Solinst Model 615 Drive-Point Piezometer
Features
- Affordable method to monitor shallow groundwater and soil vapor
- Attach to inexpensive 3/4" (20 mm) NPT steel drive pipe
- Can be used for permanent well points or short-term monitoring applications
- Expedited repair and warranty service
- Lifetime technical support
- More
Overview
The Solinst Model 615 Drive-Point Piezometer uses a high quality stainless steel piezometer tip, 3/4" NPT pipe for drive extensions and LDPE or Teflon sample tubing, if desired. Combine these with an inexpensive Slide Hammer and you have a complete system.
Design
The Solinst Model 615 Drive-Point Piezometer has a stainless steel, 50 mesh cylindrical filter-screen, within a 3/4" (20 mm) stainless steel drive-point body, screen support and a barbed fitting for attachment of sample tubing. Optional heavy-duty extension couplings are also available to create a strengthened and more rugged piezometer.
The inner barbed fitting allows connection of 5/8" OD x 1/2" ID (16 mm x 12 mm) LDPE or Teflon sample tubing. This prevents sample water from contacting the steel extension rods, and maintains high sample integrity, even when inexpensive carbon steel extensions are used.
In The News
New map shows significant groundwater depletion in Central California
Groundwater level data collected by a Central California county shows significant drops during the past 12 years, according to a San Luis Obispo Tribune article. 
 Data shows that groundwater has dropped by a minimum of 70 feet from 1997 to 2009 in the Paso Robles area of Central California. 
 In the past four years the areas of most significant decline have expanded north and south. 
 Drought and agricultural withdrawals are the likely culprits for the groundwater decline. 
Some advocates are calling for more responsible water use by vineyards in the area, while farmers note that the recent drought did not help the situation.
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Until recently, Sargassum –a free-floating seaweed–was distributed throughout the Sargasso Sea , the north Caribbean Sea, and the Gulf of Mexico. But in the space of a decade, this seaweed has, as one scientist remarks , “Gone from a nonfactor to the source of a terrible crisis.” 
 
Driven by climate change, anomalous North Atlantic Oscillation in 2009-2010 and a glut of anthropogenic pollutants, sargassum has proliferated. 
 
Seasonally recurrent mats as deep as 7m now bloom in the “Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt” (GASB), which covers areas of the Atlantic from West Africa to the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico. Every year, millions of tons wash up along the shores of more than 30 countries . 
 
Dr.
Read MoreGreat Lakes Research Center: Designing Targeted Monitoring Solutions
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ( NOAA ), the Great Lakes have more miles of coastline than the contiguous Atlantic and Pacific coasts combined and contain 20 percent of the world's freshwater, making it a critical region to protect and conserve. 
 
Continuous monitoring and data-informed resource management are key components of managing waters in the region. 
 
Hayden Henderson, a research engineer with the Great Lakes Research Center (GLRC), designs and deploys monitoring platforms throughout the Great Lakes. With a background in environmental engineering, Henderson enjoyed the challenge of creating systems and making them work to obtain difficult, remote measurements.
Read More