Press Release

The Harbor Watch team is proud to announce the return of the Annual Water Quality Symposium on Thursday, December 1, at Earthplace from 6:30-7pm. Throughout the fall season, 11 high school students from Fairfield, Norwalk, New Canaan, Stamford, Stratford, Weston and Westport participated in the River Research Program, focused on studying the water quality in Stony Brook (starting south of the Merritt Parkway in Norwalk to its discharge into Saugatuck River in Westport). These students will present their findings in a conference-style poster session to community members, municipal partners and local teachers.

During this six-week program, the students learned about important local water quality issues and what Harbor Watch is doing to help track down and mitigate sources of sewage pollution in natural waterways. They were also taught methods for bacteria and nutrient testing in water and were exposed to useful field and laboratory skills, data analysis, and presentation skills.

Presentation topics will include a seasonal comparison of bacteria concentrations in Stony Brook, a multiple year comparison of bacteria data of Stony Brook, and macro-invertebrate composition analysis in Stony Brook.

Nikki Spiller, Director of Harbor Watch says, “We believe that all our education programs are vital in providing students in our community with hands-on educational experiences to solve real-world problems. While in our programs, they are given the opportunity to explore a possible career path, develop a better understanding how their actions can impact the health of these rivers and Long Island Sound and gain critical thinking and analysis skills that can be used beyond the sciences.”