Water Quality Testing Training for New Bellingen Riverwatch Volunteers

Bellingen Riverwatch is an innovative citizen science program which sees community scientists and the scientific community working together to promote healthy rivers and protect their threatened species. Commenced in August 2017, Bellingen Riverwatch is made possible by our amazing team of 25 community volunteers and 5 local schools collecting monthly water quality data at 22 sites across the Bellinger and Kalang Rivers.

New volunteers are trained in basic water quality testing by OzGREEN Co-Founder and CEO, Sue Lennox, and are supported by our Program Coordinator, Amy Denshire. Volunteers also get to take part in fun educational workshops and events (e.g. bird spotting, aquatic plant identification, water bug blitzes etc.).

Testing takes place on the second Tuesday or Wednesday of each month. We are looking for both regular monthly volunteers, as well as "backup" or "roving" volunteers (to assist when regular volunteers are ill or away). 

About this Training Session

This training session is for new volunteers or volunteers who have trained with us once before. For returning new volunteers, this will be a refresher session and we will be assigning you to your sites! For those of you who are joining us for the first time, this will be an introduction to the program and the water quality testing that is involved. 

We will meet at 10.30am at the Bellingen Sustainability Centre ("Stables"), Church Street Lane, Bellingen. Go down the lane next to the Ambulance Centre on Church Street and we will meet on the deck of the demountable building in the middle of the carpark.

We plan to visit 4-5 sites and return to the Stables by approximately 3.30pm (we may finish slightly earlier than this). Feel free to bring your own car and follow us to the locations if you need to leave early. :) 

What to Bring

1. Your own lunch and drinks
2. Hat / sunscreen
3. Smart phone / camera (to take site photos)
4. Wear walking shoes
5. Warmer clothes (it can get cool in the shade by the river)
6. Pen and paper (in case you want to take notes) 

Questions

What other volunteers say

"In our little town of Bellingen, we are very lucky to have the Bellingen Riverwatch project making it possible for locals to become more educated and involved. I’ve loved sharing the information learnt with my children, and watching them learn, asking questions, and playing an active part in it.
 
The Bellingen Riverwatch team have been fantastic, informative and great to volunteer with. I’ve loved learning from the team and seeing their passion and enthusiasm around the project. I'd definitely recommend citizen science to anyone. It’s educational, inspiring and for people who didn't have university opportunities or have different careers. It’s a way to get involved in science and help.

- Skye, Volunteer

Can't make it to this round of training? 

If you can't make it to this round of training but are interested in volunteering with us, please register your interest here and Amy will send invites to future training sessions direct to your inbox.

Know someone who might be interested in volunteering with us?

We are looking for both regular monthly volunteers, as well as "backup" or "roving" volunteers (to assist when regular volunteers are ill or away). If you know someone who would be interested in this opportunity with us, please share this Training Session with them, or if they can't make it to this round of training, please send them to www.ozgreen.org/bellingen_riverwatch_volunteer_with_us to register their interest.