The Dominion Foundation has awarded the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay a $35,000 Environmental Stewardship Grant for our RiverTrends Water Quality Monitoring program. With this grant, we will expanding the program to the Tidal York and Small Coastal Basins watersheds. Many of these watersheds are impaired due to bacteria pollution, which makes shellfish unsafe for consumption.[imageframe link=”/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/microscope-closeup-250×167-1.jpg” ] The goal of this project is to educate stakeholders in these impaired tidal watersheds about bacteria pollution and shellfish contamination. This will be achieved by recruiting and training volunteers to monitor water quality, thus enhancing stewardship and leading to actions to reduce bacteria pollution. The data gathered by these volunteers will be used to produce a report card. Additionally, this grant will help support the 40 sites that are currently being monitored, providing technical support and re certification sessions to existing volunteers.

If you live in the Tidal York area and are interested in volunteering to be a water quality monitor, please contact Anna Mathis at amathis@allianceforthebay.org or 804-775-0951. Be a part of the effort to improve water quality and our shellfish resources!