Water Watch

Massachusetts Community Water Watch works to address water quality problems in urban areas through cleanups, education, and streamwalks.

Community Cleanups
Cleanups provide an avenue for both constructive solutions and community action. We bring people to a degraded site, present them with information on the ecological integrity of the area and its impact on the community and work together to clean it up. This brings local problems to life in front of the citizens who are affected by them, and provides an attainable solution.

Water Watch organizes community cleanups across the state of Massachusetts each year. These are a fun opportunity to unite the students of our campus chapters with the community, as well as a great direct service to the community. We pick a site that is in need of restoration and pull together as many folks as possible, including local groups and politicians as well as citizens and students.

Education
Educating the public is an important step to getting people actively involved in solving the problem of water pollution. We teach students of all ages, as well as members of the community, about urban water pollution problems. We lay a solid foundation of knowledge about local waterways and the threats that face these waterways, as well as the residents of the community.

Water Watch interns and volunteers educate the public in many ways. One way is teaching formal lessons in classrooms across the state. We teach fun and informative lessons to elementary, middle and high school children in local schools. The lessons we teach can vary depending on the needs of the community and the students' existing knowledge. The education program is a great opportunity to shape the minds of the future.

Streamwalking
Water Watch volunteers patrol hundreds of miles of rivers, lakes and streams each year. We map local water resources, test water quality and check for evidence of illegal pollution discharges. Many times, it is this type of citizen monitoring effort which uncovers potentially dangerous pollution problems first. Once detected, these incidents are reported to state agencies. Monthly monitoring walks show the gradual changes that may be happening in the water system, as well as provide more insight into the impact the waterway has on the community.

Streamwalking allows volunteers to get to know their local waterways pretty intimately. It's a time you set aside to walk along the banks looking for signs of life or pollution. Chemically testing the water helps determine the general health of the river, but isn't necessary for every streamwalk. Visual surveying can provide many insights into the health of a waterway.