Potential Citizen Science and Community Engagement Projects
• Atlantic Salmon Trust’s Small Stream Characterisation Score
• Clean-ups – removal of rubbish from rivers
• Participation in the annual #WaterBlitz campaign, measuring nitrate and phosphate in your local river
• Measure oxygen and temperature in rivers or lakes
• Install continuous temperature monitors (climate change)
• Install local weather stations and link with river flow gauges as part of a local flood warning system
• Training in Citizen Science Streams Index
• School participation in Streamscapes programme
• Promotion of the ‘See it, Say it’ smartphone app to take photos and include location data reporting pollution incidents
• Biodiversity Ireland smartphone app for species recording
• Drain awareness –e.g. yellow fish project marking surface drains to remind people that what goes down drains can impact aquatic life
• Awareness of urban misconnections –dishwashers, etc.
• Rural septic tanks – maintenance awareness
• Awareness of flushed items that cause problems in wastewater treatment plants –An Taisce – Think Before You Flush campaign
• Establishment of river corridor greenways
• Awareness of the impact of fats, oils & greases (FOG) and fatbergs in sewers
• Erection of biodiversity posters – birds, fish, plants, mammals – real and virtual
• Water/Biodiversity add-ons for Tidy Towns – Special Award
• Identification of barriers to fish migration and blockages in small streams – amber package
• Items such as “fidget spinners” or yo-yos with awareness message targeted at children
• Green Schools – water conservation, and biodiversity themes
• Water-themed floats in Patrick’s Day Parades
• Video/photographic project to show seasons over 365 days (Glendalough example)
• The Irish Wetland Bird Survey (I-WeBS)
• Dragon Fly / Damsel Fly Training & Recording
• Water conservation – water butts – bricks in cisterns, metering, grey water for garden, control of leakages
• Installation of a Weather Station with internet connections – awareness of how rainfall relates to river flows and flooding
• Ditto for water temperature/conductivity recording – temperatures and links to climate change awareness – ORCCA
• Biodiversity App – recording of dippers, kingfishers, herons, otters, mink, etc.
• Invasive species – training to do stem injection of Japanese Knotweed.
• Mapping, visiting, characterisation of Priority Action Areas in Monaghan under WFD
• Dodder Gathering style Bioblitz competition to identify the greatest variety of trees, birds, macroinvertebrates and threats to Biodiversity
• Silt monitoring – kick and photograph in low flows
• Ripple – Ballinderry style round tables
• Engage with PPN representatives on LA SPCs
• Riparian tree planting (with guidance)
• Bat Walks – acoustic detectors at dawn and dusk – do bats eat aquatic insects?
• Fish scale sampling
• In-stream works – gravel cleaning, bank stabilisation, soft engineering (with IFI guidance)
• Drone surveys
• Re-wetting local bogs as a means of flood control and carbon sequestration
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