Beyond the Manuscript: Public Participation in Air Sampling and Water Quality Test Kit Development to Enable Citizen Science

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 153-159
Author(s):  
Erin Haynes ◽  
Rusty Roberts ◽  
Suzanne Dolwick-Grieb
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Public Participation ◽  
Citizen Science ◽  
Air Sampling ◽  
Quality Test ◽  
Test Kit

scholarly journals Public Participation in Air Sampling and Water Quality Test Kit Development to Enable Citizen Science

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 141-151
Author(s):  
Erin N. Haynes ◽  
Timothy J. Hilbert ◽  
Rusty Roberts ◽  
John Quirolgico ◽  
Rachael Shepler ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Public Participation ◽  
Citizen Science ◽  
Air Sampling ◽  
Quality Test ◽  
Test Kit

Public Participation in Air Sampling and Water Quality Test Kit Development to Enable Citizen Science

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 123-124
Author(s):  
Erin N. Haynes ◽  
Timothy J. Hilbert ◽  
Rusty Roberts ◽  
John Quirolgico ◽  
Rachael Shepler ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Public Participation ◽  
Citizen Science ◽  
Air Sampling ◽  
Quality Test ◽  
Test Kit

scholarly journals Locally produced hydrogen sulphide detecting water quality test kits increase household level monitoring in rural Tanzania

2018 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 359-368 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fatuma Matwewe ◽  
Kate Hyland ◽  
Jacqueline Thomas
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Hydrogen Sulphide ◽  
Water Sources ◽  
Water Safety ◽  
National Guidelines ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Quality Test ◽  
Household Level ◽  
Rural Tanzania ◽  
Test Kit

Abstract In developing countries, rural water sources have the highest levels of faecal contamination but are the least monitored. Affordable field-based water quality tests are needed. The presence of faecal indicator bacteria can be determined with hydrogen sulphide (H2S) detecting tests, that are inexpensive and simple to make locally. In rural Tanzania, a non-governmental organisation (NGO) designed, produced and evaluated a new H2S water quality test kit. The H2S test results correlated with log10Escherichia coli densities from conventional water quality tests. The production cost was US$ 1.10 and the test retailed for US$ 1.37. In total, 433 tests were sold through local pharmacies and NGOs. Additionally, 165 WaSH education meetings, reaching 3,408 community members, were conducted with the H2S test demonstrated in over half the meetings. Pre- and post-surveys of 294 meeting participants saw an increased reporting of household level water treatment by 24%. The H2S test was widely accepted, with 94% of those surveyed willing to buy the test in the future. International and national guidelines for drinking water monitoring need to be amended to include locally produced H2S water quality tests. This will enable households to monitor their own water sources and make informed choices about water safety and treatment.

scholarly journals Citizen science based monitoring of microbial water quality at a single household level in a South African local municipality during the COVID19 lockdown

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 116-123
Author(s):  
Roman Tandlich
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Water Quality ◽  
Ambient Temperature ◽  
Citizen Science ◽  
Potable Water ◽  
Microbial Quality ◽  
Microbial Water Quality ◽  
Faecal Contamination ◽  
Test Kit ◽  
Local Municipality

Personal hygiene and access to potable water, which is safe for human consumption, are critical to containing the COVID19 pandemic. Here monitoring results are reported for microbial quality of water samples from the municipal supply in Makana Local Municipality in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. Access of the human population to sufficient volumes of potable water of required (microbial) quality has been a problem in this local municipality. Samples were taken just before and during 30 days of the strictest phase of the nation-wide lockdown, related to COVID19 in South Africa. Aim of this short communication was to perform the water quality testing with limited to no access to laboratory facilities and using the principles of citizen science. The H2S test kit was used as the basis for the microbial testing, while a cell phone app was used for the temperature monitoring. Five H2S test kit were used per sampling at the author’s house and the kits was developed for the microbial water quality assessment in isolated settings such as those for the lockdown. During the study, the ambient temperature ranged from 17 to 29 °C, with decreases below 18 °C occurring on three out of 12 sampling occasions. Thus the results of the H2S test kit might have been slightly influenced by the fluctuations of the ambient temperature. On 8 sampling occasions between 1 and 4 H2S test kits were positive for faecal contamination. Three samples or 25 % were free of faecal contamination. One sample had all five H2S test kits were positive for faecal contamination. Results of statistical testing indicated that potable water in Makana Local Municipality was probably microbially contaminated at the author’s household on an intermittent basis. Ongoing monitoring of microbial drinking water quality is necessary and continuing at the sampled location.

