The impacts of landcover and landuse on aquatic integrity: A case study of high intensity human activities with a focus on hydraulic fracture infrastructure across the Susquehanna River Basin

Human activities as the leading environmental stressors play a major role in ecological integrity. All Land Covers and Land Uses fall within natural drainage areas which are defined as watershed boundaries. Watersheds have a single drainage point which can be measured for chemical composition of their associated Land Covers and Land Uses. This study quantifies the impacts of different high intensity human activities focusing on the newly developing hydraulic fracture industry across the Susquehanna River Basin. Using an exploratory spatial data analysis approach, 58 sub-watersheds were delineated based on water quality sample sites provided by the Susquehanna River Basin Commission. The spatial relationship was quantified using Multivariate Regression in order to measure the relationship of different Land Covers/Land Uses and their impacts on water quality. It was found that sub-watersheds that contain a higher percentage of developed and barren land cover were the most significant predictors of reduced water quality.