Mike Miller: Hello, everyone. I appreciate the opportunity to talk to all the teachers and students here.

Mike Miller: That's a good question. Certainly collecting water samples can be difficult in the winter if the stream is frozen, but people should realize that life in the stream is still very active and if you sample the stream, the life is active year-round. Since the water comes up out of the ground at roughly 52 degrees, the streams can be warm, relative to the air temperature.

Mike Miller: Yes. Wisconsin received a record amount of snowfall this year, so depending upon how quickly the stream temps rise there could be flooding in some parts of the state, particularly in Northern Wisconsin because it tends to get more snow. It does affect the animals in the stream. Sometimes it can be washed away - their habitats can be flooded - but Mother Nature can be resilient and is able to restore the stream very quickly.

Mike Miller: All streams naturally have concentration of those chemicals, but the tests we use are often times insensitive to the levels we use in the stream because they're at such low levels. So it's certainly not a problem that you're not detecting those chemicals, but it's a reflection of a type of test that is used. The students could compare their data with data collected by state agency water biologists and that way you can determine again if there's a problem with the test and maybe consider changing their test method.

Mike Miller: That's a good question. Yes, there can be other causes. The chemical that normally causes algal blooms is phosphorus, and there are naturally occurring sources of phosphorus, particularly from soil, vegetation, and leaves from the trees in autumn, so if it rains it can result in blooms. It's a rare occurrence because normally the concentrations from natural sources don't get that high, so usually algal blooms are from human-induced sources

Mike Miller: All sorts of things stream ecologists do. Some can focus on the watershed and land use in the watershed because that influences the health of the stream. Some stream ecologists can focus on water quality itself and do a lot of testing that the students do, like for phosphorus and dissolved oxygen concentration. Some focus on the habitats found in the stream, which is important for the health of the insects and fish that live there. Some focus on the interactions of the fish and insects and plants, so they focus more on the biology. What I do is look at all of these factors for Wisconsin, monitoring all these different influences to determine if a stream is healthy or not, and if it is not, I determine what could be causing the contaminants.

Mike Miller: I think the reservoir tends to dampen any natural variability, so normally in a stream you'll see major changes in the amount of water in the stream, changes in temp, and changes in chemical constituents found in the river. Again, the reservoir acts as a giant mixing bowl that tends to dampen over time, so the downstream river will be very beautiful throughout the year. Again, in terms of the water temp and the amount of water flowing through the river, chemical constituents can seep into the water.

Mike Miller: The reason they're called bloodworms is because they're red. The reason they're red is because they have a lot of hemoglobin in their bodies. Hemoglobin helps animals obtain oxygen from the water, so we tend to see bloodworms in environments where there is low dissolved oxygen concentration, in the water or sediments that they live. There are many environments that are naturally in dissolved oxygen - one example is on the bottom of many lakes. But in other environments, due to pollution problems and due to dissolved oxygen in the water, you also see bloodworms in that environment. So bloodworms can be indicative of pollution problems where found in streams typically that have higher levels of dissolved oxygen.

Mike Miller: Drawing on my experience from Wisconsin, sediment that comes from crop field soil is our biggest pollutant of our streams and lakes. So when we see murky water, it's a good indication that there are problems on the land that should be addressed. Often, along with the soil, other pollutants enter, like nutrients such as phosphorus or chemical fertilizers, or pathogens such as bacteria or a virus. So again, it's very easy to see the turbid water and other problems that may be associated with the stream.

Mike Miller: Sometimes they do, particularly in areas where the land is very flat. We've seen during the summer when there's rain from localized events, water can fall in one part of the watershed and it's not flowing at another part. So sometimes they can reverse direction, although it's very rare. I've read accounts that during earthquakes where the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers have reversed their flow, but that's a rare occurrence. Sometimes when rivers flow into very large lakes like Lake Michigan, the wind can push the water in the lake and actually pile the water up on one side of the lake, causing the water to flow back up into the river. One last example - the oceans obviously have some dramatic tides, so that can cause rivers flowing into the ocean to reverse flow.

Mike Miller: Another good question. The increase in water flow can sometimes stir up the sediments on the bottom of the stream, which can cause an increase in turbidity and nutrients found in the water you're sampling. It may also reduce the amount of oxygen found in the water. It stirs up the bacteria and nutrients found on the stream bottom which use the oxygen. Ideally, you'd like to sample when you've not seen major changes in the release of water from the dam.

