BY

I would like to thank the following individuals for their assistance with completing this project. Thanks to my co-advisor, Jim Almendinger, for his flexibility as I went back and forth with what I wanted to do with my master’s project. He was always there to help me if I had a question with my courses or my degree program. As I shifted into the emerging contaminants realm and farther from my original goal of groundwater/surface water interaction Jim stuck with me and was a constant pillar of support. Many thanks to my co-advisor, Kristen Nelson, for her assistance in actually making this project happen. I would not have been able to do this without her ideas and insights. Especially for her assistance in the design of the survey and methods, the selection of communities, the coding of the interviews, the analysis of the data, the writing of the final report, and on and on! I learned so much and this project has real world applications, which is something that makes all of Kristen’s projects that she does so valuable. Thank you to my committee member Melinda Erickson for her assistance in narrowing the scope of this project and encouraging me to find something focused and applicable. I have enjoyed working with her during the pursuit of my masters and look forward t