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 a training session.

The last one for the season is Saturday, May 17, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 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 e-mail.  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.  The program is funded in part by a grant from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.