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Work Worthy of a Spotlight
Volunteer Stream Monitoring - 2023 Fall Sampling Event is October 1!
Stream monitoring is one of the most rewarding and fun community science projects TRC takes part in each year in partnership with VanBuren Conservation District.
There is nothing like getting into the water and/or picking out the aquatic insects captured to really learn about our waterways. We have been collecting data since 2015 and follow the protocols developed by MiCorps which are used across the state to monitor the health of our waterways. Check out the VBCD Story Map to learn more.
Join us as we play in our waterways while adding community science data that is used to measure our rivers health. VBCD 2023 Sign Up Link
Volunteer Stream Monitoring - MiCorps (tworiverscoalition.org)
E.Coli Monitoring: 2023 Update
The Black River Watershed (BRW) drains 287 square miles of Van Buren and Allegan counties before emptying into Lake Michigan at South Haven. The project goals were to determine the source of consistently high levels of E. coli in the BRW measured by Two Rivers Coalition (TRC) since 2017 and determine whether the source was primarily human, cow, or a combination.
The 2022 data was still unconclusive but points to an issue with E.coli in our watersheds. A Fact Sheet summarizing the findings was completed.
Learn more and support the statewide septic code at: E.coli Monitoring in the Black and Paw Paw River Watersheds (tworiverscoalition.org)
Ox Creek Watershed Project:
Check out the great work being done by SWMPC, Sarett and others near Benton Harbor to restore a degraded urban creek. Ox Creek is a sub watershed of the Paw Paw River that is at the confluence of the Paw Paw River and St. Joe River. Ox Creek empties into the Paw Paw River just upstream of the confluence of the Paw Paw and St Joe Rivers.
SWMPC | Ox Creek Watershed Project
Ox Creek Watershed (sustainoxcreek.org)
Ox Creek Sub Watershed (tworiverscoalition.org)
TRC's Partnership with Prothonotary Warblers enters into its 3rd year. We are still working to figure out how to what we need to do to get the warblers to accept our nest boxes. We are planning for a June 24th paddle trip to see the nesting warblers and enjoy some time on the water. This year we are also ask for volunteers to use EBird and record sightings of the prothonotary warblers in our watersheds.
This data will help us understand their distribution in our watersheds and help indicate where the best floodplain forest exists. Check out our web page for more information.
Prothonotary Warbler Partnership (tworiverscoalition.org)
Two Rivers Coalition shared details of our partnership with the Audubon Society of Kalamazoo at their April 2023 meeting which can be viewed here: ASK Presentation
We also presented at the MLSA Annual Meeting on May 5th.