Current Zoom: 75%
View the current sites where our volunteer monitors collect the water quality data.
Program Objectives
Chemical and Physical ConditionsThe Alpine Watershed Group currently monitors eight sites within the Upper Carson River Watershed. We would like to expand our efforts to monitor more sites on the Carson River and other watersheds within the county. Residents of Bear Valley and Kirkwood are encouraged to participate. Contact Sarah Green at watershed@alpinecountyca.gov if you are interested in learning more about volunteer citizen monitoring.
Take a pictorial tour of our monitored sites with Google Picasa.
Biological Conditions The Alpine Watershed Group has established a Volunteer Bioassessment Program What is a Bioassessment? Biological assessments or Bioassessment is the monitoring of biological communities in addition to the monitoring of chemical and physical conditions. Bioassessments are important tools for measuring the integrity of our streams and rivers and assessing the effectiveness of our restoration efforts. Macroinvertebrates are often used as indicators in bioassessments. Macroinvertebrates are indicator species of the health of our waters and watersheds because their tolerances of pollution or other disturbances vary amongst the different families. The diversity and type of macroinvertebrates present or not present in a stream can indicate sedimentation, chemical contaminants, and excess nutrients. They can also help in identifying other sources of pollution including wastewater discharge, mineral mining wastes, road surface discharge, and inadequate forestry and grazing practices. Bioassessments can detect pollutants and disturbances that can be overlooked with other types of monitoring.
|
||||||||



