Volunteers are needed for Florida Keys Water Watch to collect water-quality data from more than 170 miles of manmade canals throughout the island chain.
Water Watch is an educational program developed by the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences at the Monroe County Extension Service. Volunteers receive free training and equipment.
Because of poor water quality in many Keys canals, data and analysis is needed to inform residents about different ways they can improve the water in their canals. Water quality is a measure of the ability of the water to support human uses, including fishing and swimming, and to support healthy habitat for marine life and other wildlife, including shorebirds.
The thought is that if residents understand what causes poor water quality in their canals, they will be more likely to take action to help improve that quality.
Florida Keys Water Watch was established in October 2014 with funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and emphasizes the connections between land uses and the impacts on aquatic health. It teaches people to treat their canal like their pool – if you would not put it in your pool, do not put it in your canal. This includes items like grass clippings, fish carcasses and motor oil.
Water Watch also teaches residents how to test their canal for dissolved oxygen, salinity, pH and temperature. It provides the equipment for free.
Since March 2015, Water Watch has trained 303 people (113 adults, 186 students and four teachers) during free four-hour workshops. Volunteers have adopted 48 sites from Key West to Key Largo and entered 331 data entries.
To become a volunteer, contact the Monroe County Extension Service at (305) 292-4501 or send an e-mail to Shelly Krueger, program coordinator, at Krueger-shelly@monroe-county-fl.gov. To learn more about the program, go to UF-IFAS Monroe County Extension Services.
Water Watch is an educational program developed by the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences at the Monroe County Extension Service. Volunteers receive free training and equipment.
Because of poor water quality in many Keys canals, data and analysis is needed to inform residents about different ways they can improve the water in their canals. Water quality is a measure of the ability of the water to support human uses, including fishing and swimming, and to support healthy habitat for marine life and other wildlife, including shorebirds.
The thought is that if residents understand what causes poor water quality in their canals, they will be more likely to take action to help improve that quality.
Florida Keys Water Watch was established in October 2014 with funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and emphasizes the connections between land uses and the impacts on aquatic health. It teaches people to treat their canal like their pool – if you would not put it in your pool, do not put it in your canal. This includes items like grass clippings, fish carcasses and motor oil.
Water Watch also teaches residents how to test their canal for dissolved oxygen, salinity, pH and temperature. It provides the equipment for free.
Since March 2015, Water Watch has trained 303 people (113 adults, 186 students and four teachers) during free four-hour workshops. Volunteers have adopted 48 sites from Key West to Key Largo and entered 331 data entries.
To become a volunteer, contact the Monroe County Extension Service at (305) 292-4501 or send an e-mail to Shelly Krueger, program coordinator, at Krueger-shelly@monroe-county-fl.gov. To learn more about the program, go to UF-IFAS Monroe County Extension Services.
