Trout Unlimited's Coldwater Conservation Corps: Citizen science for monitoring unconventional shale gas development impacts to water quality in Central Appalachian streams

Trout Unlimited's Coldwater Conservation Corps trains and organizes volunteers for stream surveillance of water quality impacts from ongoing unconventional shale gas development in the Central Appalachian region of... [ view full abstract ]

Trout Unlimited's Coldwater Conservation Corps trains and organizes volunteers for stream surveillance of water quality impacts from ongoing unconventional shale gas development in the Central Appalachian region of Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Virginia. Unconventional shale gas wells are created using hydraulic fracturing drilling methods, or fracking, and have been associated with stream sedimentation during construction, flow impairments associated with water use, and water quality issues related to the disposal and transportation of fracking chemicals and effluents. The "angler scientists" of the Coldwater Conservation Corps conduct routine water quality monitoring by taking water samples, measuring stream flow, and conducting visual assessments before, during, and after shale gas development in watersheds. We discuss the training and procedures of the program, the science and web-mapping tools Trout Unlimited staff developed to guide monitoring to the most vulnerable watersheds, the challenges inherent in detecting infrequent events and monitoring remote locations, and the process of integrating data-logging equipment for continuous measurements into the program.