EPA's Volunteer Monitoring Program

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Office of Water encourages all citizens to learn about their water resources and supports volunteer monitoring because of its many benefits. Volunteer monitors build awareness of pollution problems, become trained in pollution prevention, help clean up problem sites, provide data for waters that may otherwise be unassessed, and increase the amount of water quality information available to decision makers at all levels of government. Among the uses of volunteer data are delineating and characterizing watersheds, screening for water quality problems, and measuring baseline conditions and trends.

EPA sponsors national conferences that bring together volunteer organizers and agency representatives; manages a listserver for volunteer monitoring program coordinators; supports a national newsletter for volunteer monitors; prepares and regularly updates a directory of volunteer monitoring programs; and publishes manuals on volunteer monitoring methods and on planning and implementing volunteer programs.

Many of EPA's ten regional offices are actively involved in volunteer monitoring. Their activities include providing technical assistance related to data quality control; serving as contacts for volunteer programs in the region; managing grants to state agencies that include provision for volunteer water monitoring and public participation; and providing information exchange services for volunteers. Some offices hold regional workshops to bring volunteers together and build partnerships.

EPA will continue to encourage cooperation and information exchange within the volunteer monitoring community, and will work to expand the use of credible volunteer monitoring data at the federal, state, and local level.

AVAILABLE EPA VOLUNTEER MONITORING MATERIALS

• National Directory of Volunteer Environmental Monitoring Programs.
  This electronic database contains updated information on volunteer monitoring programs nationwide. Available at http://yosemite.epa.gov/water/volmon.nsf.

• Proceedings - Sixth National Volunteer Monitoring Conference - Moving Into the Mainstream - April 26 - 29, 2000, Austin, Texas. EPA 841-R-01-001, June 2001. Available at https://www.epa.gov/owow/volunteer/proceedings/sixth/pdftoc.html.

  Starting Out in Volunteer Water Monitoring. A brief fact sheet on how to become involved in volunteer monitoring. Available only at https://www.epa.gov/owow/monitoring/volunteer/startmon.pdf (PDF) (4 pages, 837KB).

• The Volunteer Monitor. A national newsletter, published twice yearly, which provides information for the volunteer monitoring movement. Available at https://www.epa.gov/owow/monitoring/volunteer/vm_index.html.

• The Volunteer Monitor's Guide to Quality Assurance Project Plans, EPA 841-B-96-003, September 1996. Discusses EPA's guidance for documenting quality assurance methods, project organization, goals and objectives, with examples and references. Available at https://www.epa.gov/owow/monitoring/volunteer/qappcovr.htm.

• Volunteer Estuary Monitoring: A Methods Manual. Presents information and methods for the volunteer monitoring of estuarine waters. Available only on-line at https://www.epa.gov/owow/estuaries/monitor/.

• Volunteer Lake Monitoring: A Methods Manual. Discusses lake water quality issues and presents methods for the volunteer monitoring of lakes. Available only on-line at https://www.epa.gov/owow/monitoring/lakevm.html.

• Volunteer Stream Monitoring: A Methods Manual. EPA 841-B-97-003, November 1997. Presents methods for volunteer monitoring of streams. Available at https://www.epa.gov/owow/monitoring/volunteer/stream/.

• Volunteer Wetland Monitoring: An Introduction and Resource Guide. EPA 843-B-00-001. Describes a selection of handbooks and manuals that offer detailed information on volunteer wetland monitoring. Available at https://www.epa.gov/owow/wetlands/monitor/volmonitor.html.