Date of Award
Spring 2019
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Science (BS)
Department
Marine Science
College
College of Science
First Advisor
Angelos Hannides
Abstract/Description
Sandpiper Pond is a coastal pond at Huntington Beach State Park, South Carolina. Originally a tidal inlet surrounded by marshland, it was isolated in 1989 and rechanneled in 2004-2005 under a community-based wetland restoration project. The project was designed to restore the pond to a tidal inlet to improve water quality and biodiversity. Since then, the tidal connection with the ocean has been severed once more and the main influx of seawater occurs from the marsh during spring high tides. In this three-month study, the current state of Sandpiper Pond is evaluated using fundamental biogeochemical indicators that are indicative of the character (marine vs fresh water) and water quality (eutrophic status) of the pond. Biweekly sampling events are used to investigate and compare the conditions in the pond, ocean, and marsh, to indicate whether the intentions of the 2004-2005 restoration project are still satisfied to this day. Salinity has significantly increased in the pond since the restoration project and is identified as brackish in character. Water quality parameters, such as oxygen and chlorophyll concentrations, suggest that the pond is currently not highly eutrophic. It should be noted that this study is the culmination of other research studies conducted during other traditional and research courses taken in the past and emphasizes the expectations of the Honors program.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Workman, Nicholas E., "Character and water quality of Sandpiper Pond: A coastal pond assessment, fifteen years after restoration" (2019). Honors Theses. 382.
https://digitalcommons.coastal.edu/honors-theses/382