stLouISTStatewide Volunteer Network Helps Shape Stream Health
EAST ALTON – A series of upcoming training opportunities will prepare the next wave of citizen scientists to help shape stream health across the state of Illinois this spring. The Illinois RiverWatch Network will host a series of statewide trainings throughout March and April, which will educate community members on how to monitor the health of their local streams. RiverWatch, a community science initiative, is coordinated by the National Great Rivers esearch and Education Center (NGRREC SM ) at Lewis and Clark Community College. Each spring, RiverWatch offers workshops where volunteers learn to collect and identify stream macroinvertebrates (water bugs) and describe the physical condition of the stream habitat. Upon completing training and becoming certified, volunteers may adopt a stream site where they can monitor water quality and contribute to a state-wide dataset using these RiverWatch survey methods. “Macroinvertebrates are easy to collect and can tell us a lo
