Minnesota Pollution Control Agency

Contacts: Pam Anderson, (651) 296-8544 Laurie Sovell, (651) 296-7187 TTY: (800) 657-3864 Note to editors, news directors: A list of streams for which volunteer monitors are being sought follows the body of this release. It is alphabetized by county to make it easier to identify streams in your area. ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Do you enjoy the outdoors? Live on or near a river or stream? If so, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's (MPCA) Citizen Stream-Monitoring Program (CSMP) is looking for you. The MPCA is recruiting volunteers to monitor area streams once a week during the spring and summer months. Monitoring is a simple and relatively quick process, completed weekly at a designated spot on the stream. At the site, volunteers make note of the appearance and recreational suitability of the water and weather conditions. Then they measure the clarity of the water with a transparency tube. The whole process at the site takes about 15 minutes. Volunteers also track daily rainfall at their homes using a rain gauge. A transparency tube is a hollow, two-foot-long, clear plastic cylinder with a stopper and release valve on one end. On the inside of the stopper is a black-and-white symbol. To measure clarity, the tube is filled with water collected from the stream or river being monitored. While looking down into the tube, the user releases water through the valve until the symbol is visible. The depth of the water when the symbol becomes visible is the transparency measurement. The CSMP currently has 411 volunteers monitoring more than 650 sites. With over 92,000 miles of streams in Minnesota, the agency needs volunteers to help monitor across the state. By monitoring the water quality of streams, CSMP volunteers help protect the quality of their favorite streams and contribute greatly to the MPCA's understanding of overall water quality in Minnesota. If you would like to become a volunteer monitor on these or any other streams, call the MPCA at (651) 296-8544 or toll-free at (800) 657-3864 (only from outside the Twin Cities metro area). Or check the Web at hhref="/water/csmp.html. Streams, by County, for Which Volunteer Monitors Are Being Sought
· Anoka: Cedar Creek, Coon River, and Rum River
· Benton: Little Rock Creek, Mayhew Creek, and West Branch Rum River
· Brown: Cottonwood River upstream of New Ulm, Little Cottonwood Creek, Morgan Creek, and Spring Creek
· Carver: Carver Creek and Silver Creek
· Chippewa: Chippewa River, Dry Weather Creek, and Hawk Creek
· Clay: Buffalo River and South Branch Wild Rice River
· Cottonwood: Des Moines River downstream of Heron Lake Outlet, Dry Creek, Highwater Creek, Little Cottonwood Creek, and Watonwan River
· Dakota: Pine Creek and Vermillion River
· Faribault: Center Creek, Coon Creek, East Branch Blue Earth River upstream of Blue Earth, Maple River, Rice Creek, and South Creek
· Fillmore: Bear Creek, Deer Creek, Middle Branch Root River, Root River downstream of Lanesboro, and Trout Run
· Freeborn: Le Sueur River, Shell Rock River, Turtle Creek, and Woodbury Creek
· Goodhue: Hay Creek and North Fork Zumbro River upstream of Wanamingo
· Grant: Fivemile Creek and Mustinka River
· Houston: Beaver Creek, Money Creek, Pine Creek, Riceford Creek, Root River, and Winnebago Creek
· Isanti: Rum River and Stanchfield Creek
· Kanabec: Groundhouse River, Mud Creek, and Snake River
· Kandiyohi: Chetomba Creek
· Lac Qui Parle: Florida Creek, Minnesota River, South Fork Yellow Bank River, and West Branch Lac Qui Parle River
· Lincoln: Lac Qui Parle River and Yellow Medicine River
· Lyon: Cottonwood River, Meadow Creek, Redwood River, and Threemile Creek
· Mahnomen: Marsh River, White Earth River, and Wild Rice River
· Martin: Badger Creek, Center Creek, East Branch Des Moines River, and Elm Creek upstream of MN-15
· McLeod: Bear Creek and Otter Creek
· Meeker: North Fork Crow River, South Fork Crow River, and Washington Creek Mille Lacs: Rum River and West Branch Rum River
· Morrison: Crow Wing River, Elk River, Little Elk River, Platte River, Skunk River, and Swan River
· Mower: Bear Creek, Cedar River, Deer Creek, and Rose Creek
· Murray: Beaver Creek, Chanarambie Creek, and Lime Creek
· Nicollet: Eightmile Creek, Little Rock River, and Minnesota River upstream of New Ulm
· Nobles: Jack Creek, Kanaranzi Creek, Little Rock River, and Okabena Creek
· Norman: Marsh River, Red River, and Wild Rice River
· Otter Tail: Leaf River, Otter Tail River, Red Eye River, and Wing River
· Pennington: Red Lake River
· Pipestone: Flandreau Creek, Rock River, and Willow Creek
· Pope: East Branch Chippewa River
· Redwood: Cottonwood River, Ramsey Creek, Redwood River, and Sleepy Eye Creek
· Renville: Buffalo Creek and Little Rock Creek
· Rock: Beaver Creek, Champepadan Creek, Rock River downstream of Elk Creek, and Rock River upstream of Champepadan Creek
· Stearns: Getchell Creek, North Fork Crow River, and Spunk Creek
· Steele: Maple Creek, Straight River, and Turtle Creek
· Stevens: Mud Creek, Pomme de Terre River, and Twelvemile Creek
· Swift: Chippewa River and Mud Creek
· Todd: Eagle Creek, Long Prairie River, Morgan Creek, Partridge River, Sauk River, Turtle Creek, and Wing River
· Traverse: Bois de Sioux River, Fivemile Creek, and Mustinka River downstream of West Branch Mustinka River
· Wabasha: Zumbro River downstream of Millville
· Waseca: Bull Run Creek, Le Sueur River downstream of Wilton, and Little Cobb River
· Wilkin: Bois de Sioux River, Otter Tail River, Rabbit River, Red River, and Whiskey Creek
· Yellow Medicine: Lac Qui Parle River, Spring Creek, Stony Run Creek, and Yellow Medicine River