Scholarly Work - Indigenous Research Initiative
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Item An investigation of coliform contamination in private well water on the Crow Reservation(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Agriculture, 2019) Three Irons, Emery UP; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Scott Powell; Margaret Eggers (co-chair)The Crow reservation has a rural population that depends on home well water for domestic use. Many of the home wells do not have a suitable well cap, allowing a potential pathway of bacterial contamination of groundwater. Fecal coliform is associated with acute health problems, such as gastrointestinal illness, diarrhea, and cramps. Therefore, total coliform contamination of well water is an important health concern among Crow home well users. This research examines patterns in total coliform contamination among home well samples with respect to a suite of well and local aquifer characteristics thought to influence vulnerability to contamination, including well protection factors. Well and aquifer characteristics considered in this research include: the geologic production formation, local land cover, and distance to the nearest river. Well protection factors include: cap type, cap condition, depth of completion and time since completion (or age). One hundred water quality samples were collected from home wells along the Little Big Horn River in 2017, and available data on the character of those wells and aquifers were collected for comparison with the patterns in fecal coliform contamination among the samples. Presence/absence of coliform contamination was assessed using the Colilert IDEXX Quanti-Tray 2000 method. Spatial variations in the characteristics of wells and aquifers were characterized through a combination of well logs, the National Land Cover Dataset, and the National Hydrography Dataset. Logistic regression was used to identify potential relationships between probability of coliform contamination and characteristics of associated wells and aquifers. Logistic regression models suggested two notable and statistically significant (? = 0.05 level) relationships: (1) wells completed in alluvium and farther from the river had a higher probability of total coliform contamination, and (2) wells with old style caps had a higher probability of total coliform contamination. The government of the Crow tribe can decide how to use the results for mitigation efforts and awareness for homeowners with contaminated wells. Also, the Crow Water Quality Project should archive and consider these results for future research, planning, development, and management.Item Coliform Contamination in private well water on the Crow Reservation(2018-10) Powell, MichaelaEmery Three Irons is a master’s level graduate student in the Department of Land Resources and Environmental Sciences (LRES) at Montana State University (MSU). Advised by Scott Powell, Ph.D., who is an Associate Professor in the Department of LRES at MSU, Emery is working on his master’s thesis which explores coliform contamination in private well water on the Crow Reservation. He has requested the assistance of the Statistical Consulting and Research Services in deciding on an appropriate analysis for the data he collected.Item Cultural plant biodiversity in relict wallow-like depressions on the Wind River Indian Reservation, Wyoming, & tribal bison restoration and policy(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Agriculture, 2016) Baldes, Jason Eric; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Rick L. LawrenceBison and Native people have co-existed on the North American landscape for millennia. As a keystone species, bison support many other organisms including plants, animals, insects and birds. Their unique dust-bathing behavior create wallow-like depressions (WLDs), altering the landscape at the local level, and are believed to increase water accumulation and support different plant species in the surrounding area. Native Americans traditionally accessed forb plants as foods tools and medicines, which are believed to increase in wallows, and in the wallow like depressions (WLDs) studied in this project. The area chosen for this study is on the Wind River Indian Reservation (WRIR) in Wyoming, home of the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho Tribes. The northern boundary of the WRIR has been identified as an ideal location for bison restoration. As bison reintroduction might impact plant biodiversity, this study gathered baseline data of cultural plant frequency inside vs. outside 65 WLD locations. Thirty-three plants were associated with WLDs, 11 plants contained sufficient data for comparison, and five plant species had a statistically significant difference in frequency using a paired t-test. Three cultural plants were shown to have greater frequency inside WLDs vs. non-WLDs. This baseline data will potentially be used to monitor changes to the landscape after bison are restored to the WRIR. Multiple tribes are maneuvering the political arena to acquire bison and the process is complex. Federal, tribal, state, and local agencies all vie for a say in management of genetically pure bison of Yellowstone National Park. Tribes are restoring bison and forming coalitions and international treaties to share and restore herds on tribal lands. The Fort Peck Tribes of Montana are re-acquiring land to allocate to their cultural herd of Yellowstone bison and lead the way in becoming a new tribally operated quarantine facility for excess Yellowstone bison. Tribal bison policy and acquisition is an exercise in tribal self-determination and will be a way for tribes to implement programs for cultural and ecological restoration in the coming years.Item Maintaining and establishing culturally important plants after landscape scale disturbance(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Agriculture, 2003) Denny, Marcus KirkItem Risk of morbidity and mortality to native trout on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation, Idaho, due to increased stream temperatures(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Agriculture, 2014) LodgePole, Ronald Zachariah; Co-chairs, Graduate Committee: Robert K. D. Peterson and Cliff MontagneClimate change is now happening faster than ever. The Fort Hall Indian Reservation (FHIR), is located in Bingham, Power, Bannock, and Caribou Counties, Idaho. To estimate the quantitative risk of morbidity and mortality posed to Yellowstone Cutthroat Trout Oncorhynchus clarki bouvieri on the FHIR, stream temperatures, or at the very least, a robust estimate of stream temperatures, was needed. The first objective was to examine what stream temperature data were available. The second objective was to obtain elevation values for stream temperature monitoring sites within the FHIR. This helped in the third objective, which was to develop a regression model to predict stream temperatures. The fourth objective was to document thermal preferences of YCT. Cross-referencing thermal thresholds of YCT and stream temperatures allowed for the fifth and sixth objective, which was to create a deterministic and probabilistic risk assessment. The seventh objective was to map out the risk assessment and graphically display risk associated with each major stream reach within the FHIR. The results of this study indicate that a substantial amount of suitable YCT habitat within the FHIR will likely be lost due to increased stream temperatures, a direct result of global climate change. At this local scale the bulk of the habitat loss can be expected in the lower elevation areas of the FHIR. Mid to high elevation areas will also be negatively affected but not as much as the lower elevation areas. This effort led to the understanding that stream temperatures for the current time frame have been increasing as a result of climate change. With the projected increases in future July stream temperatures the optimal habitat for YCT will be significantly diminished as well. Therefore, this study may serve as a call to action to all interested parties within the FHIR, State of Idaho, and the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. With the gleaned information and understanding of how stream temperatures will put YCT at higher risk of temperature related morbidity and mortality, it is up to the risk managers of the greater FHIR and the FHIR to take whatever action they deem necessary in their unique environmental management responsibilities.