As we enter the new millennium, water quality continues to be one of Iowa's top environmental concerns. It provides an opportunity for Iowans to take an active role in protecting and restoring Iowa's waters by monitoring the quality of streams across the state.
Information is needed to answer the most basic questions about Iowa's water resources.
While Iowa has increased its funding for a statewide water monitoring program, most of the state's 72,000 miles of streams remain untested. With the help of trained volunteers, we can begin to acquire some valuable information on the quality of Iowa's water resources. It focuses on solutions and is interested in results. The program is flexible, allowing local groups to design their own monitoring plans, including site selection, monitoring frequency, and which parameters to monitor. Plans will vary, from a fifth grade class testing water once a year, to a conservation club testing several sites in a watershed on a monthly basis, to a concerned farmer testing a stream along his adjoining fields during spring planting.