Water Quality Monitoring

Our Waterkeepers are experts on their local waterways. They monitor water quality in several different ways. Some are indirect by reviewing pollution reports required under Clean Water Act permits or analyzing government sponsored data collection. Waterkeepers also monitor water quality directly by conducting robust water sampling and then analyze and report their results in annual report card reports, interactive maps and mobile apps. These water quality monitoring programs “ground truth” what is really happening with the Chesapeake Bay cleanup goals on the local level.

Our Waterkeepers that publish annual or biannual report cards include:

South, West and Rhode Riverkeeper
ShoreRivers: Chester River, Sassafras River, Choptank River and Miles-Wye Rivers
James Riverkeeper
Baltimore Harbor Waterkeeper
West-Rhode Riverkeeper

In addition to Report Cards, several of our Waterkeepers report water quality data on the Swim Guide app:

Assateague Coastkeeper
South, West and Rhode Riverkeeper
James Riverkeeper
Anacostia Riverkeeper
ShoreRivers
Shenandoah Riverkeeper
Potomac Riverkeeper

Potomac Riverkeeper Network and Anacostia Riverkeeper launched a collaborative program with DC Department of the Environment to use volunteers to sample several locations on the Anacostia, Potomac and Rock Creek and post results on the Swim Guide app and the Water Reporter app.

Blue Water Baltimore measures and maps water quality on the Patapsco and its tributaries and posts it on its interactive Baltimore Water Watch map. The Arundel Rivers Federation rolled out an interactive data map which takes a look at whether the rivers are fishable and swimmable and includes historical data. The data map also provides photos and information about where restoration projects are located. View the data map at www.southriverdata.net. James Riverkeeper has an interactive map on current James River water quality at http://jamesriverwatch.org. In 2019, James Riverkeeper worked with the Center for Progressive Reform to issue Toxic Floodwaters: The Threat of Climate-Driven Chemical Disaster in Virginia’s James River Watershed, that focuses on how the James River is vulnerable to climate change and floods, coupled with the concentration of various industrial sites throughout the region.

Analysis by Waterkeepers Shows Shocking Level of PFAS Contamination in Local Rivers & Streams

Waterkeeper Water Quality Monitoring Shows Increases in Pollution Due to Climate Change

Harrisburg Water Monitoring Shows Unsafe Levels of Bacteria in 33% of Tests in Susquehanna River this Summer