How to Participate in AWQA
You can participate by purchasing kits ($15 + shipping) or coming up with your own way to test water. Keep in mind that the kits can be reused from year to year and the tablets don’t expire for about 2 years.
We have set up PayPal links to make it easy to purchase kits or replacement tablets (usually a classroom uses about 3 kits). All of the same resources are available on our website to incorporate a kit into a lesson. Follow this link to get your kit and be a part of a province wide citizen science project!
You can upload your AWQA kit results here!
Feel free to contact us if you have any other questions!
Let’s Make a Difference
The activities that we do in our watersheds can have tremendous impacts on the health of our waterbodies. From the oil, salt and fertilizer that are washed down our streets to the removal of shoreline vegetation, these can all affect water quality. While we can’t eliminate all sources of water contaminants and disturbances, we can take steps to reduce our impacts.
There are many things that we can do to improve water quality and the health of our watersheds. Here are some suggestions.
In our homes:
Pharmaceutical Drugs: Don’t flush your leftovers! Pharmaceutical drugs that are flushed down the toilet or thrown in the garbage can enter the water system. Take all unused, or “dead” drugs back to your local pharmacy for proper disposal.
Household Products: Avoid hazardous household products that can be harmful to our waterways. Instead, try using “environmentally friendly” products, which can be found by looking for the Environmental Choice Logo. Common ingredients like baking soda, vinegar and dish soap also provide an easy and inexpensive cleaning alternative. As a consumer, you can make informed choices.
Household Waste: Don’t throw waste down the drain or toilet. What goes down our drains goes into our rivers and lakes. Dispose of household items properly: use up all chemical products or dispose of leftovers at your local recycling or disposal facility, and put solid waste into the wastebasket.
In our yards:
Pesticides: Even small applications of chemicals in yards and gardens can eventually find their way to shared water resources. Try using alternative forms of pest control, such as hand pulling weeds, companion planting, and snipping or discarding infected plant leaves.
Fertilizers: Excessive nutrients can impact our waterways by causing increased aquatic plant and bacteria growth. As they die and decompose, oxygen is consumed by bacteria and oxygen levels in the water decrease. Try to use native plants and other natural sources to adjust the nutrient levels in your lawn/garden. If you must use fertilizers, apply only what your plants need.
Street Watch: Most of the water that runs off streets and through our storm drains is not treated at the sewage treatment plant before entering our waterways. This means that anything (oil, soap, salt, pet waste) that is on our streets makes its way into our water system. Ensure that only clean rainwater makes it into the storm drain near your house.
In our communities:
- Participate in AWQA activities.
- Join your local watershed stewardship group: They are always in need of more volunteers and different talents.
- Read up on environmental issues.
- Inform your friends and family.
- Be an active citizen: participate in public hearings, sit on an advisory committee, support federal, provincial and municipal action on water issues – take time to participate in these opportunities!
For more ideas on how we can help improve the water quality in our watersheds, check out these websites: