The water’s turbidity tells us how much material is suspended in the water, and therefore how much light can pass through the water. Common types of suspended solids include small pieces of soil, plant material, industrial waste, and microorganisms.
The natural level of turbidity varies in streams because of differences in their watersheds (eg. soils, amount of plant cover). High stream flows can carry more particulate matter, so turbidity often increases when flows go up.
Turbidity is measured using a Digital Turbidity Sensor.
Why do we care about turbidity?
Turbidity Data