungan, J.E. 

Dunivan, E.M. 

Eadie, 0.1. 

Fahnenstiel, G.L. 

Faust, W.R. 

Field, L.P. 

Fontaine, T.D. 

Frez, W.A. 

Gardner, W.S. 

Gray, M.J. 

Grimes, J.E. 

Harhnann, H.C. 

Haskin, V. 

Hawley, N. 

Herche, L.R. 

James, O.L. 

Kelley, J.M. 

Kelley, R.N. 

LH 

OD 

SOPD 

PLM 

OD 

OD 

PLM 

OD 

SOPD 

PLM 

LH 

END 

PLM 

LH 

OD 

LH 

PLM 

OD 

SOPD 

END 

SOPD 

PLM 

ESS 

SOPD 

END 

SOPD 

SOPD 

LH 

OD 

SOPD 

OD 

OD 

OD 

LH 

Kistler, R.D. 

Laird, G.A. 

Landrum, P.F. 

Lang, G.A. 

Lawton, B.J. 

Lee, J.P. 

Leshkwich, G.A. 

Liebig, J.R. 

Liu, P.C. 

Lqewski, N.L. 

Lynn, E.W. 

Malczyk, J.M. 

Mark, S.V. 

McCormick, M.J. 

Miller, G.S. 

Miller, T.C. 

Moohead, N.R. 

Morse, D.V. 

Muzzi, R.W. 

Nalepa, T.F. 

Noble, P.E. 

Norton, D.C. 

Quigley, M.A. 

Quinn, F.H. 

Robins, J.A. 

Saylor, J.H. 

Scavia, D. 

Schwab, D.J. 

Soo, H.K. 

Spakiing, G.E. 

Stubbletield, B. 

Tarapchak, S.J. 

Vanderploeg, H.A. 

LH-Lake Hydrology Group 

OD--Office of Director 

SOPD-Synthetic Organics and Particle Dynamics Group 

PLM-Physical Limnology and Meteorology Group 

END-Ecosystem and Nutrient Dynamics Group 

ESS-Environmental Systems Studies Group 

PLM 

END 

SOPD 

END 

LH 

OD 

LH 

END 

PLM 

END 

PLM 

END 

OD 

SOPD 

PLM 

PLM 

SOPD 

SOPD 

PLM 

END 

OD 

LH 

END 

LH 

SOPD 

PLM 

END 

PLM 

PLM 

OD 

LH 

END 

END 
PUBLICATIONS 

A 6-month listing of available publications can be obtained 

from 

Information Services 

Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory 

2300 Washtenaw Avenue 

Ann Arbor, MI 48104 

Assel, R.A. 1983. Lake Erie regional ice cover analysis: Preliminary results. 

NW Technical Memorandum ERL GLERL-48. 

Assel, R.A., Quinn, F.H., Leshkevich, G.A., and Bolsenga, SJ. 1983. Great 

Lakes iceatlas. Ann Arbor: Great lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. 

Aubert, E.J. 1984. Advisory mechanisms supporting the mission of the IJC. 

In Review of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement-Ubrkingpapers 

and discussion, pp. 68-86 Washington, DC: The Water Science and 

Technology Boad, National Research Council, National Academy ks. 

Aubert, E.J. 1984. Capabilities of various esearrh organizations to provide 

information on Great Lakes waterquality. NOAA'liKhnical Memorandum 

ERL GLERL-52. 

Bell, G.L., and Eadie, B.J. 1983. Variation in the distribution of suspended 

particles during an up~elling event in Lake Michigan in 1980.1. Great 

Lakes Res. 9:559567. 

Bolsenga, S.J. 1983. Spectral retlectances of snow and freshwater ice from 

340 through 1100 nm. I. Glaciol. 29:296-305. 

Chapra, S.C: and Reckhaw, K.H.t 1983. Engineering approaches Ibr lake 

management, volume 2: Mechanistic modeling. Boston: Butterwwdr 

Publishers. 

