Find out how clean the pee, ditch or stream is in your area! The water quality of small waters is hardly monitored. And this while its quality is very important for biodiversity.

While water boards closely monitor the water quality of large waters — such as rivers and lakes — the small waters are hardly sampled. Not much is known yet about how clean (or dirty) the streams, ponds, puddles, ditches and canals are in your immediate vicinity.

A missed opportunity, says Susanne Hagen, biotechnologist at Stichting Natuur & Milieu. “The smaller waters form the capillaries system of the Netherlands and often end up in the larger waters, such as rivers.” Although the water quality of these rivers is well monitored, it is precisely by monitoring the water quality of small waters that we can better identify where sources of pollution are located. “Suppose you have two ditches that hatch into a big river. One ditch is very clean. And the other ditch is very dirty. Once in the big river, the water from the dirty stream is diluted enormously and there is no way to determine where the pollution comes from.” By monitoring the water quality of individual small waters, researchers and water boards can put their finger on the sore spot and encourage ministries to tackle source pollution.

Anyone who wants to participate should now seize his chance. “There are about 4000 measurement kits available. And they go hard,” says Hagen. Do you want to receive one at home? Then sign up here!


Citizen scientists wanted: catch water samples