GEORGIA Adopt-A-Stream Volume 9, Number 1, January / February 2002 Michele Droszcz and Harold Harbert, Editors See You on the Outer Banks! After four fabulous years, I am leaving Georgia Adopt-A-Stream. I have accepted an exciting new job on the Outer Banks of North Carolina working for the State Coastal Reserve Program. Thank you all for your support and don't forget to send in your registration forms! Department of Natural Resources Environmental Protection Division Georgia Adopt-A-Stream Program Update Happy New Year! Georgia Adopt-A-Stream has accomplished a lot in the past year and since we are doing it for you we wanted to tell you what is happening. Most of our work has been accomplished through the dedication and hard work of our Advisory Board, local Adopt-A-Stream coordinators and partner organizations throughout the State. Last year, Eric VandeGenachte with the Georgia Natural Heritage Program began setting up a new database for us. Bruce Taylor with Clayton County Water Authority took over the project and has worked endlessly to perfect this outstanding database. This summer, an intern from Emory University, Catherine Young, spent three months entering data into the new database. At this time, there are 201 sites registered and 1,026 sets of data entered in the database. Data management is a time-consuming process and we owe much thanks to Eric, Bruce and Catherine. Within the past two years, the manuals were updated with a strong focus on watershed education and assessment techniques. We also have a manual on visual monitoring, which provides detailed instructions on measuring stream channel cross-section and flow as well as various techniques to measure erosion and sedimentation processes. The data forms within the manuals have been adjusted to correspond to our new database. A new site registration form has been developed to ensure that we have the proper information to locate your monitoring sites by latitude and longitude. With all the updates in the program, we decided to also update the Quality Assurance Plan. A group of advisors have worked with us to test new equipment and choose new chemical parameters. The equipment is currently being tested in the lab and we plan to have a draft Quality Assurance Plan ready for EPA's review in March. On the education front, a course for middle school science teachers was developed last year using Adopt-A-Stream workshops as the handson field component of the course. In addition, a statewide process to offer SDU credits for AAS workshops was developed by Ginny Brady of Fort Discovery Educational Technology Training Center. Ginny and her co-workers also developed an AAS website specifically for teachers. This includes the SDU information, videos on monitoring techniques and other pertinent educational information. Georgia Adopt-A-Stream partnered with Environmental Education Alliance of Georgia last year to produce a large and successful environmental education conference. Rivers Alive continues to grow as citizens throughout the State invite each other out to their local waterways to meet neighbors, pick up trash and learn about water quality. Rivers Alive and Georgia Adopt-A-Stream were both highlighted in a segment of Georgia Outdoors on GPTV. This segment will be the basis for a new Georgia Adopt-A-Stream introductory video. Georgia Adopt-A-Stream spearheaded a new program called Corridors: Citizen Riparian Network, which is a network of more than 30 organizations working together to increase our knowledge of stream stabilization and riparian revegetation. International Paper Nursery & Orchards sponsors the website, located at www.gabuffer.org. In other partnership news, the Community Watershed Network, which produces a series of workshops and watershed-based materials, is beginning its 6th year. This series is produced by partners in the Metro-Atlanta area and focuses on topics of interest to citizen-based watershed groups and Adopt-A-Stream volunteers. These workshops are announced in this newsletter. We continue to have a wonderful partnership with several organizations on the coast. Special recognition goes to Dr. Joe Richardson at Savannah State University who continues to get funding to carry on the Coastal Adopt-A-Stream and Wetland Regional Training Center. We also found a great partner in the UGA Marine Extension Service who has taken the Adopt-AWetland program and is expanding it to meet the needs of volunteers on the coast who wish to monitor coastal wetlands and beaches. The key to the Georgia Adopt-A-Stream program is hands-on education, which requires many trainers throughout the state who are willing to work with concerned citizens. Presently we have 71 trainers and 1,100 volunteer were trained through our quality assurance program last year. Congratulations to everyone who has been a part of these efforts. Georgia has an impressive group of concerned and active citizens. Clayton Co Water Authority Hosts a Stream Naming Contest To encourage participation in the Clayton County Adopt-A-Stream Program and to increase awareness about watershed health, Clayton County Water Authority (CCWA) is hosting a stream naming contest. The CCWA stream naming contest encourages stream names that are historically and/or physically accurate. Maps indicating the unnamed streams in the county have been mailed to all public