Chapra, S.C: Scavia, D., Lang, G.A., and Reckhcnv, K.H.? 1983. Nutrient 

food chain models. In Engineering appmches for lake management, 

volume 2: Mechanistic modeling, ed. X. Chapa and K.H. Reckhcnv, 

pp. 243-351. Boston: Butteworth Publishers. 

Croley, T.E., 11. 1983. Lake Ontario Basin (U.S.A.€anada) runoff modeling 

I. Hydro/. 66:lOl-121. 

Croley, T.E., 11. 1983. Sediment dynamics in unsteady nonprismatic rills. 

In Proceedings, conference on frontiers in hydraulic engineering, ed. 

HX Shen, pp 127-132. New York: American Society of Civil Engineers. 

Croley, TE., II, and HarbMnn, HX11984. LakeSuperior Basin nrndfmodeline, 

NOAA Technical Memorandum ERL GLERL-50. 

Cmley, T.E., II, and Foster, G.R.t 1984. Unsteady sedimentation in nonuniform rills. I. Hydrol. 70:lOl-122. 

Derecki, J.A. 1984. Detroit River physical and hydraulic characteristics. 

GLERL Open File Report. 

Derecki, J.A. 1984. St. Clair River physical and hydraulic characteristics. 

GLERL Open File Report. 

Derecki, J.A. 1984. St. Marys River physical and hydraulic chalilcteristics. 

GLERL Open File Report. 

Eadie, B.J. 1984. Distribution of polyqclic aromatic hydmrbons in the 

Great Lakes In Tic contaminants in the Great Lakes, ed. J.O. Nriagu 

and M.S Simmons, pp 195-211. Wiley Series in Environmental Science 

and Technology, ed. J.O. Nriagu, vol. 14. Newbrk: John Wley and Sons 

Fahnenstiel, G.L., Scavia, D., and Schelske, C.L.' 1984. Nutrient-light 

interactions in the Lake Michigan subsurface chlorophyll layer. krh. 

Internat. krein. Limnol. 22:W. 

Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. 1983. Annual wrt Ibr 

the Cleat Lakes Envimmental Research Laboratory. Ann Arbor: Great 

Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. 

Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. 1983. Publications by 

the staff of the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. Ann 

Arboc Great Lakes Envimnmental Research Laboratow 

Great Lakes Envimnmental Research Laboratory. 1984. Technical plan Ibr 

the Cleat Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. Ann Arbor: Great 

Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. 

Gm, GM? 1984. Freezeup, breakup, and date of maximum ice thickness 

for the St. Lawrence River-1977-81. NW Data Report ERL GLERL-27, 

He, K.t, Salvadt?, G.t, and Schwab, D.J. 1983. On internal wavedynamics 

in the northem basin of the Lake of Lugana Ceophys. Astmphys. Fluid 

Dyn. 273299-336 

Kadlec, R.H.t, and Robbins, J.A. 1984. Sedimentation and sediment 

aqxtion in Michigan coastal wetlands (U.S.A.). Chem. Ceol. 44:119.150. 

Krezoski, J.R.', Robbins, J.A., and White, D.S.t 1984. Dual radiotracer 

measurement of zoobenthormediated solute and particle bansport in 

freshwater sediments. I. Geophys. Res. 8999377947. 

Landrum, P.F., Bartell, SM.t, Giesy, J.P.t, hrsee, G.J.t, bling, J. W.t, 

Haddock, J.t, LaGory, K.t, Gemuld, S.?, and Bruno, M.t 1984. Fate of 

anthracene in an artificial stream: A case study. Ecotaxicol. Environ. 

Saf. 8:183-201. 

Landrum, P.F., Nihart, SR., Eadie, B.J., and Gadner, W.S. 1984. Reverse 

phase separation method for determining pollutant binding to Aldrich 

humic acid and dissolved organic carbon of natural waters. Environ. 

Sci. Technol. 18:187-192. 

