OUTDOOR CORNER: VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR WATER QUALITY PROGRAM

Missouri is blessed with thousands of miles of pristine rivers and streams.

These same waterways flow past our homes, farms, and towns. Many provide water, recreation, and serenity just as they did for our ancestors.

But the growth of our nation has had great impacts on our streams. As a result, many problems now face Missouri's 56,000 miles of flowing waters.

Turning the impact of over 100 years of development around is too big of a job for government agencies and conservation organizations alone. What this means is that we need your help.

Water is a precious resource and needs protection. There are not enough agency personnel to tackle this problem. We need your minds, eyes, ears and hands to help us protect Missouri's streams.

One program that was developed to help improve the quality of our streams was the Volunteer Water Quality Monitoring Program. This is a cooperative effort between the Missouri Departments of Conservation (MDC), Natural Resources (DNR) and Conservation Federation of Missouri (CFM) to involve citizens in water quality monitoring.

The objectives of the program are to establish an extensive water quality monitoring network, to inform and educate citizens about aquatic resources, to empower citizens and create proactive groups who will be stewards of and advocates for improved water quality. Ultimately we hope to halt the degradation and improve the quality of Missouri streams.

The volunteer monitoring program is open to anyone who is interested in water quality. The only requirements are a sincere interest and concern for streams and a willingness to contribute time for monitoring. There are different levels of involvement and commitment which makes it a flexible program.

There are four monitoring levels that volunteers can get involved in: Introductory, Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3.

The Introductory training will take approximately one day of your time. As your interest and experience grow, you may choose to receive advanced levels of training. These advanced levels of training would involve the standardization of chemical tests, fine tuning of chemical sampling techniques, training to identify aquatic invertebrates, training for bacteria testing and quality assurance/quality control on sampling techniques and results.

The data is used to establish a baseline of information and to locate water quality problems for more detailed studies and resolution. This information will help the DNR follow long-term trends in statewide water quality.

Monitoring sites will be on streams determined by DNR's and MDC's informational needs, or you can choose a stream with which you are familiar and concerned. The frequency of monitoring will vary from stream to stream, and depend upon the nature of the stream and the impacts affecting it. Most monitoring will be conducted either quarterly (once each season) or monthly.

People interested in the Volunteer Water Quality Monitoring Program are encouraged to attend a Introductory Level Water Quality Monitoring Workshop that is scheduled for Aug. 28 at the Missouri Department of Conservation Regional Office in Cape Girardeau. The workshop will go from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The deadline for registration is August 13, 1999.

For more information and a registration form contact Priscilla Stotts, Missouri Department of Natural Resources, at (573) 526-3406 or the Missouri Department of Conservation at (573) 290-5730.

Brad Pobst is an aquatic services biologist for the Missouri Department of Conservation.