CONTACT:  SUSAN TOLCHIN (914) 995-2932

                       DONNA GREENE                                                                                      (914) 995-2935

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                            Mar. 24, 2008

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED TO HELP MONITOR COUNTY STREAMS

Last year more than 80 people helped the county in its effort to monitor the health of local streams and get test results for a detailed database on water quality. Volunteers are needed again this year. People who are interested should attend one of the following training sessions:

§ Sat.,  April 26,  9 a.m. - 4 p.m.,  Hilltop Hanover Farm, Yorktown Heights

§ Sat.,  May 3,  9 a.m. - 4  p.m.,  Rye Nature Center, Rye

§ Sat.,  May 10,  9 a.m. - 4 p.m.,  Ward Pound Ridge Reservation, Cross River

§ Sat.,  May 17,  9 a.m. - 4 p.m.,  Teatown Lake Reservation, Ossining

No experience is necessary to volunteer. The training session consists of a day outdoors, learning and practicing how to use specialized water chemistry equipment, collecting and identifying river critters such as crawfish and insects, and measuring physical conditions such as the amount of sediment in a stream.

The Westchester County Citizens’ Volunteer Monitoring Program (WCCVMP) is part of Westchester’s comprehensive program to protect the county’s water. Volunteers collect stream data to add to the baseline of water quality data for Westchester County streams. Over time, the data will be used to document the health of county streams.

Following the training, volunteers may join a team to collect data on a local stream or organize their own team.  Volunteers will be able to choose monitoring locations and how much time to participate.

To sign up for a workshop, contact Susan Darling at the county Department of Planning at 995-6535 or by email at sad8@westchestergov.com.  Registration is requested at least one week in advance so that directions and information on the training sessions can be mailed to participants.  For more information, visit the WCCVMP website at: http://cvmp.westchestergov.com/cvmp/.  The program is funded in part by a grant from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.

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