Lank G.A. 1983. The Mineral Riwr-A unique tributary chloride load to 

Lake Superior. I. Cleat Lakes Res. 9:584-587. 

Lehman, J.T.t, and Scavia, D. 1984. Measuring the ecological significance 

of mim~cale nutrient patches. Limnol. Oceanogr. 29:214216 

Lewrsee, G.J.t, Landrum, P.F., Giesy, J.Ft, and Fannin, T.t 1983. Humic 

acids reduce bioaccumulation of some polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons 

Can. 1. Fish. Aguat. Sci. 40:63-69. 

Liu, P.C. 1983. A representation for the frequency spectrum of windgenerated waves. Ocean Eng. 10:429-441. 

ffill, P.L.t, Robbins J.A., and Matid, G.t 1984. 137Csandm0Pbtransport 

and geochronologies in urbanized reservoirs with rapidly increasing 

sedimentation rates. Chem. Ceol. 44:33-65. 

McCormick, M.J., Wharram, B.L., and Scavia, D. 1983. Comparison of 

phytoplankton growth constructs in the context of wrtically segmented 

plankton models. In Developments in environmental modeling, Part 5. 

Analysis of ecological systemc StateoM~rt in ecological modeling 

ed. W.K. Lauenmth, G.V. Skogh, and M. Flu& pp 663668. Amsterdam, 

The Netherlands: Elsevier Science Publishers. 

*NO longer affiliated with this laboratory. 

+Not affiliated with this laboratory. 

tNot affiliated with this laboratory. 

*No longer affiliated with this laboratory. 
McCormick, M.J., and Tarapchak, S.J. 1984. Uncertainty analysis of predicted fluxes of biogenic silica in Lake ~ichigan. ~imnol. Oceanogr. 

calculated nutrient regeneration rates in Lake Michigan. Can. I. Fish. 2999-110. 

Aquat. Sci. 41:20&211. Schwab, D.J. 1983. Numerical simulation of lowfrequency current fluctuaMeprs, knheer, M.J.t, Eadie, B.J., and Maule, SJ.t 1984. Organic tions in Lake Michigan. I. Phys. Oceanogr. 13:2213-2224. 

geochemistry of suspended and settling particulate matter in Lake ~chwab, D.J., and bo, D.B+ 1983. Barotmpic oxillations of the Mediter- Michigan. Ceochim. Cosmochim. Acta 48:443-452. ranean and Adriatic Sear Tellus 35A:417-427. 

Nale~a, T.F., and Quigb', 1983. Abundance and biomass of the Schwab, D.J., Bennett, J.R., Liu, RC., and hnelan, M.A. 1984. Application meiobenthos in nearshore Lake Michigan with comparisons to the of, simple numerical -to bke ~~i~. J. mPb. 

macrobenthos. I. Great Lakes Res. 9:53@547. Res. 8935663592. 

~dffenhafer, G.A.', and Cardner, W.S. 1984. Ammonium release bylmils Schwab, D.J., and Morton, ].A. 1984. Estimation of mrlake wind speed andadultfemalesdthesubtropical marinecopepod Eucalanuspileatus. fmm overland wind speed: A comparison of three methods. I. Great 

). Plankton Res. 6:501513. Lakes Res. 10:6872. 

~ui~lq: M.A 1984. Freshvratermacroinvertebrates.). Waterfbllot. Conml. , ~chwab, DJ., knna J.R., and Lynn, E.W. 1984. "Pdthfinder"--A trajectory 

Fed. 5k774-760. prediction system for the Great Lakes. NOAA Technical Memorandum 

Quinn, F.H., and Cmley, T.E., 11.1983. Climatic basin water balance models ERL GLERL-53. 

forGreat Lakesforecastingand In fifthconkrence Schwab, D.J., Meadows, C.A.t, Bennett, J.R., Schultz, H.t, Liu, P.C., On bdmrneteorolo~ pp. 218-223. Boston: American Meteorological Campbell, J.E., and Dannelongue, H.H. 1984. The response ofthecoastal 