scholarly journals CWDAT—An Open-Source Tool for the Visualization and Analysis of Community-Generated Water Quality Data

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 207
Author(s):  
Annie Gray ◽  
Colin Robertson ◽  
Rob Feick
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Data Quality ◽  
Capacity Building ◽  
Open Source ◽  
Citizen Science ◽  
Water Resource ◽  
Water Quality Monitoring ◽  
Quality Monitoring ◽  
User Engagement ◽  
Community Based

Citizen science initiatives span a wide range of topics, designs, and research needs. Despite this heterogeneity, there are several common barriers to the uptake and sustainability of citizen science projects and the information they generate. One key barrier often cited in the citizen science literature is data quality. Open-source tools for the analysis, visualization, and reporting of citizen science data hold promise for addressing the challenge of data quality, while providing other benefits such as technical capacity-building, increased user engagement, and reinforcing data sovereignty. We developed an operational citizen science tool called the Community Water Data Analysis Tool (CWDAT)—a R/Shiny-based web application designed for community-based water quality monitoring. Surveys and facilitated user-engagement were conducted among stakeholders during the development of CWDAT. Targeted recruitment was used to gather feedback on the initial CWDAT prototype’s interface, features, and potential to support capacity building in the context of community-based water quality monitoring. Fourteen of thirty-two invited individuals (response rate 44%) contributed feedback via a survey or through facilitated interaction with CWDAT, with eight individuals interacting directly with CWDAT. Overall, CWDAT was received favourably. Participants requested updates and modifications such as water quality thresholds and indices that reflected well-known barriers to citizen science initiatives related to data quality assurance and the generation of actionable information. Our findings support calls to engage end-users directly in citizen science tool design and highlight how design can contribute to users’ understanding of data quality. Enhanced citizen participation in water resource stewardship facilitated by tools such as CWDAT may provide greater community engagement and acceptance of water resource management and policy-making.

scholarly journals Citizen Science Tools Reveal Changes in Estuarine Water Quality Following Demolition of Buildings

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 1683
Author(s):  
Nandini Menon ◽  
Grinson George ◽  
Rajamohananpillai Ranith ◽  
Velakandy Sajin ◽  
Shreya Murali ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Dissolved Oxygen ◽  
Citizen Science ◽  
Secchi Depth ◽  
Lake Water Quality ◽  
Demolition Waste ◽  
Water Colour ◽  
Water Quality Variables ◽  
The Impact

Turbidity and water colour are two easily measurable properties used to monitor pollution. Here, we highlight the utility of a low-cost device—3D printed, hand-held Mini Secchi disk (3DMSD) with Forel-Ule (FU) colour scale sticker on its outer casing—in combination with a mobile phone application (‘TurbAqua’) that was provided to laymen for assessing the water quality of a shallow lake region after demolition of four high-rise buildings on the shores of the lake. The demolition of the buildings in January 2020 on the banks of a tropical estuary—Vembanad Lake (a Ramsar site) in southern India—for violation of Indian Coastal Regulation Zone norms created public uproar, owing to the consequences of subsequent air and water pollution. Measurements of Secchi depth and water colour using the 3DMSD along with measurements of other important water quality variables such as temperature, salinity, pH, and dissolved oxygen (DO) using portable instruments were taken for a duration of five weeks after the demolition to assess the changes in water quality. Paired t-test analyses of variations in water quality variables between the second week of demolition and consecutive weeks up to the fifth week showed that there were significant increases in pH, dissolved oxygen, and Secchi depth over time, i.e., the impact of demolition waste on the Vembanad Lake water quality was found to be relatively short-lived, with water clarity, colour, and DO returning to levels typical of that period of year within 4–5 weeks. With increasing duration after demolition, there was a general decrease in the FU colour index to 17 at most stations, but it did not drop to 15 or below, i.e., towards green or blue colour indicating clearer waters, during the sampling period. There was no significant change in salinity from the second week to the fifth week after demolition, suggesting little influence of other factors (e.g., precipitation or changes in tidal currents) on the inferred impact of demolition waste. Comparison with pre-demolition conditions in the previous year (2019) showed that the relative changes in DO, Secchi depth, and pH were very high in 2020, clearly depicting the impact of demolition waste on the water quality of the lake. Match-ups of the turbidity of the water column immediately before and after the demolition using Sentinel 2 data were in good agreement with the in situ data collected. Our study highlights the power of citizen science tools in monitoring lakes and managing water resources and articulates how these activities provide support to Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets on Health (Goal 3), Water quality (Goal 6), and Life under the water (Goal 14).

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