Protecting The Valuable Resource Of Water
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Fifth-grader Jeremiah Dawson, left, listens as Pardee Gunter, master naturalist and volunteer, talks about what Dawson had just found in Eagle Creek. Dawson is a student at Washington STEM Academy and was with a group of fifth-graders sampling the ecology of the creek.
KOSCIUSKO COUNTY — Water is a valuable resource worth protecting. But monitoring water quality and involving the public in water related issues just doesn’t happen automatically and that’s where the Hoosier Riverwatch program helps.
Hoosier Riverwatch is a statewide program dating to 1994 with an emphasis on engaging people to be active stewards of water resources. Education and training is provided on watersheds and the relationship between land use and water quality. Public awareness is increased by training volunteers to monitor water stream quality.
Originally the program was offered by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources but now it is overseen by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management. Locally, there are two certified Hoosier Riverwatch trainers in Kosciusko County: Darci Zolman, program administrator for the county Soil and Water Conservation District and Lyn Crighton, executive director of The Watershed Foundation, who served as the statewide coordinator for the program from 1998 to 2007. SWCD houses the trainer kit and a loaner kit for volunteer monitors who have taken the training to be able to use it. “Not every county has a trainer, so we are fortunate to have two,” Zolman noted
On a pleasant and sunny afternoon in mid-May, fifth-graders from the Washington STEM Academy worked in partnership with Hoosier Riverwatch and the Lilly Center for Lakes & Streams to analyze the ecology of Eagle Creek, at a point near the school in Warsaw. According to Paige Wood, fifth-grade teacher, they tested water chemistry, collected macro invertebrates, identified and analyzed the types of macros found and analyzed the soil. Two volunteers, Indiana Master Naturalists, helped the students.
Data had been collected in the fall and was compared to the data collected in May to draw conclusions and was provided to Hoosier Riverwatch to track the water chemistry and ecology of the creek. A database allows the creek’s health to be observed during a period of time. “This allows us to identify when the creek is experiencing abnormal ecology, helping us to locate the source of the pollution quicker if needed,” Wood said.
Zolman said SWCD’s purpose aligns closely with the state goals for Hoosier Riverwatch. “We want people to be knowledgeable of and appreciate the water resources in our own backyard, understand ways to measure the quality of these water resources and what the pressures and challenges are to water quality, understand the land/water connection and to develop a stewardship ethic, knowing that each individual’s actions can and do have an impact.”
This is accomplished through programs for schools and other groups. Water education is done at many levels, both in the classroom and at the stream site. Zolman said her position was created 30 years ago because the board of supervisors for SWCD wanted education to be a major focus.
Several sites throughout Kosciusko County are being monitored. In addition to Eagle Creek, Washington STEM students also help monitor Cherry Creek. SWCD has also taught monitoring on Grassy Creek through the Water Drop program, a rafting program for all Warsaw Community High School freshmen. And rafting programs have also been done on the Tippecanoe River with high school students from all across northern Indiana in conjunction with Arrow Head Country RC&D.
The Watershed Foundation collaborates with North Webster Elementary School in monitoring the Tippecanoe River between Webster Lake and Lake Tippecanoe twice each year.
Crighton noted monitoring has been done in Kosciusko County since 1996. The late John Rouch, formerly of Waubee Lake, monitored 14 sites in collaboration with the health department from 1996 to 1999. Since then several organizations have participated in Hoosier Riverwatch including Barbee Lakes Property Owners Association, Wawasee Area Conservancy Foundation, Webster Lake Conservation Association and others in addition to the Washington STEM Academy.
Riverwatch Volunteer Workshop
A Riverwatch volunteer monitoring workshop will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Thursday, June 29, at the North Webster Community Center, 301 N. Main St. (SR 13). Learn how to properly sample the water, analyze your data, collect macro invertebrates and more.
There is no cost to attend. To register, call (574) 834-3242 or email [email protected].