Society. boundary layer to wind and waves: Analysis of an experiment in Lake 

Robertson, A?, and Scavia, D. 1984. North American Great Lakes. In Lakes Erie. I. Ceophys. Res. 8980438053. 

andreservoirs, ed. F.B. ~aub, pp. 135-176. Amsterdam, The Netherlands: , Schwab, D.J., Bennett, J.R., and Lynn, E.W. 1984. A Mimensional lake 

Elsevier Science Publishers. wave prediction system. NW Technical Memorandum ERL CLERL-51. 

Saylor, I.H., and Miller, C.S. 1983. Investigation of the currents anddensity sonzogni, WC? ~~b~~~~

A? B~~~~~, A.M.+ 1983. Great Lakes 

structure of Lake Erie. NOAA Technical Memorandum ERL CLERL-49. management: factors. Envimn. M~~~~~. 7:531-541. 

Saylor, J.H., and Miller, G.S. 1984. Studies of lake-scale currents and w.c: and Swain, W.R.+ 1984. Perspectives on human health 

temperature distributions. In Technical assessment team report on the from Great In Toxic in the 

1978-79 Lake Erie intensive study, ed. D.E. Rathke et al. Columbus, OH: treat bkes, ed. 1.0. ~~i~~~ and M.S. simmons, pp. 1-29. wley series 

Ohio State University. in Environmental Science and Technology, ed. I. 0. Nriagu, vol. 14. 

Schelske, C.L.t, Eadie, B.J., and Krausse, G.L.t 1984. Measured and New York: John W~ley and Sons. 

+Not affiliated with this laboratory. *No longer affiliated with this laboratory. 

*No longer affiliated with this laboratory. +Not affiliated with this laboratory. 
Assel, R.A. 1983. Autumn and winter characteristics for discrete areas of 

Lake Superior. American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting, December 19, 

1983, San Francisco, C4. 

Assel, R.A. 1983. Great Lakes digital ice concentration data base. Creation 

and Utility of Geographic Data Bases, December 9,1983, New Hudson, MI. 

Aubert, E.J. 1984. The capabilities of the various research organizations 

to provide information on Great Lakes water quality. Conference on the 

Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement by the National Research Council 

Water Science and Technology Board, April 26, 1984, Buffalo, NY. 

Aubert, E.J. 1984. The Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. 

Conference on Great Lakes Environmental Research-Current programs 

and future initiatives, May 24, 1984, Niagara Falls, NY. 

Aubert, E.J. 1984. Pollution in the Great Lakes and research at the NOAA 

laboratory. First 1984 Meeting of the Science Research Club of the 

University of Michigan, January 3, 1984, at the University of Michigan, 

Ann Arbor, MI. 

Bell, G.L., Eadie, B.J., and Robbins, J.A. 1984. Sediment trap studies in 

Lake Michigan: Mass fluxes and resuspension. 27th Conference on Great 

Lakes Research, April 3O-Mq 3,1984, Brcd Uniwsity, St. Catharines, ON. 

Bennett, J.R. 1984. The importance of Ekman layer sediment transport in 

the Great Lakes. Ocean Sciences Meeting of the American Geophysical 

Union and the American Society of Limnology and Oceanography, 

Janualy 23-271984, New Orleans, LA. 

Bennett, J.R., and Clites, A.H. 1984. Sediment transport in Lake Michigan's 

southern basin: A timedependent bu-layer model including the effects 

of Ekman layer transport. American Geophysical Union Spring Meeting, 

May 14-18, 1984, Cincinnati, OH. 

Bolsenga, 5.1. 1984. Nearshore ice thickness and stratigraphy. Great Lakes 

Ice Research Wrkshop, October 1&19,1983, Columbus, OH. 

