The Alabama Department of Environmental Management will begin a water quality study beginning tomorrow, July 29 in Baldwin County.

The study, scheduled to run from July 29 to Aug. 1, will focus on Fish River, Magnolia Rive and Weeks Bay.

Data collected during the study will help develop and calibrate a water quality model for the Weeks Bay watershed, aimed at improving protection for these waterbodies. The study will involve collecting instream and streamflow data, injecting Rhodamine dye for a time-of-travel study and sampling wastewater treatment discharges.

Residents may notice red coloring in the water during the study. ADEM will inject Rhodamine dye at three points along Fish River: US Highway 90, Alabama Highway 104 and Baldwin County Road 32. The dye will be visible downstream from these locations.

It should be noted that the Rhodamine dye used is not harmful to humans or the environment at the concentrations being applied.