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From this page we provide you with links to past highlighted
programs so that you can learn more about the variety
of volunteer water quality monitoring programs that
are sponsored or co-sponsored by Cooperative Extension
across the nation.
Washington State University
Beach Watchers:
The WSU Beach Watchers program began in 1990 to provide
education related to watersheds of the marine environment;
it is not solely a monitoring program. Today, most intertidal
zone monitoring sites (located in Puget Sound) are assessed
once each year for biological organisms and physical
parameters.
The University of
Vermont Watershed Alliance:
For four years now, the Watershed Alliance, a partnership
of University of Vermont Extension, the School of Natural
Resources and Sea Grant, has made it possible for secondary
schools and youth groups throughout Vermont to bring
the classroom into the outdoors and learn about the
watersheds in which they live. Students become 'citizen
scientist' as they conduct water quality monitoring
collecting valuable data on bacteria, phosphorous, temperature,
conductivity, pH, dissolved oxygen and macro invertebrates.
The Water Education
and Training (W.E.T.) Project in Ferry County and the
eastern part of the Colville Reservation in Washington:
The Water Education and Training (W.E.T.) Project in
Ferry County and the eastern part of Colville Reservation
of Washington started June 1, 1999, under USDA Coopearative
Extension Water Quality Funding. In cooperation with
Washington State University, this program established
and expanded an Extension Water Quality Program that
is addressing educational needs and empowering volunteers
of this previously under-served area.
Tahoe-Truckee Snapshot
Day
Snapshot Day, sponsored by the Tahoe-Truckee Clean
Water Team - a working group of the Lake Tahoe Environmental
Education Coalition (LTEEC), is designed to get community
volunteers involved in monitoring the water moving through
the Lake Tahoe and Truckee River watersheds. Monitoring
locations included tributaries to Lake Tahoe, shoreline
and sites within Lake Tahoe, and the Truckee River and
its tributaries from Tahoe City to Pyramid Lake near
Reno.
Alabama Water Watch
AWW was established in 1992. Accomplishments the program
has had in the past ten years include:
- EPA-approved chemical and bacteriological Quality
Assurance protocols
- 200 Citizen Groups and 4,000 Certified Monitors
- 1,600 Sampling Sites on 580 Waterbodies
- 150,000 Measurements
- 35 Active Citizen Trainers
- Relational Database and Website
- Speciality Studies
- Global Water Watch
- Formation of a non-profit agency by local groups
to support the AWW program
New England Collaborations
Each of the five New England Extension volunteer water quality monitoring programs (started as early as 1978 and as recently as 1999) has countless success stories of how they have impacted local communities and improved water quality. But perhaps the greatest success story is their history of regional collaboration. New England Extension monitoring programs share tools and learn from the strengths of their sister programs throughout the region.
St. Louis River Riverwatch
The St. Louis River – River Watch project is a youth-based water quality monitoring program for the St. Louis River and its tributaries in northeastern Minnesota. This project aimed at secondary school students promotes and inspires stewardship of the largest U.S. tributary to Lake Superior and other area streams.
IOWATER
IOWATER, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources' volunteer water quality monitoring program, empowers citizens to take a proactive approach to water quality. By monitoring the waters in their own backyards, Iowa's citizens ensure the protection, longevity and productivity of high quality water resources. They also help evaluate, assess, and improve waters of lower quality.
Utah Lake Watch
More than 30 water enthusiasts in 15 Utah counties have offered a few hours of their leisure time to monitor the health of the state’s lakes and reservoirs. Led by the Utah State University’s Water Quality Extension group, the volunteers are providing the Utah Division of Water Quality valuable information about the condition of Utah’s waters.
Great Bay Coast Watch
A group of dedicated volunteers has played an integral role in monitoring and preserving New Hampshire’s coastal and estuarine waters since 1990. Currently, more than 100 volunteers are part of the Great Bay Coast Watch (GBCW) and help to collect information regarding the chemical, physical and biological attributes within the Great Bay estuarine system. These volunteers regularly monitor 25 sites along the New Hampshire coastline and within its two estuaries.
Georgia Adopt-A-Wetland
The Coastal Georgia Adopt-A-Wetland (AAW) program is a grant funded volunteer monitoring program that was established in 2002 through the University of Georgia Marine Extension Service. Program goals include educating individuals about water quality, wetland importance, biodiversity, and impacts on these habitats due to invasive species, non point source pollution, and coastal development. We achieve these goals through free training sessions focusing on chemical and biological monitoring, biannual wetland clean up events, teacher workshops, conference presentations, summer programs and public outreach.
Updated
Friday, 22-Aug-2008 15:59:02 CDT
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