Bolsenga, S.J. 1984. Sho~reflectanceandtransmittanceoficeand snow. ' Great Lakes Ice Research Mrkshop, October 1819,1983, Columbus, OH. 

Bolsenga, S.J. 1984. Techniques to measure the spectral rdectance of ice. 

Ocean Optics VII, June 25-28, 1984, at the U.S. Naval Post-graduate 

School, Monterq: CA. 

Cmley, T.E., 11.1983. Evapotranspiration and storagedynamics in river basins. 

American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting, December 5-9, 1983, 

San Francisco, C4. 

Cmley, T.E., 11.1983. Evapotranspiration and storagedynamics in river basins. 

Fifth Conference on Hydmmeteomlogy, October 17-19,1983, Tulsa, OK. 

Cmley, T.E., 11.1984. Assessmentof meteorological data nehwrksizefor Lake 

Superior. 27th Conference on Great Lakes Research, April 30-May 3,1984, 

at Brodc University, St. Catharines, ON. 

Eadie, B.J., Robbins, J.A., and Bourbonniere, R.A.t 1984. Particlecontaminant interactions in theGreat Lakes. Ocean SciencesMeetingof 

the American Geophysical Union and the American Society of Limnology 

and Oceanography, January 23-27, 1984, New Orleans, LA. 

Fahnenstiel, G.L. 1984. In situ growth rates of dominant Lake Michigan 

phytoplankton. Ocean Sciences Meeting of the American Geophysical 

Union and the American Society of Limnology and Oceanography, 

January 23-27, 1984, New Orleans, LA. 

Frez, W.A., and Landrum, P,F. 1983. Uptake of PAH by Mysis relicta. 

Seminar, kernber6,1983, atthe UniversityofMichigan,Ann Arbor, MI. 

Gadner, W.S., Eadie, B.J., and Maluyk, J.M. 1984. Particulate phosphorus 

in LakeMichigan: Forms, distribution, and potential biologiceffects. 27th 

Conference on Great Lakes Research, April 30-May 3, 1984, at Brock 

University, St. Catharines, ON. 

Greene, G.M? 1984. simulation of ice cmr growth and decay on the St. 

Lawrence River, 1980-81. 1984 American Society of Civil Engineers' 

Hydraulics Division Speciality Conference, August 14-17, 1984, Coeur 

dXlene, ID, (presented by F.H. Quinn). 

Hartmann, H.C., and Croley, T.E., 11. 1984. The worth of near real-time 

meteorological data for Lake Superior runoff estimation. 27th Conference 

on Great Lakes Research, April 30-May 3, 1984, at Brock University, 

St. Catharines, ON. 

Hawlq, N. 1981 Another Id atthe size distribution of suspended sediments. 

Geological Society of America Annual Meeting, October 28, 1983, 

Indianapolis, IN. 

Hawley, N. 1984. Beryllium-7 partitioning in natural freshwater systems. 

Ocean Sciences Meeting of the American Geophysical Union and the 

American Society of Limnology and Oceanography, January 2327,1984, 

New Orleans, LA. 

Landrum, RF., Reinhold, M., Nihart, S.R., and Eadie, B.J. 1983. Humicacids 

reduce the uptake of polycyclic ammatic hydrocarbons by Pontoporeia 

hqi. Fourth Annual Meeting ofthe Society of Environmental Toxicology 

and Chemistry, Nmmber 6-9, 1983, Arlington, VA. 

Landrurn, P.F., Eadie, B.J., Faust, W.R., and Morehead, N.R. 1983. The role 

of sediment in the bioaccumulation of benzo(a)pyrene by the amphipod 

Pontqporeia hi. Eighth International Symposium on PAH, October2628, 

1983, Columbus, OH. 

Landrum, RF., Eadie, B.J., Faust, W.R., and Morehead, N.R. 1984. Factors 

afkding bioconcentration of polwlic amatic hylttxahs by the Great 

Lakes amphipod Pontoporeia hoyi. Ocean Sciences Meeting of the 

American Geophysical Union and the American Society of Limnology and 

Oceanography, January 23-27,1984, New Orleans, LA. 

