WATERSHED WATCH NETWORK COUNCIL MEMBERS
Delaware
Riverkeeper Network
Delaware
Riverkeeper Network has a multi-faceted program that
includes a variety of different monitoring initiatives
designed to achieve watershed protection. The River
Tracker Network monitors historic sampling stations
for basic water chemistry components on a monthly schedule.
The Adopt-A-Buffer Initiative uses volunteers to visually
assess DRN stream restoration projects in the summer
and fall. DRN's Bug Madness Initiative uses trained
volunteer monitors to sample macroinvertebrate populations
throughout the Watershed each spring. DRN recruits volunteers
for specific Pollution Monitoring Studies and Research
Projects to support our Environmental Law Clinic and
to further advance the profile and credibility of volunteer
monitors. The data collected from these different methods
is used by Delaware Riverkeeper Network and other private
non-profit organizations; state agencies and conservation
districts; volunteer monitors and local watershed groups;
environmental action committees and local governments;
environmental consultants; and civic associations. DRN
also provides technical assistance to local watershed
groups interested in developing their own monitoring
program and study design. Contact Faith Zerbe, Monitoring
Coordinator, (610) 469-6005 or faith@delawareriverkeeper.org.
Delaware
River Basin Commission
Federation
Gloucester County Waterhed Association
Great
Swamp Watershed Association
Great
Swamp Watershed Association's Stream Team monitors the
five main tributaries of the Great Swamp, located in
the Black Brook, Great Brook, Loantaka Brook, Primrose
Brook and Passaic River subwatersheds of the Swamp.
Sampling has been done yearly since 1998, and parameters
tested for include pH, temperature, phosphorus, ammonia,
nitrogen/nitrate/nitrites and total suspended solids.
In addition, volunteers from several local colleges
contribute to the program by sampling for macroinvertebrates
and e coli bacteria. The primary goal of the program
is to measure the volume of water, nutrients and sediments
flowing into the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge;
a secondary goal is to identify areas for future restoration
activities. The monitoring data has been used by both
the Watershed Association and Ten Towns Committee, a
local committee comprised of representatives from ten
towns in and around the Great Swamp, for development
of water quality standards and other local initiatives.
Contact Kelley Curran, Project Director at (973) 538-3500 X 16
or kcurran@greatswamp.org.
Hackensack
Riverkeeper
Hackensack Riverkeeper's Water Quality
Educational Monitoring Program employs middle school
and high school students throughout the Hackensack River
watershed to monitor their local tributaries for eleven
environmental parameters used to assess the general
health of the waterbody. The QA/QC data collected by
the students is digitized by the Meadowlands Environmental
Research Institute (MERI) via a web-based data management
system and translated into GIS maps for student analysis.
Students are expected to connect their results to both
environmental and anthropogenic influences. This innovative
program melds science, education, and the environment.
Additional schools and partners are welcome to join
the network. Contact Nick Vos-Wein, Project Manager,
(201) 968-0808 or Nick@hackensackriverkeeper.org.
Meadowlands
Environmental Research Institute
Pequannock
River Coalition
Pequannock River Coalition monitors
water within the Pequannock and Wanaque Rivers watersheds.
Three parameters are measured: temperature, flow and
physical characteristics. The data is collected by volunteers
and has been used by the NJDEP and local environmental
groups for a variety of applications. The NJDEP has
used the data for development of the Integrated List
(formerly known as the 303(d) and 305(b) reports). The
data has also been used for prioritization of local
open space acquisitions and determination of local land
use issues. PRC is looking for volunteers to help with
occasional data collection and/or field work. Contact
Ross Kushner, Executive Director, (973) 492-3212 or
pequannockguy@aol.com.
