The Regional Interstate Volunteers for the Rivers and Ecosystems of Saco–aka RIVERS, because that’s a mouthful–is the citizen scientist tributary monitoring program in the Saco Watershed. Formed as a partnership between GMCG and the Saco River Corridor Commission, its goal is to collect data to better understand the water quality within the watershed. This data can help us identify locations where water quality has been compromised, see trends in the watershed, and take the right steps if there are changes over time.
There are almost 80 RIVERS monitoring sites throughout the Saco Watershed and GMCG monitors 29 of those sites. This simply could not be done without our volunteers. Sites have to be sampled before 9:00am each day so if myself and Jill, our water quality coordinator, were on our own, we would be running around like crazy and starting at 4am. Volunteers get the opportunity to be trained on our RIVERS protocols and get to go out and enjoy an early morning while collecting important data. From the training today (April 26th), it seems they are all very eager to help. We have “veteran” volunteers who have been helping with the program for many years and our “rookies'' who will get their first taste of RIVERS next week! In return for their assistance, the volunteers get to see their data used in various reports and presentations, get some sweet shirts, and of course, snacks!
Volunteers really are the lifeblood of Green Mountain Conservation Group. They help take a load off the staff’s shoulders, whether it be designing and building a new lab space, helping with RIVERS and our lakes monitoring program, or teaching students about water quality for our GET WET! program. So with that, I want to say thank you to the volunteers who I’ve met so far at GMCG and who I will meet as the summer rolls around.
Aside from being an opportunity for me to meet our volunteers, RIVERS has been a great way to learn about the area by taking me all over the watershed. I've seen all kinds of animals (including turkeys–sorry to Nikka if you still haven’t seen one!) and seen places from the road that I want to explore as spring and summer continue to roll in. I’ve already been to one of those places:the Madison Boulder. The Madison Boulder is the largest glacial erratic in New England and is one of the largest in the world weighing in at over 11 million pounds! At the sample sites I’ve gotten to see life come back to them after being frozen over those last few winter months. The grasses and plants are beginning to grow, changing the landscape that I’ve come to know. It’s really quite delightful to see, aside from the ticks. I look forward to seeing how the sites continue to evolve and finding the hidden gems of the watershed!
Fun fact: Caitlin will pose with any and all large natural things including but not limited to boulders and icebergs (pictures for reference). Learn more about Caitlin here!