Leshkevich, G.A. 1983. Lake Superior icecycle, 1979. Great Lakes Ice Research 

Wrkshop, October 1819,1983, Columbus, OH. 

Leshkevich, G.A. 1984. Calculating ice and snow albedos for different sky 

conditions 27th Codemaon Great Lakes Research, April 30May 3,1984, 

at Brd University, St. Catharines, ON. 

Liu, RC. 1984.Acomparison of synoptic wave predictions in LakeMichigan 

with rneasumts. Ocean Sciences Meeting ofthe American Geophysical 

Union and the American Society of Limnology and Oceanography, 

January 23-27, 1984, New Orleans, LA. 

Morehead, N.R., Eadie, B.J., Landrum, P.F., and Nihart, S.R. 1983. Reversephase separation method for determining pollutant binding constants to 

dissolwd organic matterof natural waters. Sixth Midwest Water Chemistry 

Wrkshop, October 20-21, 1983, Urbana, IL. 

Nalepa, T.F. 1984. Benthic invertebrates and phosphorus release from Lake 

Michigan sediments. 32nd Meeting ofthe North American Benthological 

Society, May22-25,1984, at North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC. 

Nalepa, T.F. 1984. Sediment-water column distributions of epibenthic 

crustaceans in nearshore LakeMichigan. 27th Conference on Great Lakes 

Research, April 30-May 3,1984, at Bnxk University, St. Catharines, ON. 

+Not affiliated with this laboratory *No longer affiliated with this laboratory. 

43 
Oris, J.Xt, Giesy, J.Ft, Allred, P.M.t, Grant, D.F?, and Landrum, P.F. 1984. 

Photo-induced toxicity of environmental contaminants in aquatic 

organisms. Miami lntemational Symposium on the Biosphere, April 23-25, 

1984, Coral Gables, FL. 

Pickett, R.L: and Hehe, L.R. 1984. A simple density equation for Great 

Lakes waters. 27th Conference on Great Lakes Research, April 30-May 3, 

1984, at Brock University, St. Catharines, ON. 

Quigley, M.A. 1983. Sediment pelletization by Pontoporeia. Seminar, 

Nmmber 15, 1983, at the Uniwrsity of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI. 

Quiglq, MA. 1984. Ratios of release rates of soluble dw silica and soluble 

dw phosphorus from nearshore Lake Michigan sedimenh 47th Annual 

Meeting of the American Society of Limnology and Oceanography, 

June 11-14,1984, Vancouver, BC. 

Quinn, F.H. 1984. Temporal effects of St. Clair Riwr dredging on Lakes St. 

Clair and Erie: Water levels and connectingchannel flm 27th Conon Great Lakes Research, April 30-May 3, 1984, at Brock University, 

St. Catharines, ON. 

Quinn, F.H., and Croley, T.E., 11.1983. Climatic basin water balancemodels 

for Great Lakes forecasting and simulation. Fifth Conference on 

Hydmmeteomlogy, October 17-19, 1983, Tulsa, OK. 

Rice, C.P.t, Meyers, P.A.t, Eadie, B.J., and Robbins, J.A. 1983. Sources, 

transport, and degradation of organic matter components associated with 

sedimentary particles in Lake Michigan. Sixth International Symposium on 

Environmental Biogeochemistry, October 9-14, 1983, Santa Fe, NM. 

Saylor, J.H. 1984. hrtex modes of particular Great Lakes basins. Ocean 

&iences ~eetin~ of the ~merican'~eo~hysica1 Union and the American 

Society of Limnology and Oceanography, January 23-27, 1984, New 

Orleans, LA. 

Saylor, J.H., and Miller, G.S. 1984. hrtex modes dselected Great Lakes basins. 

27th Conference on Great Lakes Research, April 30May 3,1984, at Brock 

University, St. Catharines, ON. 

