#Water Quality tool for Indexing Agricultural Runoff Notes
###Harbans Lal, Environmental Engineer ####National Water Quality/Quantity Team, WNTSC/USDA-NRCS, Portland, OR
- WQI: parameters expressed in different units and measured in different ranges.
- "hard to understand and follow by non-professionals" thus the concept of WQI is introduced
- WQI is a dimensionless number that combines the values of multiple WQ factors such as DO, pH, BOD, COD, Ecoli, Temp, Nutrients (N&P), etc.into a single value by normalized subjective rating curves
- "introduction to water quality index" in Water Efficiency journal
- Why agriculture? Ag needs & pollutes water. NRCS needs more tools for evaluating effectiveness of conservation practices.