Little Falls Watershed Alliance is excited to announce that we are re-starting our bacteria monitoring program June 1 for the Little Falls and Willett Branches. Building on the success of last summer’s program, we will be adding more sites for a total of 6 sampling locations and expanding our sampling frequency from every other week to once a week.
Along testing for E. Coli, we will be looking at pH, water temperature, and air temperature in order to provide up-to-date water quality information for residents during the recreational season. The results will be posted on our website and Facebook page for the public to access.
Citizen Scientists Needed
The key to the program is volunteers. We have selected six locations for testing and we need two or three people to adopt a location to do the sampling. The samples MUST be taken Wednesday mornings and they are sent to the Anacostia Riverkeeper lab for analysis Wednesday by 10:00. All volunteers must attend a short training session.
Please contact us at stormwater@LFWA.org if you are interested in helping out.
Why Monitor?
While the water of our creeks is mostly odorless and looks sparkly clear, the creek is one of the most impaired in Montgomery County. As an urban creek, located in a heavily paved area, stormwater run-off carries a toxic mix of chemicals, trash and other pollutants into the creek. Dog poop left on lawns or dropped into the storm drain system pollutes the creek with fecal matter. The storm drain system flows directly to the creek and after it rains, the volume and velocity of the water is so high that it causes considerable erosion and collapse of the creek banks. Further, sewer lines located under the creek are often exposed by the erosion and leak or break. By testing the E. Coli levels in the creek, we will get an understanding of the extent of fecal pollution and how the fecal count is affected by rain events. Most important, we will be able to advise the public about the safety of the creek for wading and other water activities.
What else do we Monitor?
Benthic Macro-invertebrate Survey: Four times a year since 2016, LFWA has taken a census of the macro-invertebrate life of the creek. We look for diversity of species as well as total number. Using the Benthic Index of Biotic Integrity (BIBI), we are able to grade the health of the creek. Despite having some bio-diversity, our creek consistently rates poor, the lowest grade. Learn about our program HERE.
Salt Monitoring: Winter salting can cause the salinity of creek to rise, making the waters toxic to life. Since 2019, LFWA has participated in the Izaak Walton Salt Watch program. Results are HERE. In the winter of 2021/2022, the salt levels spiked to lethal twice after snow storms.