The Hudson Valley is home to many beautiful streams, ponds, lakes, and of course the Hudson river itself. Keeping track of the water quality in our waterways is an important job, after all no one wants to drink water that is contaminated nor would any of us want our families swimming or fishing in areas where the water hasn't tested well.

The Department of Environmental Conservation is currently looking for volunteers to help monitor some of the state's seventeen major drainage basins. You could be a part of the summer sampling season to conduct water quality assessments in streams and rivers as part of the Water Assessments by Volunteer Evaluators (WAVE) project.

The data collected is used to augment the work of the DEC Stream Biomonitoring Unit, which samples streams and rivers across the state to create an inventory of stream water quality. Citizen monitors provide valuable information to assist in identifying healthy stream sites and flagging sites that have potential water quality concerns.

There's various ways to participate and this year and  WAVE training sessions are being offered in the Chemung River, Black River, and Lower Hudson River basins with our local training session on Friday, April 29 from 9-4 in Millbrook. Work independently or be part of a team.

 

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