Overview

As part of a plan to integrate technology in the earth science curriculum, Austin Community College (ACC) has constructed an automated monitoring well in the Edwards aquifer. This 610-foot deep well, located on ACC's Northridge Campus, will provide the community with the first real-time monitoring of water levels and water quality in the aquifer north of the Colorado River. The ACC Departments of Physical Sciences and Environmental Science and Technology, in conjunction with secondary schools in the Austin area, will use this well to teach students and teachers about local geology and environmental science.  This project was initiated in October 1998 in an Earth Science Week event attended by Railroad Commissioner Charles R. Matthews. News of the project has appeared on KVUE and KXAN television, in the Austin American Statesman, in Texas Mining, in ACC Partners in Progress, and in Geotimes, the national geology magazine published by the American Geological Institute.
 

Project Plan

The Edwards Aquifer Monitoring Well Project is being implemented in three phases:

• Well Construction
• Drilling and completion of the well  - completed May 1999
• Coring of geologic formations in and above the Edwards aquifer - completed May 1999
• Specific capacity test of the well - completed April 2001
• Construction of an instrumentation building over the well - completed March 2003
• This phase was funded by:
               

     Alcoa Sandow Mine
     Austin Community College
     MHC Xploration Corporation

• Documentation
• Preparation and photography of 222 feet of rock core stored in NRG Rm. 2211 for study by ACC students - July 1999
• Filming of the drilling and logging of the well for an educational videotape - 11 hours filmed since 1998
• Electrical, gamma, and neutron geophysical logs for placement of probe and study by ACC students - July 1999
• Flowmeter profiling to establish the depth for the monitoring probe - April 2001
• Underwater filming of Edwards aquifer porosity for the Web page - April 2001
• Baseline chemical analysis and pesticide monitoring of well water - April 2007
• This phase is being supported by:

      Alcoa Sandow Mine

      Ana-Lab Corporation
      ACC - Physical Sciences and Open Campus Departments
      Bureau of Economic Geology, The University of Texas at Austin
      City of Austin - Watershed Protection and Development Reveiw Department
      Geo Cam, Inc.

               Texas Commission on Environmental Quality - Water Supply Division
               Texas Mining and Reclamation Association

• Automation
• Installation of DataSonde 4 and MiniTroll monitoring probes and a submersible pump - March 2003
• Calibration of the probes to measure the water level, temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, and conductance of the Edwards aquifer - March 2004
• Installation of a Texas Weather Instruments WPS-10S Weather Station - September 2005
• Installation of data lines to a Web server - March 2003
• Preparation of Web pages with links to a video clip of the aquifer porosity -  in progress 2008
• This phase is being supported by:

       ACC- Physical Sciences, Instructional Development Services, Computer Information Systems, and Information Technology Departments
       Hach Company

This project is being managed by ACC Professor Robert H. Blodgett.  Dr. Blodgett has taught geology and environmental science at ACC for over 12 years. Prior to joining ACC, he worked as a geologist in the Public Drinking Water Program at the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission (TNRCC). At the TNRCC, Dr. Blodgett was leader of the Vulnerability Assessment Team, a group of scientists who evaluated the vulnerability of public drinking water wells to contamination. Professor Blodgett has also worked at the Texas Bureau of Economic Geology, and on the faculty of Ohio State University and Dickinson College.

Science Laboratory Technicians John Conners and Cindy Carr maintain the Datasonde and MiniTroll monitoring probes, and the Texas Weather Instruments Weather Station. Computer Suppor Supervisor James Harris is systems administrator for the well data and Web servers. Multimedia Developers Cindy Yates, Richard Brown and Shea Scott have assisted in Website development. ACC Assistant Dean Lori Rosenthal and former ACC LAN Manager Mehdi Bagheri helped establish the initial Web server. Four Austin-area hydrogeologists have served as technical advisors for this project:

                            Ted L. Harriger, Consultant
                            Nico M. Hauwert, City of Austin Watershed Protection and Development Review Department
                            David A. Johns, City of Austin Watershed Protection and Development Review Department
                            John K. Mikels, GEOS Consulting
 Finally, former ACC student Francye Hutchins was instrumental in the initiation of the project.

Sponsorship

Public and private sponsorship of this project has been vital for its success. Project sponsors will be recognized on the well Web site, on a permanent sign displayed on the wellhouse, and in a dedication ceremony once the well becomes fully operational.