Adopt-A-Stream Volunteer Mentoring Program

Getting Involved

© Danielle Hultlas

When you decide to become a stream monitor, you join a special group of people who collect valuable information about our local streams. Working with natural resource agencies, volunteer monitors play a key role in stream protection and stream stewardship. Monitoring is also a great way of getting to know your special stream.

To gain a better understanding of what is expected from the monitoring program and our volunteers please review and print the Volunteer Fact Sheet .

Our program utilizes the Georgia Adopt-A-Stream protocols and methods of assessing the water quality in a stream. Based on the type and diversity of aquatic insects found in the stream, you will be able to assess the ecological conditions. This is known as biological monitoring and is recognized nationally as a reliable indicator of water quality. Our program also includes basic chemical monitoring, measuring water temperature, conductivity, dissolved oxygen and pH.

The Stormwater Management Department offers several types of workshops. By attending an introductory workshop you get a better understanding of the program. Indoor workshops allow new and experienced monitors to gain more practice with macroinvertebrate identification. Outdoor workshops provide hands on training of the field protocols and field identification.

The only way to learn is by practicing and making mistakes. It is impossible to learn the bugs or perform the chemical testing without investing some time into the adventure. Once you feel ready, you can become a certified monitor. The QA/QC Certification test is composed of procedural knowledge, identification and an outdoor demonstration of sampling. Quality Assurance certification is a part of every chemical and biological workshop. The QA/QC certification ensures that data collectors have met the Georgia Adopt-A-Stream criteria.

The requirements to become QA/QC certified involve:

Biological Certification

1. Volunteers demonstrating the ability to collect a macroinvertebrate sample to a certified Adopt-A- Stream trainer.
2. Volunteers identifying, with 90% accuracy, no less than 20 macroinvertebrates and correctly calculate the water quality index.
3. Volunteers QA/QC re-certifying annually.
4. Volunteers sampling once every three months for one year and send their results to Georgia Adopt-A-Stream.

Chemical Certification

1. Volunteers’ methods and test kits must achieve results within 10% of those obtained by a certified Adopt-A-Stream trainer.
2. Volunteers QA/QC re-certified annually.
3. Volunteers being good equipment managers and replacing test kit reagents annually.
4. Volunteers sampling once a month for one year and submit their results to Georgia Adopt-A-Stream database
   

By following this criterion, we can assure that the data collected is accurate, consistent, reliable, and comparable.

Your commitment is composed of:

• Attending the initial workshop
• Getting QA/QC Certified (Required)
• Choosing your own site to monitor or choosing to assist at established sites
• Monitoring your stream 4 times a year, once each season or assisting at sites when you are available.
• Getting enough experience to feel comfortable through:
  • other workshops,
  • going out to monitor with experienced monitors,
  • inviting experienced monitors to monitor with you

If you are interested in becoming a volunteer monitor, contact the Henry County Adopt-A-Stream Coordinator or visit Georgia Adopt-A-Stream to review various workshop schedules.