Mike Miller: Yes, I do. All of us need water to survive, from the smallest microbe to the largest blue whale. Water is essential for life. As human population levels increase, there will accordingly be increasing demand on the water supply. So, the bottom line is that we need to be more intelligent on how we use our water resources.

Mike Miller: Education is key. It is very rewarding to me to be able to speak to students in schools and educate them so they can be better environmental students and also help educate people that they know. That's why I think this discussion today is so rewarding to me because it's an example of people interested in the resources and gives me an opportunity to help people monitor their resources locally.

Mike Miller: Most of the aquatic ecologists I work with have a Master's degree. Some also have Bachelor of Science degrees, and a few have Ph.D's. As far as the average salary, frankly I think biologists working for state agencies make roughly between $30-50,000 a year.

Mike Miller: The most polluted areas tend to be where the most people or the most livestock are. How we use the land has a very profound effect on our water resources. So, using Wisconsin as an example (and some of our largest cities like Milwaukee), many of those streams are highly polluted because of chemicals and other pollutants that are washing off the streets, parking lots, and rooftops. And in other parts of the state where there are large cattle feeding operations, I also see quite a bit of phosphorus and other pollutants entering our streams. Large dairy cow or beef cattle can produce over 100 pounds of manure a day. So, if the farmer is not careful how he manages that manure, there's a good chance much of it can end up in the waterways and cause problems with the health of that stream.

Mike Miller: The most unusual things I found were in urban areas. I got a neat collection of Matchbox cars, dolls, and little plastic soldiers. I didn't take them home, though. The stream was kind of nasty.

Mike Miller: Excellent question. Yes, they do. The reason is that abandoned wells are a direct link from ground surface to the water table. Normally when pollutants are found on the land they have to filter down through many feet of soil before the pollutants can reach the water table. Abandoned wells again are a direct conduit that can direct all sorts of many different types of pollutants to our drinking water. It's extremely important that we identify these abandoned wells and seal them properly.

Mike Miller: No, it does not, but there are other types of similar events that are caused by green algae which, like the red tides, can be toxic to animals that drink the water.

Mike Miller: Certainly the pollutants running off the industrial parks that enter the creeks certainly influence the quality of the water. Most of the drinking water supplied in the country is very safe because they have effective filtrations and chemical treatments. Frankly, many of these pollutants get diluted by the volume of water found in the Rio Grande and other large bodies of water. So the threat to the drinking water supply is pretty low and again, the people that manage the drinking water supplies are very knowledgeable and would recognize any threats that may occur.

Mike Miller: Let's see...I think I started when I was about 6 years old. Like many people that get interested in biology as small boy, I spent many hours playing in a creek near my house. And now I'm paid to do the same thing, so that's pretty cool. I've been working professionally as a stream ecologist for the last 15 years. Anyone that has an interest in streams and stream ecology can certainly be a good stream ecologist, and a good example are the volunteer monitors that test the water and think about the results and talk to others, educating others. So, volunteers have a good impact on their environment, just as good as the 'professional.'

Mike Miller: Early in their careers, many biologists spend much of their time in the field. As responsibilities change for the Department of Natural Resources (the agency that I work for), I spend less time collecting field samples and more time analyzing data and coordinating other monitoring efforts. So, early in my career, I probably spent half my time in the field and gained a lot of experience that way. Now I spend maybe 20 percent of my time doing that same work.

Mike Miller: Certainly recognizing that water resources are a limited resource, I give more thought to how I use water in my daily life, trying not to waste water by taking brief showers. I'm careful when I'm working on my lawn that I don't apply chemicals that will wash off into the street and storm drains. Just the basic idea that we're not really hurting ourselves by being more conscious of water use.

Mike Miller: Yes. We occasionally see problems with fish kills. Those tend to be associated with either pesticide use or lots of animal waste washing into the creek due to storms or some failure of a waste lagoon structure. And also in our urban areas, we've seen runoff events where fish kills occur and occasionally problems with chemical storage structures that also fail.

