Good afternoon,

I am a Ph.D. student in Mike Vanni's lab (Zoology Dept). I am looking for small ponds in the area to sample for a research project in which I am trying to quantify organic carbon burial in these freshwaters. If you have a pond or a friend/neighbor with a pond, I would love to have the opportunity to sample it. There are just a couple criteria I need to meet:

- I need to know the year the pond was built.
- I am primarily interested in ponds in the Four Mile watershed (which includes a large portion of Butler county, part of Preble county, and a little bit of Indiana).


I will be taking several samples including: sediment (with a corer), water samples for nitrogen and phosphorus, chlorophyll (a measure of algal abundance), pH, conductivity, and water clarity. I will also measure the sediment thickness of the pond. I hope to sample ponds during July and August.

Please let me know if you are interested or know of any potentially interested individuals. I am happy to share any results from the pond with the land owner.

Thank you!
Lesley Knoll