schools, displayed at the county libraries, and placed at CCWA facilities to encourage participation in this contest. The stream names selected from the contest entries will be included on all Clayton County maps and will be submitted to USGS for their approval. Participants with winning stream names will receive a certificate to commemorate their stream name and all participants will receive a small prize for their efforts. CCWA feels that having names for all of the streams and tributaries in the county will enhance operations as well as further watershed protection goals. For more information about this program or the Clayton County Adopt-A-Stream Program, contact Kim Zimmerman at 678-422-2838 or kzimmerman@ccwa1.com. Adopt-A-Stream Calendar of Events The following workshops, taught by certified AAS trainers, provide training in visual, biological and chemical monitoring of streams. Please call to register. What Chemical Getting Started w /AAS Getting Started w /AAS Chemical Chemical Getting Started w/AAS Chemical Watershed, Chem & Bio Getting Started w/AAS Biological Chemical Chemical Who UOWN / Sandy Creek Nature Ctr. Upper Etowah River Alliance Clayton County Water Authority Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper Upper Etowah River Alliance Upper Etowah River Alliance Georgia Wildlife Federation Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper Upper Etowah River Alliance Georgia Wildlife Federation Upper Etowah River Alliance Clayton County Water Authority When Jan 19 Jan 19 Jan 19 Jan 19 Jan 26 Feb 9 Feb 23 Mar 11, 13, 15 March 23 March 23 March 30 March 30 Where Athens Canton Wetlands Center Smithgall Woods Canton Canton Covington Atlanta Canton Covington Canton Wetlands Center To Register 706-613-3615 770-735-2778 678-422-2838 404-352-9828 770-735-2778 770-735-2778 770-787-7887 404-352-9828 770-735-2778 770-787-7887 770-735-2778 678-422-2838 NOTE: Workshop times vary. Please call to get exact times and locations. Workshop information is updated weekly on our website at www.riversalive.org/aas.htm There's more! AAS workshops are conducted throughout the State. Call one of these numbers to learn about upcoming workshops in your region of the State. Where Coastal GA West GA Central GA Southwest GA South GA Who Dr. Joe Richardson Dr. Becky Champion Beth Hohnadel Dr. William Tietjen Dr. David Hedgepeth To Register 912-356-2809 706-687-4090 706-444-9820 912-931-2253 912-333-5611 E-mail richards@tigerpaw.ssu.peachnet.edu champion_becky@colstate.edu ejhohnadel@hotmail.com wlt@canes.gsw.edu dhedgepe@valdosta.edu QA/QC Recertification: All QA/QC volunteers must renew certification on a yearly basis. This can be accomplished by participating in the second half of our regular chemical or biological workshop. To register, please contact one of our scheduled workshops. "Environmental Education: Everyone, Everywhere, Everyday" The most talked about environmental education conference in the state of Georgia is just around the corner. The deadline for registering is Monday February 25, 2002. This conference is a partnership between Georgia Adopt-A-Stream and the Environmental Education Alliance of Georgia, The Georgia Conservancy, Project Learning Tree, Project WET, Project WILD, and the National Wildlife Federation, Georgia GLOBE, Georgia State Parks, Georgia Wildlife Federation and Keep Georgia Beautiful. The conference, held at Unicoi State Park March 22-24, will include three days of exciting workshops and presentations covering topics ranging from water to wildlife, field trips, panel discussions, and a volunteer awards banquet. To register please go to www.riversalive.org/aas.htm and click on 2002 Environmental Education Alliance of Georgia Conference found under Current Events Community Watershed Workshop March 12, 2002 6:00 8:00 p.m. Empowering Underserved Communities Location: Mosley Park Recreation Center 1565 Martin Luther King Drive The workshop will provide an opportunity for people to meet and share information, recruit volunteers, and obtain resources to start up and/or sustain watershed activities. 6:00 Refreshments 6:15 Highlighted Watershed - WAWA (Sandy, Utoy, & Proctor Creeks) 6:45 Robin Chenay from River Network 7:30 Questions & Answers This workshop is brought to you by West Atlanta Watershed Alliance, National Wildlife This Federation, and City of Atlanta Adopt-A-Stream. is the first workshop of 2002 in a series of four to promote and support community and watershed activities. The series will continue on May 14. The workshops are sponsored by: Georgia Adopt-A-Stream, Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper, DeKalb County Parks and Recreation, Peavine Watershed Alliance, City of Atlanta Department of Public Works, Fulton County Adopt-A-Stream, Gwinnett County Adopt-A-Stream, Clayton County Water Authority and National Wildlife Federation. Directions: Take I-20 West to the MLK Jr. Drive exit. Keep right at the fork in the ramp and merge onto MLK Jr. Drive. The Georgia Adopt-A-Stream Newsletter is published six times per year. For more information about the Georgia Adopt-A-Stream program or to contribute to the newsletter, call or write to: Georgia Adopt-A-Stream Environmental Protection Division 4220 International Parkway, Suite 101 Atlanta, GA 30354 (404) 675-1639 www.riversalive.org/aas.htm Printed on recycled paper