Scavia, D., Fahnenstiel, G.L., Evans, MS.+, and Jude, D.t 1984. Phosphorus 

+Not affiliated with this laboratory. 

*No longer affiliated with this laboratory. 

loading and fisheries impact on Lake Michigan Water Quality. 27th 

Conference on Great Lakes Research, April 30-May 3, 1984, at Brock 

University, St. Catharines, ON. 

Scavia, D., Fahnenstiel, G.L., Kreis, R.G., Jrt, and Davis, J.A.' 1984. Phyte 

plankton community response to small-scale nutrient patches. Ocean 

Sciences Meeting of the American Geophysical Union and the American 

Society of Limnology and Oceanography, January 23-27, 1984, New 

Orleans, LA. 

Schwab, D.J. 1983. Asimple numerical wind wave prediction model for the 

Great Lakes. NOAA Research and Development Science Seminar, 

Nmmber 18, 1983, Rockville, MD. 

Schwab, D.J., and Bennett, J.R. 1984. Analysis of Lake Erie circulation patterns. 

American Geophysical Union Spring Meeting, May 14-18, 1984, 

Cincinnati, OH. 

Stubblefield, B., and Bennett, J.R. 1984. Icedynamics forecasting model. 27th 

Conference on Great Lakes Research, April 30-May 3, 1984, at Brock 

University, St. Catharines, ON. 

Grapchak, S.J. 1984. Compeh'tion for phosphate by diatoms versus blue-green 

and green algae in Lake Michigan. 47th Annual Meeting of the American 

Society of Limnology and Oceanography, June 11-14,1984, Vancouver, BC. 

Tara~chak, SJ., Herche, L.R., and Cichocki, E.A. 1984. Phosphate uptake 

kikaby phytoplankton: Causesddeviationsfmm the~ichaelis~enten 

equation in Lake Michigan. 27th Conferenceon Great Lakes Research, April 

30-May 3, 1984, at Brock Uniwrsity, St. Catharines, ON. 

Vanderploeg, H.A., and Paffenhiifer, G.A.' 1984. Modesofalgal captureand 

their relationship to food-size selection in Diaptomus. 27th Conference 

on Great Lakes Research, April 30-May 3, 1984, at Brock University, St. 

Catharines, ON. 

Vanderploeg, H.A., and Paffenhiifer, G.A.t 1984. Modesof algal capture by 

a freshwater copepod. Ocean Sciences Meeting of the American 

Geophysical Union and the American Society of Limnology and 

Oceanography, January 23-27, 1984, New Orleans, LA. 

+Not affiliated with this laboratory. 

44 
CONTRACTOR PUBLICATIONS 

Allen, H.E., Blatchley, C., and Brisbin, T.D. 1983. An algal assay method for 

determination of copper complexation capacities of natural waters. Bull. 

Envimn. Contam. Toxicol. 30:448-455. 

Brater, E.F., and Wallace, R. 1984. Hindcasting monthly runoff. 1. Hydraul. 

Eng. 110:126-141. 

Chieh, S.H., Wake, A., and Rumer, R.R., Jr. 1983. Ice forecasting model for 

Lake Erie. 1. Watenv.., Port, Coast. Ocean Eng. 109:392-415. 

Di Tom, D.M., and Winfield, R.P 1984. bngtimescaleinvestigationoforganic 

particle transport and fate in Lake Erie4 lOyearpost audit of the Manhattan 

College eutrophication model. Final report prepared for GLERL by 

Manhattan College, Environmental Engineering and Science.Pmgram, 

under Cooperative Agreement No. NA81RAH00004. 

Meyers, PA., Rice, C.P, and Owen, R.M. 1983. Input and remml of natural 

and pollutant materials in the surface microlapron LakeMichigan. Ecol. 

Bull. 35:519-532. 

Reckhw, K.H., Ramig J., Cupery, R., and Mlf, J. 1983. Risk analysis for water 

quality management-Appendices. Final report prepared for GLERL by 

Duke University, School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, under 

Contract No. NA81RAC00075. 

