Baltimore Ecosystem Study: Long-Term Monitoring of Riparian Water Table Depth and Groundwater Chemistry

Long-term monitoring of riparian water tables and groundwater chemistry began in 2000 along four first or second order steams in and around the Gwynns Falls watershed in Baltimore City and County, MD. One site (Oregon Ridge) is in the completely forested Pond Branch catchment that serves as a ""reference"" study area for the Baltimore LTER (BES). Two sites (Glyndon, Gwynbrook) were in suburban areas of the watershed; one just upstream from the Glyndon BES long-term stream monitoring site in the headwaters of the Gwynns Falls, and one along a tributary that enters the Gwynns Falls just above the Gwynnbrook BES long-term stream monitoring site farther downstream. The final, urban site (Cahill) was along a tributary to the Gwynns Falls in Leakin Park in the urban core of the watershed. Water table data and more detailed descriptions of soils, vegetation, stream channel properties and microbial processes at these sites can be found in Groffman et al. (2002, Environmental Science and Technology 36:4547-4552) and Gift et al. (2010, Restoration Ecology 18:113-120).