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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » Environmental Microbial & Food Safety Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #302028
Title: MaSTiS, microorganism and solute transport in streams, model documentation and user manual

Author
item YAKIREVICH, ALEXANDER - Ben Gurion University Of Negev
item Pachepsky, Yakov
item GUBER, ANDERY - Michigan State University
item KUZNETSOV, MIKHAIL - Ben Gurion University Of Negev

Submitted to: Software and User Manual Public Release
Publication Type: Book / Chapter
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/26/2015
Publication Date: 4/1/2014
Citation: Yakirevich, A., Pachepsky, Y.A., Guber, A., Kuznetsov, M. 2014. MaSTiS, microorganism and solute transport in streams, model documentation and user manual. Software and User Manual Public Release. p.1-23.

Interpretive Summary: Microbial contamination of natural waters, and its in-stream fate and transport need to be understood to eventually minimize health hazards related to irrigation, recreation, and household water use. Bottom sediment has recently been shown to be an important reservoir of E. coli which is the leading indicator of microbial contamination. For three years we observed that E. coli and inert tracer concentrations time series included long periods of high concentration values after the water pulse and tracer peaks had passed. We developed the new model that explains this phenomenon by the presence of E. coli in slowly dissipating temporary storages being created during the high flow events. The manual contains descriptions of the model and of the input and output files to run the computer code for simulations with this model. Examples are given to facilitate the use of the model. Results of this work will be useful for professionals involved in environmental monitoring and management of streams in that modeling with the new model can be instrumental in the improvement of monitoring scheduling and microbial water quality evaluation.

Technical Abstract: In-stream fate and transport of solutes and microorganisms need to be understood to evaluate suitability of waters for agricultural, recreational, and household uses and eventually minimize surface water contamination. Concerns over safety of this water resulted in development of predictive models for estimating the concentrations and total numbers of pathogen and/or indicator organisms leaving soil sediment in a creek and being released during and after high-water flow events. The purpose of this technical bulletin is to describe the MaSTiS (Microorganism and Solute Transport in a Streams) mathematical numerical model and the corresponding computer code. Transport of microorganisms and solutes is simulated based on advection-dispersion equations coupled with the Saint-Venant equations simulating flow of surface stream water. The model accounts for the transient storage effect. Input and output files are described and examples are provided.