He San Juan Bay Estuary (Estuario) invited you to participate, on Saturday, April 18, in its eighteenth Water Quality Daythe largest citizen science event on the island.
Through simple monitoring at more than 200 points throughout Puerto Rico, citizens will have the opportunity to evaluate the water quality of places they choose. This year, it will be held for a two-hour period, from 9:00 to 11:00 a.m.
The stations that will receive citizens are listed in the internet page del Estuary and on its social networks (EstuarioSanJuan). The selected points are located on beaches, lagoons, canals, ravines, ponds and bays. Citizens who participate contribute to the “World Water Quality Monitoring Day”.
“Water Quality Day invites us to reflect on the importance of this vital resource for everyone. In recent months, we have seen how necessary water is to achieve a healthy balance in our lives. Having safe water is essential to living with dignity,” he expressed. Brenda Torres Barretoexecutive director of the Estuary, in a press release.
“The call to action for citizens during this day is to conserve this valuable resource. The dynamics of monitoring water offers the opportunity to commit to taking care of it”he added.
Participants must identify a body of water near them, they will receive a free water quality kit, and then they must provide the information collected, which the Estuary will collect in a database. The tests will offer a general idea of the quality status of the water bodies at the island level.
The weeks leading up to Water Quality Day will serve as an opportunity for curious citizens who want to learn about how to monitor using the water quality kit to do so through training workshops.
Torres Barreto highlighted that this event is possible thanks to “key collaborators” such as Ford-Environmental Donations, Earth Eco Water Challenge, the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources, the Aqueduct and Sewer Authority, the federal Environmental Protection Agency and the Municipality of Bayamón, as well as environmental and community organizations, among others.
There is also more information about registration and training workshops on the Estuary’s website and social networks.