Reckhow, K.H., and Ramig, J. 1983. Risk analysis for water quality 

management-Principal report. Final report prepared for GLERL by Duke 

University, School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, under Contract 

No. NA81RAC00075. 

Reckhow, K.H., and Ramig, J. 1983. Risk analysis for water quality 

management-Summary report. Final report prepared for GLERL by Duke 

University, School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, under Contract 

No. NA81RAC00075. 

Rumer, R.R., Jr. 1983. Simulation of lake ice dynamics. In Proceedings, 

conkrenceon fmntien inhydraulicengineering ed. H.T. Shen, pp. 236241. 

New York: American Water Resources Association. 

Shen, H.T. 1983. Hydraulic resistance of river ice. In Pmeedings, conkrence 

on frontiers in hydraulicengineering ed. H.T. Shen, pp. 224229. New York: 

American Society of Civil Engineers. 

Shen, HJ 1984. Mathematical modeling of river ice process. In Pdings, 

conference on water for resource development, pp. 554558. New YO&: 

American Society of Civil Engineers. 

Shen, H.T., and Yapa, P.N.D.D. 1983. Simulation of the St. Lawrence River 

ice cover thickness and breakup. Report No. 83-1 prepared for GLERL by 

Clarkson College, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, 

under Contract No. NA83RAC.00147. 

Shen, H.T., and Chiang, L.A. 1984. Simulation of growth and decay of river 

ice cwr. 1. Hydraul. Eng. 110:958971. 

Wice, TC., Rice, C.P., and Meber, W.J., Jr. 1983. Effectofsolidsconcentration 

on thesorptiw partitioningof hydrophobic pollutants in aquaticsystems. 

Envimn. Sci. Jechnol. 17:513-518. 

Wake, A., and Rumer, R.R., Jr. 1983. Great Lakes ice dynamics simulation. 

I. Watetw, hrt, Coast. Ocean Eng. 109:86-102. 

CONTRACTS AND GRANTS DURING FY 1984 

Principal 

Investigator Institution Title 

A.M. Beeton University of Michigan Great Lakes Research Planning 

J.A. Bowers 

J.E. Breck 

University of Michigan Phosphorus Release by Zooplankton 

Oak Ridge National Laboratory Models for Behavior and Fate of Long-Lived Contaminants 

S.J. Eisenreich University of Minnesota Toxic Organic-Sediment Dynamics in the Great Lakes 

M.S. Evans University of Michigan Characterization of Particulate Flows 

J.P. Giesy Michigan State University Changes in the Free Amino kid Pool of Lake Michigan Imrtebrates 

C.E. Herdendorf Ohio State University Lake Erie Environmental and Recreational Atlas 

J.T. Lehman University of Michigan A Dynamic Lake Ecosystem Model 

B.M. Lesht Argonne National Laboratory Benthic Nepheloid Layer in Southern Lake Michigan 

G.A. Meadows University of Michigan Airborne Radar Synoptic Wave Observations 

C.H. Mortimer University of Wisconsin (Milwaukee) Coupling of Physical and Biological Dynamics in Large Lakes 

C.H.Mortimer University of Wisconsin (Milwaukee) Inertial Motion and Related Internal Waves 

C.H. Mortimer University of Wisconsin (Milwaukee) Synthesis Report on Lake Erie Research 

D. Nelson Argonne National Laboratory Remml of Radionuclides From Watersheds of the Great Lakes 

C.P. Rice1P.A. Meyers University of Michigan Partitioning and Cycling of Toxic Organics 

R. Rossman University of Michigan Records of Contaminant Fluxes 

M.S. Simmons Uniwrsity of Michigan Photochemical Degradation 

E.F. Stoermer University of Michigan Phytoplankton Population Analysis 

D.S. White University of Michigan Redistribution of Sediment Bound Toxic Organics