Outreach Resources
As a volunteer, you can extend your efforts beyond monitoring by organizing an outreach event to help raise awareness of water quality issues within your watershed. Community outreach can take many forms, from a small river cleanup to starting a community rain garden. The list below includes some outreach ideas, along with links to help prepare and plan for an event.
Presentations
Share your monitoring project with your community. Adopt-A-Stream's workshop presentations are useful tools for public outreach and media presentations.
Rivers Alive is Georgia's annual volunteer waterway cleanup event that targets all waterways in the state, including streams, rivers, lakes, beaches, and wetlands.
Non-point Source Pollution models allow learners to see pollution and runoff. These may be borrowed from Georgia Project WET and the UGA Cooperative Extension Service 4-H District Offices.
Rain barrels capture runoff rainwater from a roof and store it in a tank for later use. Using collected rainwater to water lawns, gardens, or indoor plants is both cost effective and beneficial for the environment.
Rain gardens are designed to slow the flow of runoff rainwater and allow filtration into the soil.
Storm Drain Stencils
The public is typically unaware that storm drains flow directly into waterbodies. Educate the public on keeping harmful pollutants out of storm drains by stenciling precautionary messages or designs on storm drains in your community. Almetek Industries Inc. and das Curb Markers offer options to buy and create your own markers.
Local Partnerships
- Contact your local riverkeeper to inquire about outreach and volunteer opportunities for your river.
- Share your data with an organization that specialize in agriculture and nonpoint source pollution. View a list of agencies here .
Share Your Findings
Write an article for your local newspaper, or a letter to your neighbors or local officials explaining your monitoring goals.