Globally, anthropogenic disturbance has altered many aquatic habitats, including lotic waters. Flowing, fresh water sustains life on Earth yet suffers the resulting waste products. Native, locally adapted ecosystems integrate or eliminate the byproducts of life. However an increase of human population, poor agricultural practices, accelerated overland runoff, a non-point source of pollution, and wastewater treatment plants (WTP), a point source of pollution, have all placed a strain on the world’s flowing, fresh, waters. The de-commissioning of two WTPs in the Kentucky River basin, and the commissioning of a new WTP in an adjacent watershed, provided an opportunity to examine the effects of WTPs and land-use for potentially influencing stream degradation. Using multi-metric bioassessments for habitat, fishes, and macroinvertebrates this study sought to evaluate the relative health of both streams and establish a reference survey of the habitat and biota of these two streams, relative to the presence of a wastewater treatment facility. Although WTP activity has impacted both streams it is apparent that it is only one component responsible for the overall impairment of these streams.
","abstract_html":"<p>Globally, anthropogenic disturbance has altered many aquatic habitats, including lotic waters. Flowing, fresh water sustains life on Earth yet suffers the resulting waste products. Native, locally adapted ecosystems integrate or eliminate the byproducts of life. However an increase of human population, poor agricultural practices, accelerated overland runoff, a non-point source of pollution, and wastewater treatment plants (WTP), a point source of pollution, have all placed a strain on the world’s flowing, fresh, waters. The de-commissioning of two WTPs in the Kentucky River basin, and the commissioning of a new WTP in an adjacent watershed, provided an opportunity to examine the effects of WTPs and land-use for potentially influencing stream degradation. Using multi-metric bioassessments for habitat, fishes, and macroinvertebrates this study sought to evaluate the relative health of both streams and establish a reference survey of the habitat and biota of these two streams, relative to the presence of a wastewater treatment facility. Although WTP activity has impacted both streams it is apparent that it is only one component responsible for the overall impairment of these streams. </p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Ratterman, Daniel John"],"institution":"Eastern Kentucky University","degree_name":"Master of Science (MS)","degree_level":"Master's","degree_discipline":"Biological Sciences","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2016,"date_issued":"2016-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2016-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:15:39Z","subjects":["Fish","KIBI","Macroinvertebrate","MBI","RBP","Waste-water treatment","Environmental Monitoring","Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology"],"languages":[],"rights":["Copyright 2016 Daniel John Ratterman"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://encompass.eku.edu/etd/414","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Ratterman, Daniel John"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["Encompass Digital Archive, Eastern Kentucky University"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Master Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Biological Sciences"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Master's"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science (MS)"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["Eastern Kentucky University"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Fish","KIBI","Macroinvertebrate","MBI","RBP","Waste-water treatment","Environmental Monitoring","Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright 2016 Daniel John Ratterman"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://encompass.eku.edu/etd/414"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Globally, anthropogenic disturbance has altered many aquatic habitats, including lotic waters. Flowing, fresh water sustains life on Earth yet suffers the resulting waste products. Native, locally adapted ecosystems integrate or eliminate the byproducts of life. However an increase of human population, poor agricultural practices, accelerated overland runoff, a non-point source of pollution, and wastewater treatment plants (WTP), a point source of pollution, have all placed a strain on the world’s flowing, fresh, waters. The de-commissioning of two WTPs in the Kentucky River basin, and the commissioning of a new WTP in an adjacent watershed, provided an opportunity to examine the effects of WTPs and land-use for potentially influencing stream degradation. Using multi-metric bioassessments for habitat, fishes, and macroinvertebrates this study sought to evaluate the relative health of both streams and establish a reference survey of the habitat and biota of these two streams, relative to the presence of a wastewater treatment facility. Although WTP activity has impacted both streams it is apparent that it is only one component responsible for the overall impairment of these streams.
"]},{"key":"dc:format","label":"Dc Format","values":["application/pdf"]},{"key":"dc:source","label":"Dc Source","values":["Encompass Digital Archive: Online Theses and Dissertations"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Biotic Assessment Of Two Central Kentucky Streams: Examining The Effects Of Wastewater Treatment And Anthropogenic Disturbance"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:creator":["Ratterman, Daniel John"],"dc:description.abstract":["Globally, anthropogenic disturbance has altered many aquatic habitats, including lotic waters. Flowing, fresh water sustains life on Earth yet suffers the resulting waste products. Native, locally adapted ecosystems integrate or eliminate the byproducts of life. However an increase of human population, poor agricultural practices, accelerated overland runoff, a non-point source of pollution, and wastewater treatment plants (WTP), a point source of pollution, have all placed a strain on the world’s flowing, fresh, waters. The de-commissioning of two WTPs in the Kentucky River basin, and the commissioning of a new WTP in an adjacent watershed, provided an opportunity to examine the effects of WTPs and land-use for potentially influencing stream degradation. Using multi-metric bioassessments for habitat, fishes, and macroinvertebrates this study sought to evaluate the relative health of both streams and establish a reference survey of the habitat and biota of these two streams, relative to the presence of a wastewater treatment facility. Although WTP activity has impacted both streams it is apparent that it is only one component responsible for the overall impairment of these streams.
"],"dc:format":["application/pdf"],"dc:identifier":["https://encompass.eku.edu/etd/414"],"dc:publisher":["Encompass Digital Archive, Eastern Kentucky University"],"dc:rights":["Copyright 2016 Daniel John Ratterman"],"dc:source":["Encompass Digital Archive: Online Theses and Dissertations"],"dc:subject":["Fish","KIBI","Macroinvertebrate","MBI","RBP","Waste-water treatment","Environmental Monitoring","Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology"],"dc:title":["Biotic Assessment Of Two Central Kentucky Streams: Examining The Effects Of Wastewater Treatment And Anthropogenic Disturbance"],"dc:type":["Master Thesis"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Biological Sciences"],"thesis:degree_level":["Master's"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science (MS)"],"thesis:institution_name":["Eastern Kentucky University"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:15:39Z"}