water resources – Aquarius-Systems

August 2025 Newsletter

Fri, 21 Nov 2025 14:43:05 +0000

Big Waves, Big Tech, and Bigger Water Concerns

A Message from Our Leader: “More rum than fun!”

A Wake-Up Call for Our Waters

The Hidden Water Cost of AI

Wake Surfing – All Eyes on Wisconsin

Upcoming Conferences

Florida Lake Management Society 36th Annual Technical Symposium
California Lake Management Society 39th Annual Conference

Salt in Water Sources Becoming Worrisome

Tue, 23 Aug 2022 15:09:30 +0000

Salt in water sources becoming worrisome in D.C. region, experts warn
By Antonio Olivo
August 8, 2022 at 6:00 a.m. EDT

The Washington region is growing — a metropolis of nearly 6 million people where area officials are pressing to build another 320,000 homes by the end of this decade.

And with that growth comes an increasing, largely unregulated problem: Salt. Lots of it.

Paved streets, sidewalks and parking lots need de-icing in winter, with the sodium chloride in road salt running off into streams. Washing machines drain sodium-containing detergents and industrial firms discharge sodium-laden water into wastewater systems, which already treat the human waste of a society addicted to salty foods and drinks.

All these sources contribute to what environmental scientists refer to as a “freshwater salinization syndrome” that is damaging local waterways, harming wildlife and affecting the quality of drinking water throughout the United States.

Salt Marshes Help Protect Coastal Communities From Flooding and Storm Surge

Fri, 17 Dec 2021 16:08:30 +0000

A group of military and government leaders has endorsed an initiative to protect the one million acres of salt marsh that stretches from North Carolina down to northeast Florida.

Salt marshes are sinewy channels of coastal grasslands known for their ability to protect coasts from flooding and storm surge during heavy rain events and hurricanes. Healthy salt marshes can significantly improve coastal ecosystem and community resilience.

According to NOAA, salt marshes soak up excess floodwaters and wave energy during storms, and can mitigate property damage by up to 20%.

UW System to Boost Wisconsin Water Research

Tue, 14 Dec 2021 16:00:15 +0000

Bounded by two Great Lakes and the Mississippi River – with 15,000 or so inland lakes and 44,000 miles of rivers and streams in between – Wisconsin is an ideal place to study freshwater ecosystems.

Freshwater education and research across the state has too often been an independent pursuit. Until now. As part of a state-wide initiative called the Freshwater Collaborative of Wisconsin (FCW), 16 participants (mostly freshman) in the UW System would spend their first semester on campus all taking the same set of three science-based courses organized around this freshwater theme.

The goal is to increase Wisconsin student’s access to learning opportunities across the state and to set

young scientists on freshwater career paths, as well as explore the economic potential of clean, available freshwater for industry and tourism.

All in all, the project is a big win for the state of Wisconsin, its freshwater resources and the future scientists, policymakers and engineers who will make sure that our inland waterways remain an integral part of our lives.

Learn More

USACE Uses GPS Tracking to Improve Transparency of Aquatic Herbicide Applications

Mon, 01 Nov 2021 18:01:13 +0000

In order to stop the destruction of infrastructure by aquatic invasive species, USACE and its partners are using three methods of management: biological, mechanical, and chemical. Each process varies in its effectiveness depending on the species of aquatic plant being treated – leaving the team to rely heavily on data to determine the best method in invasive aquatic plant reduction.

For years, our public has called for more transparency on the process and efficacy of invasive plant management. Public feedback on management practices yielded many responses such as “no one is overseeing the contractors, and they are out there spraying everything.”

The urgent appeal has increased with the awareness of how precious our water resources are and the fragility of the ecosystems that depends on them. A new device will provide more transparency on where and how much herbicide chemical contractors are applying by using a GPS tracker that will not only show the path of the boat, but the spray path as well.