Pohatcong
Creek Watershed Association
Located in Warren County, the Pohatcong
Creek Watershed Association (PCWA) has in the past monitored
many sites along the twenty-mile-long Pohatcong Creek,
from its headwaters in Independence Township down to
its confluence with the Delaware River in Pohatcong
Township. In December of 2003, PCWA published a baseline
Water Quality Study based on this data (available online);
the study was issued to the Warren County Environmental
Commission. Currently, PCWA volunteers conduct benthic
macroinvertebrate sampling along the Creek at eleven
reference sites. Each site is sampled in the spring
and fall as part of this ongoing volunteer monitoring
program which is intended to establish current water
quality conditions and identify trouble spots with their
possible causes of impairment. Now in the anlysis phase,
PCWA will analyze this most recent data set and share
their findings with municipal planning boards and environmental
commissions for use in land use planning. PCWA gladly
welcomes volunteer water stewards to contribute to stream
sampling efforts or to help with stream-side cleanups
and maintenance of riparian buffer restoration sites.
Contact Dawn Areia at (908) 835-1323 or dareia@prdus.jnj.com.
Pompeston
Creek Watershed Association
Located in Burlington County, the Pompeston
Creek Watershed Association has expanded their monitoring
program through partnerships with the Delaware River
Basin Commission, Delaware Riverkeeper Network and NJDEP.
Since March of 2002, PCWA has fielded their River Assessment
Teams conducting sampling along their home creek watershed,
which includes frontage along the lower Delaware River.
PCWA actively conducts water quality monitoring for
bacteria (E. coli, Enterococci), pH, temperature, dissolved
oxygen, nitrate and phosphate on a monthly basis and
do bioassessments (macroinvertebrates) once a year.
Their volunteers also employ visual assessment practices
to monitor past streambank restoration sites. In additon
to identifying reaches that may require restoration,
the data from PCWA's monitoring program is used for
general water quality assessment; to educate area residents,
students and municipal officials about nonpoint source
pollution; and to increase awareness of the Creek and
its value to communities throughout the watershed. PCWA
is looking for new volunteers to take part in monitoring
and data management as well as their education programs
and newsletter. Contact Debbie Lord, President, at (856)
235-9204 or dglord@aol.com.
Salem
County Watershed Task Force
The Salem County Watershed Task Force,
a volunteer citizens group founded in 1995, fills a
stewardship and watershed advocacy role in the land
drained by the upper Maurice, Salem and Cohansey Rivers,
as well as various creeks and tributaries throughout
the County. Through a partnership with the Delaware
Riverkeeper Network, SCWTF members test the levels of
dissolved oxygen, pH, nitrate and phosphate at points
throughout the County's watersheds. Results are tallied
on a monthly basis and submitted to DRN where this data
is compiled with that of other organizations whose representative
water bodies flow into the Delaware. In addition to
this important effort, their volunteer monitoring program
also directly serves the communities within Salem County
by informing their significant outreach and education
efforts such as where to perform river cleanups, resource
inventories and assistance on regional planning initiatives.
SCWTF welcomes new volunteers to aid in community outreach
work and the water quality monitoring program which
is ongoing. Contact Nancy L. Merritt at watershedgal@netzero.net
or Russell W. Oakes at rpoakes@bellatlantic.net
or call (856) 358-4138.
Richard
Stockton College of New Jersey
South
Branch Watershed Association
SBWA has developed its volunteer monitoring
program over the last 10 years, and currently monitors
18 sites throughout the South Branch watershed. The
purpose of the program is to maintain, restore and imporve
the water quality of the South Branch Raritan River
and its tributaries, and to foster a sense of stewardship
within the watershed. Volunteers are trained in the
EPA's Rapid Bioassessment Protocol for identification
of macroinvertebrates. In addition, visual surveys of
streams are conducted. The data that is collected is
used by SBWA for calculation of the New Jersey Impairment
Score (a score calculated for the NJDEP's Bureau of
Freshwater and Biological Monitoring) on a yearly basis,
and to illustrate the connections between nonpoint source
pollution and water quality degradation. In the future,
SBWA hopes to have municipalities within their watershed
utilize their monitoring data for planning purposes.
