Directory Information for Richard A. McLaughlin

Specialty: Water Quality Protection

Protection of our surface and ground water resources from nonpoint-source pollution is a major emphasis in the Department. The most widespread pollutant is sediment, which can originate from farms, construction sites, and streambank erosion. My program is focused on reducing the movement of sediment from construction sites. Projects include testing the existing practices, such as sediment traps and inlet protection, to determine how efficient they are in removing sediment. We are also testing new systems and devising alternatives to the current practices. Examples are the use of skimmer outlets for basins, level spreaders to dissipate flow, and various uses of polyacrylamide flocculants to reduce erosion and turbidity. We have established the Sediment and Erosion Control Research and Education Facility (SECREF) at the Lake Wheeler Road Field Laboratory for conducting much of our testing. SECREF is part of the Soil and Water Environmental Technology Center at North Carolina State University. We have numerous projects to determine the effectiveness of various approaches to erosion, sediment, and turbidity control on actual construction sites.

Publications:

1. Extension
   1. Publications
      1. Bulletins
         1. Buffers and Water Quality
            1. Water Quality
               • Farm.A.Syst: Christmas Tree Production Best Management Practice to Protect Water Quality and the Environment
               • Farm.A.Syst: Improving Storage and Handling of Pesticides
         2. Erosion, Sediment and Turbidity Control
            • SoilFacts: Chemical Turbidity Control in Pumped Construction Site Water
            • SoilFacts: The North Carolina Erosion and Sedimentation Pollution Control Program
            • SoilFacts: Chemical Treatment to Control Turbidity on Construction Sites
            • SoilFacts: Using Polyacrylamide (PAM) to Reduce Erosion on Construction Sites
            • SoilFacts: Using Baffles to Improve Sediment Basins. SoilFacts AGW-439-059.
         3. Miscellaneous
            • Farm.A.Syst: Agriculture and Natural Resource Protection
         4. Homeowners
            • Home.A.Syst: Improving Lawn Care and Gardening in Coastal North Carolina
2. Research
   1. Publications
      1. Refereed Journals
         • Bhardwaj, A. K., R.A. McLaughlin, I. Shainberg, and G.J. Levy. 2008. Polyacrylamide and exchangeable cation effects on the hydraulic conductivity and flocculation of depositional seals made of different clays. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. Journal 73: 910-918.
         • McLaughlin, R. A., S. A. Hayes, D. R. Clinton, M. S. McCaleb, and G. D. Jennings. 2009. Water quality improvements using modified sediment control systems on construction sites. Trans. Am. Soc. Ag. Biol. Eng. (in press).
         • McLaughlin, R. A., S. E. King, and G. D. Jennings. 2009. Improving construction site runoff with fiber check dams and polyacrylamide. J. Soil and Water Cons. 64(2):144-154.
         • Bhardwaj, A. J., and R. A. McLaughlin. 2008. Simply polyacrylamide dosing systems for turbidity reduction in stilling basins. Transactions of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineering Vol. 51(5): 1653-1662.
         • Bhardwaj, A. J., R. A. McLaughlin, and D. L. Babcock. 2008. Energy dissipaton and chemical treatment to improve stilling basin performance. Transactions of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineering Vol. 51(5): 1645-1652
         • McCaleb, M. M., and R. A. McLaughlin. 2008. Sediment trapping by five different sediment detention devices on construction sites. Transactions of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineering Vol. 51(5): 1613-1621
         • McLaughlin, R. A. 2008. Some simple approaches to reducing turbidity in pumped water. Proc. Int’l Erosion Control Assoc., Steamboat Springs, CO. 9 pp (Proceedings on cd and web).
         • McLaughlin, R. A., M. V. Barringer, and J. F. Brady. 2008. Methods of analysis for parent triazines and metabolites: a review of recent developments. In The Triazine Herbicides: 50 Years of Revolutionizing Agriculture, H. M. LeBaron, J. E. McFarland, O. C Burnside, eds. Elsevier Science, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
         • Moore, A. D., R. A. McLaughlin, H. Mitosova, and D. E. Line. 2007. Calibrating WEPP Model parameters for erosion prediction on construction sites. Trans. Am. Soc. Ag. Eng. Transactions of the ASABE. 50(2): 507-516.
         • McLaughlin, R. A. and T. T. Brown. 2006. Performance of erosion control materials and polyacrylamide under field and rainfall simulator conditions. J. Am. Water Res. Assoc. 42(3):675-684.
         • McLaughlin, R. A. and T. T. Brown. 2006. Performance of erosion control materials and polyacrylamide under field and rainfall simulator conditions. J. Am. Water Res. Assoc. _(in press_).
         • McLaughlin, R. A., M. V. Barringer, and J. F. Brady. 2006. Methods of analysis for parent triazines and metabolites: a review of recent developments. In The Triazine Herbicides, H. M. LeBaron, L. P. Gianessi, and J. E. McFarland, eds. Elsevier Science, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. (In press).
