Community Members Needed to Help Rate the Schuylkill River

 

Schuylkill River Partner Water Quality Project Results

 

Schuylkill Schuylkill River Greenways, in partnership with Berks Nature, Bartram’s Garden, The Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education, Stroud Water Research Center, and Princeton Hydro, are conducting a Water Quality Project. This project, focused on the main stem of the river from Berks Nature in Reading to Bartram’s Garden in southwest Philadelphia, is aimed to document the current ecological status and health of the river. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ABOUT THE KICK-OFF ON WORLD HABITAT DAY 2020 

 

 

Become a Community Scientist!

No training required! Find a spot on the Schuylkill River and visually assess any debris or dumping along a 100-foot stretch of its riverbanks. It only takes 5 minutes. Use your mobile device to simply record the trash accumulation or dumping points via a user-friendly form accessible from a cell phone

Click Here to View Form

Conduct 5-min litter assessments!

  1. Go to a spot on the Schuylkill River.
  2. On your phone, open: bit.ly/litterform
  3. Select your location on the map
  4. Upload a photo
  5. Rate a 100-foot section and submit!
Click Here to View the Community Scientist Guide

Help from the Community is Critical Towards Documenting the Litter Status Along the River 

“To fully achieve the Schuylkill River’s potential, we must help the public understand the current health status and what they can do to continue to improve its quality for this generation and generations to come."

- Tim Fenchel, Deputy Director of Schuylkill River Greenways
The Water Quality Project Has 4 Components
  1. User opinion and perceptions survey
  2. Community science water quality monitoring of the river
  3. Community engagement, and
  4. Educational outreach.

A survey, conducted in April 2020 by OpinionWorks, showed a significant concern of river users is the visual impairments associated with trash and litter. The secondary concern was associated with water quality, including potential excessive bacteria and nutrient inputs. We have incorporated these survey results into the design of the community science water quality monitoring effort.

Schuylkill River – Visual Assessment Protocols

Thank you for your interest in documenting the health, vibrant, and ecological characteristics of the Schuylkill River. We hope the following protocols help you to engage in the conservation and preservation of this special resource.

Visual Assessment Protocol Document