HD61 - The Feasibility of Establishing an Adopt-A-Stream Program in the Commonwealth of Virginia

  • Published: 1994
  • Author: Department of Environmental Quality
  • Enabling Authority: House Joint Resolution 703 (Regular Session, 1993)

Executive Summary:
House Joint Resolution 704 of 1993 directs the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to study the feasibility of establishing an adopt-a-stream program in Virginia (Appendix A). In conducting this study, DEQ examined current citizen volunteer stream-monitoring activities in Virginia, governmental programs for litter control and stream monitoring in Virginia, and stream-monitoring and stewardship programs in other states. The study considered the advantages and disadvantages of state coordination of citizen volunteer stream activities through an adopt-a-stream program in Virginia.

More than thirty states operate "adopt-a-stream" type programs. These programs address a wide array of volunteer activities related to stream/river/lake stewardship, including litter and debris removal, water quality monitoring, education and others. In many states, for instance Ohio and New York, the programs were established to address a single activity such as stream cleanup and were then expanded as citizens became interested in broader issues of stream protection. Some states, including Maryland and North Carolina, have expanded their programs into activities such as stream restoration, wildlife surveys and nonpoint source pollution control. Most programs are administered by a state coordinator. All programs provide a clearinghouse for water resource information and coordination of citizen activities.

These programs bring benefits to their respective states due to public/private partnerships and the time invested by volunteers. Program coordinators in other states cited the following benefits of stream-stewardship programs: improved quality of stream monitoring; better coordination between state agencies and citizens; improved water resource planning; increased citizen education and interest in water quality; and better public relations for state agencies.

A representative of Kentucky Water Watch stated that the main benefit of their program is public education and participation in water resource issues. The Alabama program allows the state agency to educate as well as regulate. The Missouri Stream Team Program, which has enlisted over twenty thousand citizen volunteers in four years, promotes citizen education, stewardship and advocacy as the main benefits of their program. A representative of the Maryland Save Our Streams program views the building of state-local-citizen partnerships as the primary program benefit.

The budgets of these programs range between $35,000 and $300,000. In many cases, for instance Texas, the cost to the state (between $30,000 and $45,000, including travel) is for a program coordinator who is able to generate additional funding for the program through federal grants (e.g., Environmental Protection Agency - Clean Water Act, Sections 319 and 604(b)).

The program coordinators from other states provided lessons from their experience. The North Carolina coordinator recommended that the program be housed in the same agency which administers state water quality programs so that staff of these programs can oversee, and have confidence in, the methods and quality of volunteer stream monitoring. The Ohio coordinator recommended that the program be designed to work closely with private conservation organizations that conduct similar programs so that this program can be efficiently administered and grants and gifts can be brought in from numerous sources. The majority of coordinators recommended that the state program should not disrupt the existing network of private conservation organizations and citizen volunteers. Rather, a program should recognize and build upon these various networks and activities.

Citizen stream and river stewardship associations have existed in Virginia for many years. These local citizen associations range from waterway cleanup groups that are formed on an ad hoc basis to permanent river basin groups that are involved in numerous activities related to stream and river stewardship. These activities may include monitoring stream water quality, reporting findings, conducting stream cleanups, improving the conditions of stream, and providing education and advocacy for stream protection.

State agencies have been involved in coordinating and funding a number of these activities. DEQ has channeled federal funds to local stream-monitoring groups. The Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) has also channeled federal funds for stream monitoring and has assisted local Scenic River Advisory Boards under the Scenic Rivers Program. DEQ has supported numerous coastal and Chesapeake Bay programs including Chesapeake Bay River Basin Committees. Both DEQ and the Department of Game and Inand Fisheries (DGIF) have active environmental education programs which address water-resource protection through local action. Using the Litter Control Tax, DEQ funds waterway cleanups and signs and supplies for the Adopt-A-Spot program.

Stream monitoring is widely conducted by volunteers in Virginia. Two private organizations, the Izaak Walton League (IWL) and the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay (ACB), have organized local groups of volunteers that conduct biological and chemical stream monitoring in Virginia. Under the IWL Save Our Streams program, 150 biological stream monitoring stations are tested quarterly, and under ACB, 91 chemical stream monitoring stations are tested weekly.

This monitoring is sophisticated and well-coordinated, compared to many other states due to the partnerships that have developed between state agencies and ACB and IWL and due to the high degree of quality control that has been developed. Monitoring protocols, continued training, and quality control checks have led to a high level of confidence on the part of DEQ staff in the water quality data produced by citizen volunteers. Thus, data from both programs are used for Water Quality Assessment reporting under Section 305(b) of the Clean Water Act.

The development of an adopt-a-stream program in Virginia will provide assistance, coordination and guidance to citizen volunteers in the cleanup, monitoring and protection of Virginia streams. Similar programs in other states perform valuable services for citizens and support state environmental programs.

Through the Adopt-A-Spot Program, administered within the Litter Prevention and Recycling Program of DEQ, the state has a ready-made mechanism that can be broadened to include streams as areas that may be adopted by citizen groups. DEQ Adopt-A-Spot staff have several years of experience in developing and operating a stewardship/adoption program and in coordinating a statewide network of interested citizen groups and local litter control organizations. In addition, since this program is housed in DEQ, it is effectively situated to work with water quality monitoring staff to ensure continued quality control of citizen monitoring efforts.

The Department of Environmental Quality is ready and able to operate an adopt-a-stream program. However, to do so will require a full-time coordinator position to assume responsibility for program implementation. This would include activities such as citizen education and volunteer training, assisting groups to conduct stream cleanup activities, coordinating with other state agencies, and procuring grant funding to support other appropriate citizen volunteer activities. The agency will need one new non-general fund position to perform these duties. The funds for a full-time program coordinator can be provided by DEQ through existing non-general fund Litter Tax monies.