         • Hayes, S. A., R.A. McLaughlin, and D.L. Osmond. 2005. Polyacrylamide Use for Erosion and Turbidity Control on Construction Sites. J. Soil and Water Cons. 60(4):193-199.
         • Thaxton, C. S. and R. A. McLaughlin. 2005. Sediment capture effectiveness of various baffles types in a sediment retention pond. Transactions of the ASAE. Vol. 48(5): 1795-1802.
         • C. S. Thaxton, J. Calantoni, and R. A. McLaughlin. 2004. Hydrodynamic assessment of various types of baffles in a sediment retention pond. Transactions of the ASAE Vol. 47(3): 741-749.
         • McLaughlin, R. A. 2003. Potential improvements in sediment and turbidity controls at construction sites. In: 2^nd Conf. Watershed Mgmt. to Meet Emerging TMDL Environmental Regulations, Nov. 8-12, 2003, Albuquerque, NM. Am. Soc. Ag. Eng., St. Joseph, MI.
         • Thaxton, C. S., and R. A. McLaughlin. 2003. Hydrodynamic and sediment capture assessment of various baffles in a sediment basin. In: 2^nd Conf. Watershed Mgmt. to Meet Emerging TMDL Environmental Regulations, Nov. 8-12, 2003, Albuquerque, NM. Am. Soc. Ag. Eng., St. Joseph, MI.
         • McLaughlin, R. A. 2002. Measures to Reduce Erosion and Turbidity in Construction Site Runoff. N. C. Dept. of Trans. & Ctr. For Trans. & Environ. Joint Project 2001-05 Final Report. 131 pages.
         • McLaughlin, R. A. and J. W. Gilliam. 2002. Using Natural and Landscaped Buffers to Reduce Pollutant Loading from Agricultural Runoff. Water Res. Research Inst. of the U. of N. C. Report # 340. 53 pages.
         • McLaughlin, R. A., S. A. Hayes, and D. L. Osmond. 2002. Testing polyacrylamides for turbidity and erosion control. Erosion Cntrl. Assoc. Proc. Of Conf. 33: 407-418. Erosion Cntrl. Assoc., Steamboat Springs, CO.
         • Bellinger, B., R. A. McLaughlin, and L. B. McCarthy. 2001. Effective, Safe, and Legal Use of Pesticides. In Best Golf Course Practices, L. B. McCarthy, Coordinating Author. Prentice-Hall, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey.
         • Klaine, S. J., R. A. McLaughlin, B. Bellinger, B. L. Forsythe II, L. B. McCarthy, and T. R. Rainwater. 2001. Best Golf Course Environmental Protection Strategies. In Best Golf Course Practices, L. B. McCarthy, Coordinating Author. Prentice-Hall, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey.
         • Line, D.E., D.L. Osmond, R.A. McLaughlin, L.A. Lombardo, G.L. Grabow, D. Frederick, J. Spooner. 2001. Nonpoint Sources. Water Environment Research vol. 73.
         • McLaughlin, R. A., W. F. Hunt, N. Rajbhandari, D. S. Ferrante, R. E. Sheffield. 2001. The sediment and erosion control research and education facility at North Carolina State University. In Soil Erosion Research for the 21st Century. J. C. Ascough II and D. C. Flanagan, eds. Am. Soc. Ag. Eng., St. Joseph, MI, USA.
         • Line, D. E., D. L. Osmond, R. A. McLaughlin, W. A. Harman, K. L. Tweedy, L. A. Lombardo, and J. Spooner. 2000. Nonpoint sources. Water Environment Research 72(5): 1054-1069
         • McLaughlin, R. A., W. P. Hunt, D. E. Line, R. E. Sheffield, and N. M. White. 2000. New sediment and erosion control research and education facility. In 43rd Annual Meeting, Vol. XLIII Proceedings, Soil Science Society of North Carolina.
         • Line, D. E., G. D. Jennings, R. A. McLaughlin, ,D. L. Osmond, W. A. Harman, L. A. Lombardo, K. L. Tweedy, and J. Spooner. 1999. Nonpoint Sources. Water Env. Res 71(5): 1054-1069.
         • McLaughlin, R. A., and G. D. Jennings. 1999. Water quality trends at the Center for Environmental Farming Systems. In 42nd Annual Meeting, Vol. XLII Proceedings, Soil Science Society of North Carolina.
         • Prezepiora, A., and R. A. McLaughlin. 1999. Erosion prevention and sediment control in highly denuded areas. In 42nd Annual Meeting, Vol. XLII Proceedings, Soil Science Society of North Carolina.
         • McLaughlin, R. A., and B. S. Johnson. 1997. Optimizing recoveries of two chlorotriazine herbicide metabolites and 11 pesticides from aqueous samples using solid-phase extraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. J. Chromatography A:(in press).
         • Weber, J. B., R. A. McLaughlin, H. F. Wade, and E. Morey. 1997. Finding and predicting pesticides in groundwater in North Carolina. pp. 211-220. In B. M. Gatewood, A. M. Lewis, and A. C. Robinson (ed.) Consumer Environmental Issues: Safety, Health, Chemicals, and Textiles in the Near Environment. Kan. State Univ. Publishers, Manhattan, KS.
         • McLaughlin, R. A., G. D. Jennings, J. M. Pitman, J. Owen, J. Sidebottom, and D. Hundley. 1996. Restoring and protecting the water supply function of a Christmas tree production watershed. Proc. Am. Water Resour. Assoc. Annu. Symposium, July 14-17, Syracuse, NY.
         • Matson, K. C., C. Stallings, G. D. Jennings, R. A. McLaughlin, and S. W. Coffey. 1995. Watershed scale hydrologic modeling in a GIS environment. In GIS/LIS, Nashville, TN, November 1995. Am. Cong. Survey. Map., Bethesda, MD.
         • McLaughlin, R. A., and H. F. Wade. 1995. A new relationship between soils, pesticide use, and the law. Soil Sci. Soc. N. C. Proc. 38: