Relationships associated with land cover and the macroinvertebrate community of northern Kentucky streams

As adaptive watershed management becomes an increasingly more prevalent means of managing water quality in streams, it is vital to understand the role that surrounding land cover plays within the biological communities of streams.  This is especially true in highly developing watersheds, such as many of those located in the Northern Kentucky counties of Boone, Kenton, and Campbell.  Sanitation District No. 1 (SD1) is charged with the regional management of both sanitary wastewater and storm water systems, evaluation of current and potential impacts of those systems, planning for future regional needs, and the implementation of sanitary and storm water systems projects in Northern Kentucky.  Our study focuses on the macroinvertebrate communities and the surrounding land covers within these Northern Kentucky streams.  Macroinvertebrate samples were collected using protocols developed by the Kentucky Division of Water.  Community data were analyzed using multivariate techniques and the Kentucky Macroinvertebrate Index (KDOW 2008).  Habitat assessments were performed at each sampling location, and primary land cover was determined by visual interpretation of GIS coverage.  Preliminary results indicate both positive and negative relationships between macroinvertebrate community structure and the degree of development (i.e. percent impervious) of a given watershed.