Tualatin River Watershed Council Projects

Forest Grove High School students test water samples during October 2007 activities.

Student Watershed Research Project

The Student Watershed Research Project provides long-term, quality-assured stream monitoring paired with watershed education on the Gales Creek Enhancement Area in collaboration with the Tualatin River Watershed Council.

The Student Watershed Research Project (SWRP) is a volunteer monitoring program implemented in 8th-12th grade classrooms in the Portland/Vancouver metropolitan area. Over the last thirteen years, teachers involved in the SWRP program have collected quality-assured water quality data on over 90 streams. These data have been utilized for watershed assessments, identification and remedy of acute water quality problems, and for following the trends in water quality of the small streams in our local watersheds. As part of a comprehensive educational unit, students involved in the program also analyze in-stream habitat, riparian vegetation and macroinvertebrate populations.

Water sample testing during April 2005 activities.

The SWRP program is implemented as part of the biology curriculum at Forest Grove High School. 30-50 students each year will learn to analyze water quality, benthic macroinvertebrates, in-stream habitat, and riparian function as part of this long-term monitoring effort. Data will be collected, managed, and reported using SWRP’s methodologies and equipment as outlined in Riparian and Aquatic Ecosystem Monitoring: A Manual of Field and Lab Procedures, 4th Edition (2003).

SWRP conducts field sampling in October and April, and Forest Grove Student will present their findings at the Student Watershed Summit in May. When possible, SWRP will also deploy temperature data loggers from June – October.

To learn more about SWRP, see www.swrp.org.

The waters were chilly during the October 2005 activities.	Forest Grove High School students taking stream measurements during April 2005 activities.