SBWA is looking for volunteers to collect macroinvertebrate
samples at established sampling sites. Contact Nicole
Rahman, Program Director, (908) 782-0422 or nicolerahman@sbwa.org.
Stony
Brook Millstone Watershed Association
The StreamWatch program monitors over
40 sites throughout the Millstone River watershed in
central New Jersey through chemical assessments, biological
assessments and visual assessments. Volunteers conducting
chemical tests monitor 27 sites bi-weekly for water
and air temperature, phosphates, nitrates, pH, turbidity
and dissolved oxygen. Biological monitors test for macroinvertebrates
at 14 sites, three times a year. The goal of the program
is to improve water quality throughout the watershed
through engaging citizens in monitoring and reporting
of stream conditions, making changes in land use that
will positively affect water quality, and providing
quality data to decision-makers that will encourage
them to protect the water supply. The data is used by
the Watershed Association to assess the impacts of point
and nonpoint source pollution on local streams, and
has also been used by municipal governments, consultants
and citizens throughout the watershed in order to make
more informed land use decisions. Volunteers are needed
to conduct chemical, biological and visual assessments
throughout the watershed. Contact Beth April at (609)
737-3735 or bapril@thewatershed.org.
Upper
Raritan Watershed Association
URWA's volunteer monitoring program
covers water bodies within the watershed of the North
Branch of the Raritan River. Volunteers monitor water
quality through chemical and biological monitoring methods.
The data that is collected is used to establish a baseline
for water quality data, specifically in the North Branch
Raritan, Peapack Brook and Rockaway Creek, as well as
for educational purposes. It has also been used by the
Raritan Basin Project, and by consultant firms who are
fighting development proposals. URWA is looking for
volunteers to expand their biological monitoring program
into new areas. Contact Patrick Gallagher, Watershed
Projects Manager at (908) 234-1852 or patrick@urwa.org.
USEPA
Region 2 Volunteer Monitoring Program
Region 2 of the USEPA covers New York,
New Jersey, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. The
EPA Program does not have formal volunteer monitors,
rather it was created to promote and support volunteer
monitoring by assisting development of watershed organizations,
to mobilize skilled volunteers for more effective water
protection, and to provide coordination and leadership
among existing federal, state and citizen monitoring
programs. EPA, state government, local governments and
organizations and/or schools may use data collected
by volunteer organizations in Region 2. The data has
also been used for educational programs, regulatory
reporting requirements and in planning efforts by citizens
and non-profit organizations. Contact Paula Zevin, Regional
Volunteer Monitoring Coordinator, (732) 321-4456 or
zevin.paula@epamail.epa.gov.
US
Department of Agriculture - Natural Resource Conservation
Service
Wallkill
River Watershed Management Group
The Wallkill River Watershed Management
Group monitors the waters of that area drained by the
Wallkill River, its tributaries and other creeks within
the defined area of NJ Watershed Management Area 02.
In April 2002, the Wallkill River Watershed Technical
Advisory Committee (TAC) initiated a NJDEP Quality Assurance/Quality
Control surface water chemical sampling program to obtain
water quality data, which, when combined with data from
the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
(NJDEP), will lead to the development of a complete
characterization and assessment of the surface water
quality of the Watershed. The program is conducted through
a unique, cooperative effort between the Wallkill River
Watershed TAC, the Sussex County Municipal Utilities
Authority (SCMUA) and the respective Health Departments
of the County of Sussex, Sparta Township, and Vernon
Township. Over the past two years, water quality data
for parameters such as temperature, pH, conductivity,
dissolved oxygen, total phosphorus, nitrates and nitrites,
and ammonia has been collected at a total of 12 sites
on four different surface waters from the Wallkill Basin.
Volunteers interested in contributing to this water
quality monitoring project may contact Nathaniel Sajdak,
Watershed Coordinator, or Ernest Hofer, PE, Watershed
Specialist, at (973) 579-6998 or scmua@nac.net.
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