Since 1991, a dedicated corps of Citizen Monitoring volunteers have been taking water samples on a regular basis throughout Delaware’s coastal watershed to measure a broad range of important water quality characteristics. The data they gather provides scientists and resource managers with a clearer picture of the estuary’s health and the trend information needed to understand and manage the ecosystem. The partners in this program are the University of Delaware Sea Grant Program, the College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment, DNREC, the Center for the Inland Bays, and others.
The Citizen Monitoring program helps Delaware beaches achieve the highest national ratings;http://www.udel.edu/udaily/
More information about monitoring in the inland bays can be found at http://citizen-monitoring.