1. The Meadows Center Texas Stream Team Prepared in cooperation with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and U.S. EPA. The preparation of this presentation was financed through grants from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. Contact us: Texas State University Texas Stream Team Riverside Apts, Unit C4 601 University Drive San Marcos, TX 78666- 4616 Phone: 512-245-1346 Toll free: 877-506-1401 txstreamteam@txstate.ed u 1

2.  Established in 1991  A joint partnership with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, U.S. EPA Region VI, Texas State University- San Marcos  Work with numerous agency partners.  Support a network of volunteer water quality monitors WHO WE ARE Plum Creek Elementary 4 th grade students, testing water samples, January 27, 2012 2

3. PROGRAMS  Core Texas Watch  Collects “core” water quality variables that are considered minimum information needed for knowledge of baseline conditions and determination of “health” (dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, pH, temperature, water clarity, salinity)  Kits are available for freshwater and salt water  Volunteers are asked to monitor monthly on the same day each month at the same time of day (e.g. 8:00 am on the second Saturday of the month) Certifications  Certified monitor  Completes and submits a monitoring plan  Completes a three-phase training (maximum 12 hours total)  Certified trainer  Possesses monitor certification  Completes a two phase training (assists a training led by a certified trainer, then leads a training with the assistance of a certified trainer)  Maintains certification by conducting trainings on a regular basis (as defined by the manual)  Certified quality assurance officer (QAO)  Possesses monitor certification  Completes a two phase training (similar to trainer)  Maintains certification by conducting QC sessions on a regular basis SPECIAL PROJECTS AND GRANTS  Texas Watch – Hays County Blanco River Bacterial Monitoring Collaboration  Texas Watch Rockport Sentinels - continued chemical, nutrients, and bacterial monitoring in Little Bay  U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), Wet Weather Bacterial Contamination Study in New Braunfels  Teaching Environmental Science (TCEQ-Geography Dept support) What we did… 2002 – about 400 volunteers Total number of sites 922 Total number of sites with data 644 Total number of monitoring events in the database 16,882 Total trainer’s-in- training or QAO-in- training 146 3 TEXAS WATCH

4. PROGRAMS Core Texas Watch  Collects “core” water quality variables that are considered minimum information needed for knowledge of baseline conditions and determination of “health” (dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, pH, temperature, water clarity, salinity)  Kits are available for freshwater and salt water  Volunteers are asked to monitor monthly on the same day each month at the same time of day (e.g. 8:00 am on the second Saturday of the month) Urban Watch  Designed for dry weather screening in storm drains in urban areas to detect “illicit” discharges  Volunteers are asked to monitor monthly on the same date and are asked to monitor twice within a 24-hour period  Municipality (or local partner) participation is required as the data is only useful at a local level Bug Watch  Brand new program that never emerged from the pilot stage  Collects benthic macroinvertebrate samples as a parameter to measure overall stream “health” using procedures similar to EPA’s rapid bioassessment protocols  Volunteers are asked to monitor quarterly Certifications  Certified monitor  Certified trainer  Certified quality control officer SPECIAL PROJECTS  EPA environmental education grant – learning urban watersheds  Dos Laredos  Teaching Environmental Science (TCEQ-Geography Dept support) What we did… 2005 – about 400 volunteers 4 TEXAS WATCH

5. PROGRAMS  Core Texas Stream Team  Collects “core” water quality variables that are considered minimum information needed for knowledge of baseline conditions and determination of “health” (dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, pH, temperature, water clarity, salinity)  Kits are available for freshwater and salt water  Volunteers are asked to monitor monthly on the same day each month at the same time of day (e.g. 8:00 am on the second Saturday of the month)  NEW NPS Suite Certifications  Certified monitor  Completes and submits a monitoring plan  Completes a three-phase training (maximum 12 hours total)  Certified trainer  Possesses monitor certification  Completes a two phase training (assists a training led by a certified trainer, then leads a training with the assistance of a certified trainer)  Maintains certification by conducting trainings on a regular basis (as defined by the manual)  Certified quality control officer  Possesses monitor certification  Completes a two phase training (similar to trainer)  Maintains certification by conducting QC sessions on a regular basis SPECIAL PROJECTS  Environmental Protection Agency Geography and Water Grant (December 2007- March 2010)  EPA environmental education grant –urban watersheds (shifted timeline 2010-2012)  Rio Grande Bacteria Historical Data Review (2009) 2007 – 2010 5 TEXAS STREAM TEAM

6. Year# sites # sites monitored # new sites monitored # monitoring events # newly trained Phase IPhase II Phase III 2007-08 1290246302647426923 41 2008-09 13412223027442288364156 2009-10 14082433428504357434456 6 MONITORING 2007-2010 Evaluation in January 2012 – Approximately 250active monitors

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8. NEW PROGRAM TOOLS 2010- 2013 8

9.  Volunteer Monitoring  NPS Suite  Group Oriented  Data Viewer  iPhone app  Education & Outreach  Sedimentation  Paperless Newsletter  Email Marketing  Online Modules PROGRAM TOOLS 9

10.  shifting E. coli monitoring  nitrate-nitrogen  orthophosphate  transparency tube  streamflow 10 NPS SUITE NPS suite training, August 2010

11.  Data viewer  https://aqua.rivers.txstate.edu/ https://aqua.rivers.txstate.edu/  Online modules  http://txstreamteam.rivers.txstate.edu/monito rs/quality-control-self-assessment.html http://txstreamteam.rivers.txstate.edu/monito rs/quality-control-self-assessment.html  Sedimentation curriculum  http://txstreamteam.rivers.txstate.edu/educat ors/curriculum.html http://txstreamteam.rivers.txstate.edu/educat ors/curriculum.html LINKS TO TOOLS 11

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16. Refresher test Tracking System Completion Certificates 16

17. Thank you 17