Cleveland Water Alliance (CWA), in partnership with the Northern Chautauqua Community Foundation (NCCF) and a coalition of shoreline communities around Lake Erie, is launching a three-year project that will empower residents with low-cost technology to monitor water quality and contribute to the health of their watersheds.
The Smart Citizen Science Initiative will be introduced to the public on Wednesday, July 22, with a webinar led by CWA that will outline how community members and organizational partners can get engaged in 2021. Participants can register at clevelandwateralliance.org/webinar.
Bringing together partners from Ohio, Michigan, and New York, this Initiative will harness the work of volunteer monitoring programs across the Lake Erie Basin to build a regional movement that increases the quality of community water data and links it to research and policy.
The first wave of data collection devices, called spectrometers, will be accessible and simple to use, empowering people of all ages, from kids to adults, to participate in learning about and monitoring our valuable freshwater resource. The idea for these spectrometers came from a winning team from the University of Akron, who participated in CWA's biannual Erie Hack competition in 2017.
These devices are currently being used by volunteer monitoring programs in seven Lake Erie communities as part of a 2020 "pilot" and the program is expected to expand participation in 2021. Michael Jabot, PhD. of SUNY Fredonia, and Dave McCoy, Watershed Coordinator at Chautauqua County are leading efforts in northern Chautauqua County.
The Smart Citizen Science Initiative will position Lake Erie and its communities as a trailblazer in community-led solutions for water monitoring through the use of new technology, data and scaled up grassroots participation that is trusted and transparent. Initially, this effort will focus on nutrient loading and harmful algae to add more might to the fight against harmful algal blooms that can make our drinking water undrinkable.
"This project is a terrific opportunity to get the wider community involved in what we focus on every day: applying technology to water to drive economic development and spark innovation around water," said Cleveland Water Alliance president and executive director Bryan Stubbs.
The Smart Citizen Science Initiative stems from an effort led by the Council of Michigan Foundations, the Ralph C Wilson Jr. Foundation, and the Great Lakes Protection Fund to advance collaborative projects that help secure a sustainable water future for the region. In addition to these key funders, a broad coalition of sponsors support the project including:
· The Cleveland Foundation
· Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan
· Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo
· Greater Toledo Community Foundation
· Community Foundation of Lorain County
· Northern Chautauqua Community Foundation
· Erie County Community Foundation
· Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District
· AT&T
These organizations are joined by key implementation partners including Jabot and McCoy in rolling out the Initiative.
Diane Hannum, NCCF Executive Director, stated, "Our Board of Directors recognizes that our impact in the community is significantly more when we collaborate with like-minded organizations and individuals. We are grateful for the Cleveland Water Alliance's leadership and coordination and for the time, energy, and expertise that Michael Jabot and Dave McCoy are committing to the project locally."
Nutrient loading and harmful algal blooms threaten our communities, and the expected negative economic impact over the next 20 years within the Lake Erie Basin is estimated to cost our economy $1.3 billion, according to a 2015 report to the International Joint Commission. Lack of sufficient amounts of nutrient data makes it difficult to benchmark current levels and assess return on investment for individual nutrient mitigation projects.
The Smart Citizen Science Initiative aims to close this data gap. The $30 spectrometers distributed through this program can measure phosphates and nitrates that can cause harmful algal blooms in Lake Erie. School-age children, volunteer groups, and others can help identify sources of pollution by taking readings with the spectrometer and an iPhone app, then rapidly access their data online using the Initiative's online platform available at Water Reporter.org.
Jabot shared "I am pleased to be a part of the Smart Citizen Science Initiative. As an educator, I value the opportunity to bring science to those who consider themselves "nonscientists", particularly our youth. The role that our Citizen Scientists can play in helping us protect Lake Erie is immeasurable. We simply couldn't do it without them.
Beyond the technical components, however, participating partners are working to innovate at an organizational level. By increasing coordination between local programs, engaging marginalized communities, and collectively identifying future opportunities, this collaborative is charting a bold new path for the future of Lake Erie's water resources.
Organizers are hoping to team up with additional volunteer programs, researchers, and schools to encourage and support student and adult participation in the project. For information on how to participate in the project, contact Max Herzog at mherzog@clewa.org or 216.282.3400.
"Before we can solve Lake Erie's problems, such as harmful algal blooms," CWA's Stubbs said, "we need the data to give us a starting point and be able to continuously collect reliable, real-time information using affordable, accessible technology."
Innovation like this can contribute to the growth of Lake Erie's water-related industry. It is one of the fastest-growing segments of the economy in Cuyahoga County, according to a recent report by the Ohio Aerospace Institute. Nearly 1,000 new water cluster jobs (929) were created in Cuyahoga County from 2013-2016, according to the report. This growth was significantly more than in aerospace, advanced manufacturing, energy, and biohealth.
"There are so many great ideas and products coming to market to help keep our Great Lakes safe, healthy, and accessible," Stubbs said. "We have a lot more to do, but projects like this are a critical part of the effort."
About Cleveland Water Alliance: Established in 2014, CWA is a non-profit organization that seeks to better utilize the economic and job-creating potential of Lake Erie while also urging greater care of this valuable, natural asset. We are among the region's leaders working to bring together water providers, business and political leaders, researchers and environmental organizations to establish Lake Erie as a nationally recognized center for water innovation.
About NCCF: The NCCF, incorporated in 1986, is a tax-exempt charitable organization. Since its establishment, the NCCF has distributed more than $16 million in the community through its various grant programs. It is an organization inherently committed to enriching the northern Chautauqua community and encouraging local philanthropy. For more information on the NCCF, visit www.nccfoundation.org or call 716-366-4892.