Have you ever wondered why the ponds in Milton are choked with aquatic weeds in summer or if the fish in the Broadkill River, ponds or tributary streams are safe to eat?   Would you like to know how to help improve the health of the Broadkill River and its ponds and streams?

The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) is seeking volunteers interested in these questions to conduct an assessment of the Broadkill River Watershed.  DNREC is teaming up with Duffield Associates, the Broadkill River Monitoring Program and the Broadkill Tributary Action Team on the project to organize teams of local volunteers to collect basic stream quality/habitat data.  Due to the size of the watershed, teams are needed to examine the visual quality of these streams.

The Broadkill Watershed Stream Assessment will begin with volunteer training from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. followed by the assessment on Saturday, Oct. 13, ending mid-afternoon.  The training will be held at the University of Delaware College of Marine and Earth Studies, 700 Pilottown Road in Lewes.  Refreshments will be provided.  The rain date for this event is Oct. 20.

The Broadkill River Watershed is the major body of water that runs through the heart of Milton, and includes parts of Lewes and Georgetown, and Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge.   In order to help clean this water system, we need to take a closer look into its problems.  To improve water quality in the Broadkill River, an assessment of the stream as well as the developed portions of the watershed is being conducted this autumn.

Volunteers will be looking for aquatic life such as insects and fish, stability of stream banks and their ability handle storm events.  The teams will also inspect areas where streams maybe clogged with soil or debris.  Based on the observations and data gathered by volunteers, Duffield staff will then return to the Broadkill to identify potential solutions to address the problems discovered. 

To be a volunteer, all you need is appropriate walking shoes and the ability to hike/walk at length, over the course of a few hours.  The data collected at the stream assessments will be similar to the information gathered by the Broadkill River Monitoring Program and other volunteer water quality monitoring programs.

If you are looking for an opportunity to spend some time outdoors, learn more about the watershed in which you live, work or play, please consider spending a Saturday walking a few tributaries and streams of the Broadkill River.  No technical skills are required – volunteers from all walks of life are welcome, including community and high school service organizations, 4-H members, garden clubs, retirees, ROTC, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and all others with a common interest in the environment and preserving the Broadkill Watershed.

If you are interested in learning more about the stream assessment, would like to spend a day hiking the Broadkill streams, or would enjoy doing something “green” for the local environment, please contact the University of Delaware Citizen Monitoring Program to reserve a spot for you and/or your team at 302-645-4234 between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. or register online at http://citizen-monitoring.udel.edu . Please respond by Wednesday, Oct. 10.