Spring Showers Bring Spring Runoff (that's how that goes, right?)

A friend reminded me that we haven't updated in a while. Don't let the lack of blogging activity make you think we're not busy here at the watershed, though! We're very busy, in fact. The 60+ degree weather is making me very eager to get outside and start some of the projects I've been lining up all winter. Here's what's coming up this spring at the watershed - maybe you'll join us?

My biggest spring project is our coastal stream monitoring project. I'm working with my fellow Mass. Bays Program regional coordinators to install water level and temperature dataloggers in 25 streams along the Massachusetts coast. We're soliciting volunteers to help us count herring migrating into these streams, so if you're interested in counting fish on the South River in Marshfield, Bound Brook in Scituate, or the Herring Brook in Pembroke, let us know. (Check our website for more details.)

We are continuing to check our stream gauges on the Third Herring Brook, so you're also welcome to help out with that. The recent nor'easter brought so much water to the Third Herring Brook watershed that our gauges were underwater! (Compare that concept to this - that's a lot of water!) The water levels have dropped in the past couple of days though, so they're legible again.

Finally, we're trying to get into 5th grade classrooms all over the South Shore to teach about water conservation and watershed science. I've been making presentations for the teachers (including "Watershed Jeopardy") and we'll be holding a "Water Day" at each school, including watershed models, groundwater models, a water conservation game, and a tour of important water-related places in town. This is all part of our Greenscapes program for this year.

Of course, that's not the extent of our work - summer will be even busier. We have our regular Riverwatch monitoring and invasive species monitoring, plus a special project working with the town of Marshfield to track bacteria in the South River.

Keep checking our website and our Rivernet newsletter for all the exciting opportunities to get outside and help us (we need it!)