Project Overview

Full Title
National Atmospheric Deposition Program/National Trends Network - Station NC36

Location
 Scotland County

Cooperating Agencies
National Atmospheric Deposition Program

Project Chief
Doug Smith
dgsmith@usgs.gov

Period of Project
1983 to current year

Team Members
Paul Anderson

National Atmospheric Deposition/National Trends Network - Site NC36

Summary

Background

The National Atmospheric Deposition Program/National Trends Network (NADP/NTN) is a nationwide network of over 250 precipitation monitoring sites. The network is a cooperative effort between many different groups, including the U.S. Geological Survey, which has operated the Jordan Creek NADP/NTN Site (NC36) in Scotland County, North Carolina since 1983.

• NADP History
• Thirty Years Down and a Century to Go: A Narrative History of the Origins and Early Development of the NADP (PDF, 32 p., 390 Kb)

Objectives

The purpose of the NADP is to measure atmospheric deposition and study its effects on the environment.
The purpose of the NTN is to provide a long-term record of precipitation chemistry across the United States.

The NADP/NTN sites are used to provide data on the amount and chemistry of precipitation as well as define geographical distributions and trends.

Approach

The NADP/NTN uses established methods that are intended to ensure data comparability and representativeness across the network.

• NADP/NTN sites are predominantly located away from urban areas and point sources of pollution.
• Site operators follow standard methods and procedures when collecting samples and recording data.
• All samples are analyzed by the same laboratory.

Each site has a precipitation collector and gage. The amount of precipitation is continuously monitored and recorded at each site. Precipitation samples are collected from each NADP/NTN site on a weekly basis according to strict clean-handling procedures.

Precipitation samples are sent to the Central Analytical Laboratory in Champaign, Illinois where they are analyzed for hydrogen (acidity as pH), sulfate, nitrate, ammonium, chloride, and base cations (including calcium, magnesium, potassium, and sodium).