Communities caring for catchments
Waterwatch Australia
Australian Government Department of the Environment and Heritage
Waterwatch is a national community-based water quality monitoring program that encourages community groups to regularly monitor the quality of water in their local waterways. Using information gathered in this way, groups can develop community action plans to help overcome any problems they might find.
This Waterwatch Code of Practice provides guidance for community monitoring groups in building working partnerships, setting clear goals, producing credible results, providing thorough training, maintaining group interest, giving proper attention to courtesy and safety, and dealing sensitively with pollution incidents.
Before monitoring begins, establish the credibility and legitimacy of your group by involving representatives from all interested groups.
The first step in building credibility is to establish a good working partnership between your group and the organisations that are responsible for water management in your catchment. Everybody will be more likely to have confidence in the quality and usefulness of the collected data if you have all worked together to develop the monitoring project from the beginning.
Contact schools, businesses and resident landowners in your catchment and invite their involvement. Be sure to include those who might be having a negative impact on water quality. This way you are more likely to get a cooperative response when you discuss the actions that might be necessary to bring about a change. Be sure to explain that your monitoring program will be carried out using standard scientific procedures and that results will be confirmed and discussed within the group before being publicised in the media.
Share your monitoring plans, results and reports with local grassroots organisations, local councillors and state agency staff.
Local community groups can develop protection strategies for their regions. Local councillors and their conservation and environmental health staff can bring about corrective action through re-zoning land uses, working with polluters and enforcing local health and building regulations.
State departments of conservation, water resources or agriculture can offer technical assistance with erosion control, flood control, and problems related to agricultural landuse. Environmental Protection Authorities (EPA) are excellent sources of advice on water standards and State environmental laws.
A monitoring plan spells out the why, what, where, how, and when of monitoring. Your Waterwatch group should think of the questions people ask about water quality in your catchment and design a monitoring program to provide the answers. Here are some approaches which may be relevant:
A baseline survey provides initial information about the system's overall health when no other information exists. It is used as a basis for future comparisons so sampling sites should be selected to represent the complete range of conditions in the catchment.
A water quality standards survey is designed to determine whether the water meets State and/or Commonwealth water quality standards for designated uses (such as swimming) and values (such as aquatic habitat or aesthetics). Check your State Waterwatch manual or ask your Waterwatch Facilitator or water management agency for information on the standards that apply to the waters you are monitoring.
A landuse impact survey measures the impact of a human alteration (such as a pollution discharge). Generally, three sites should be chosen. Immediately upstream of the impact. Immediately downstream of the impact where the water has mixed, and even further downstream, where the water has at least partially recovered from the impact.
An event survey measures the amount of sediment, nutrients, salt or litter that is washed into a waterbody or carried downstream during heavy rain. Measurements are taken before, during and after a storm.
To clarify your goals, gather representatives of the whole range of catchment interests to work with topographic maps and aerial photos to identify issues. The maps are useful for locating water uses, landuses, and possible pollution sources. The following questions might help:
Once your group has set its objectives you will be ready to ask how accurate your measurements need to be. The 'quality requirements' of your data can be described in terms of:
You can organise your own Quality Control Program. First, the sensitivity or detection limits of your equipment can be obtained by referring to the manufacturers notes or the manufacturer. Second, the precision of your methods and equipment can be regularly checked by taking two or more samples from the same place at the same time. Third, you can systematically check on the accuracy of your results by testing standard solutions of known concentrations from scientific supply companies or by monitoring alongside professional staff working in your area.
A good training program run by skilled and experienced people pays off in two ways. First, it enhances the project's scientific credibility with potential data users. Second, it boosts volunteers' confidence in the project and in themselves.
Training in monitoring techniques should aim to give each volunteer hands-on experience of each test so that they fully understand the procedures. But make sure your monitoring team is well trained in all the other aspects of water monitoring as well. Training sessions should include:
It is important for members of your group to have adequate insurance cover to protect themselves and other people and property. School groups are covered under their State education departments, and incorporated groups such as Landcare and other community organisations usually have some form of public liability insurance. As insurance arrangements vary from State to State, check with your catchment or State Waterwatch Facilitator for guidance.
If you want to collect information on a water body on private land, ask permission to enter the property well in advance. Better still, invite the landowner to join your monitoring group. If the property is some distance away, write a letter explaining why you are monitoring the waterbody. Some landowners might be defensive if they think that you are monitoring to determine a wrong-doing on their part, or they may be concerned about public liability claims if you should have an accident while on their property. Be aware of the following courtesy considerations:
Volunteer safety must be a top priority for water monitoring groups. Safety considerations should include travel to and from the site, pier or bank stability, testing procedures and weather conditions. Check the Waterwatch Safety Guidelines as well as those relevant to your State Waterwatch program for details.
Make sure your results are as correct and complete as possible. One sample does not mean much. Taking data periodically or seasonally provides a better basis for evaluation.
After monitoring for some time, check to see if your results consistently fall within the published standards for your waterway. If your results fall within the set limits, think about how you can maintain these standards in the years to come.
If your results fall outside the set limits your first reaction will be to tell somebody, so that things can be done to correct the problems. Don't speak too soon. Your first step should be to retest the site so that there is no question about the accuracy of your results.
Ask yourself questions like:
Show your interpretive statements to more than one expert and clarify any seeming contradictions or confusing facts to be sure your understanding is valid. If you have made a mistake, be the first to admit it, then correct it. If the result is valid, find out what is causing the problem. You may need help here from government agencies or your catchment or State Waterwatch Facilitator.
Certainly your data need to be credible. But so does your program as a whole. A credible program is one that incorporates regular review and analysis of people procedures such as monitor training, satisfaction and morale as well as technical matters like monitoring techniques, equipment performance, and data recording and reporting.
Spell out clearly the program's goals and explain what is required of each person and of the program. Don't underestimate local expertise. If local priorities don't quite fit with program goals then compromise. Residents are generally quite knowledgeable about their local resources. Arrange occasions when your monitoring group can meet other monitoring groups and water quality experts, ask questions and enjoy being part of a catchment team.
Use newsletters, phone calls and easily understood and useable reports to keep your group informed of results, program progress and events. Most important, be sure to publicise any action or improvement in water quality that results from your monitoring.
There may be occasions when a problem can be traced to a particular source such as high nutrients from a piggery, a sewage overflow, or an unauthorised industrial emission. In these situations it is important that a non-confrontational approach is adopted. Select a capable person to coordinate contact between your group and those responsible for pollution. The following procedure should be followed:
Whatever decision is made, the aim is always to achieve a 'win-win' outcome for the waterbody and the person responsible for the pollution.
Where the cause of the problem can be traced to the activities of a group; such as householders, factory owners or shopkeepers:
Remember, if people have willingly worked together to arrive at a solution, they are more likely to make that solution work.