Mike Miller: Another excellent question! This student has pointed out (and I certainly agree) that education is key. One neat project that comes to mind is storm drain stenciling, where the students can stencil the storm drain to show that it drains into a nearby stream or lake. Most people think that storm drains go to the wastewater treatment plant, when in fact most do flow into a stream or lake. So, if people are aware that they drain to a stream or lake, hopefully they'll be more careful about motor oil, candy wrappers, and fertilizers from their lawns and will prevent them from entering the storm drains. Another activity students can do is present their data to the local government and let other students in their school know about the quality of their streams, and they should ask questions of their local government as to what they're doing about it.

Mike Miller: I think with field experience like mine, over the course of a few years, you can be very proficient at learning how to use all the sampling equipment that you use at the job. As new technology and equipment becomes available, you need to read the operating manuals and learn how the equipment works.

Mike Miller: I'm not an expert in these matters, not by any means. A short answer is - I don't know.

Mike Miller: I believe it is. There are many very knowledgeable scientific panels that have looked at this question and it is my understanding that most believe the greenhouse effect is real and can be a problem.

Mike Miller: Yes, I have. Within the agency that I work for, I would say roughly 20-25 percent of stream ecologists are female. And I think the numbers are increasing.

Mike Miller: No. I can't recall the laws of physics, but streams do not flow uphill. That would be defying the basic law of physics, so water flows downhill.

Mike Miller: I'm most familiar with schools in the Midwest. Being a graduate of the University of Wisconsin I'm biased, but they have an excellent program. The University of Michigan has an excellent program. So does Ohio State University. Others that come to mind outside the Midwest - the University of California at Berkley, Washington State University, and Oregon State. Also there are many other fine universities that if a student has a particular interest they can look in the literature and see what professors are focusing on with their studies, and get an idea where they might want to go study stream ecology. Or, of course, if there's a particular type of environment or lake ecosystem a student may be interested in, you should go to that part of the country that has the resources that you're interested in studying.

Mike Miller: I think each scientist that specializes with a particular group of animals - such as invertebrates, fish, and aquatic mammals - finds them interesting. Since I work with aquatic insects and since I know more about these animals than other types of animals, I find them fascinating.

Mike Miller: It's good if the concentration of nitrates are low, but if you suspect there are sources of nitrates in the water you should consider comparing your data with that collected by professional water quality biologists if you want to find more information about the test that you're using to make sure it's the best test you can use. The fact that you're not detecting nitrates may be a function of the type of test you're doing, not necessarily that there may not be high nitrate levels in the water. In general, water quality biologists are interested in helping school groups, so you could contact your local agency and ask for some help. Also, federal agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency have excellent guidance manuals available on the Internet to help you improve your testing capabilities.

Mike Miller: Yes, by drowning. Thankfully not. As far as threats from chemical solutions, I have not.

Mike Miller: You're off to a great start. You have an interest because you're sitting in on this chat session. Taking classes in high school and college related to biology, ecology, and land use are useful. And like with most jobs, you need good communication skills - being able to read and write well - and having mathematical skills is very important. Get the basic background training available through your high school and advance study in college. Also, I think it would be valuable to visit or talk to a local biologist that works for a government agency and see if you can get more background information about the job to find out if it's truly something that you're interested in. As this person is doing right now, ask that person at the local level how they got their job.

Mike Miller: Yes. There have been many successes across the country. One example that is often used is one river in Ohio that was so polluted that it used to catch fire. So overall, we've done a very good job or reducing the numbers of highly polluted waterways. So now our future efforts should focus on wiser water use and control of nonpoint-source pollution that comes from urban areas and crop fields.

Mike Miller: Yes. I have a neat job. I get to study streams locally. I work with other stream ecologists across the state of Wisconsin, and I'm a member of various national organizations. I travel to meet with other stream ecologists who come from other parts of the country or from around the world.

Mike Miller: One reason could be related to their sampling technique. If you're talking about aquatic insects, some live deeper in the stream bottom than others. Some are found in higher concentration closer to the shore, so depending on where you sample you would find differences. There are changes with insect communities over time - some mature and fly away. Others are so small you can't detect them at certain times of year, so there's a natural progression in the insect community. The differences seem to be associated with sampling technique or just the diversity of nature.

Mike Miller: I certainly appreciate the opportunity to talk with the students. I think they've presented some excellent questions, and I encourage them to not only educate themselves but others in their community about their resources, and do that through monitoring like they're doing. For students that want to learn more about stream ecology, I recommend many interesting sources on the Internet and contact their local monitoring resource agency for more information.