What is the Illinois RiverWatch Watershed
Project?
The Illinois RiverWatch Watershed Project is
an environmental education project coordinated by the National
Great Rivers Research and Education Center (NGRREC). The Watershed
Project provides students in grades 5-10 with the opportunity to
learn about stream ecology by monitoring a local stream. Students
and teachers are taught to collect baseline data for determining
long-term changes in the physical, chemical and biological
parameters of the watershed.
Who can
participate?
Grades 5-10 are welcome to participate in the
project. High school junior and seniors are encouraged to
participate in the RiverWatch Citizen Scientist Program.
How can you
get involved?
Training for the Watershed Project includes a
four-hour field session and a four-hour classroom session provided
by a certified RiverWatch Trainer. Once trained, monitors adopt a
stream site at which they conduct a survey in the fall, winter and
spring. The project coordinator establishes dates on which all
schools monitor their stream. However, monitoring dates are
subject to change depending on weather and stream conditions.
What
parameters are used to monitor a stream?
Physical
stream
habitat
riparian zone
physical stream measurements
Chemical
nitrate
phosphate
dissolved oxygen
pH
biological oxygen demand
Biological
benthic
macroinvertebrates
fecal coliform
Where is the
data stored?
Monitoring data are entered
into a database over the internet. The database can be
accessed on NGRREC’s RiverWatch web page. Following
electronic submission of the data, teachers must submit a hard
copy of the data sheets to the project coordinator.
If you wish to join the
RiverWatch Program list serve,
click here.
