Water Quality Monitoring Program
Our goal is to develop better baseline data of existing water quality and apply data in our ongoing efforts to combat the problem of storm water runoff.
As of 2025, approximately 30 DRCR volunteer monitors test Dog River conditions monthly by collecting water chemistry and/or bacteriological data at one or more sites within the Dog River Watershed.
When we first revived our water monitoring efforts in 2015, our goal was to answer the following questions:
- Is it safe to swim?
- Is water quality getting better or worse?
- How will sea level rise affect Dog River?
- What’s going on with turbidity/hardness?
Our water quality chair, Dr. Mimi Fearn, has since recorded a recent series of presentations giving an update to these questions and what the data now shows as trending from 2020-2025 data collected.
These videos are linked below and we appreciate you tuning in:
The data our monitors collect is publicly available on the Alabama Water Watch (AWW) website and can be used to alert state and local agencies to water quality issues.
We are always looking for new monitors! To get involved, email [email protected]
Thank you to Dr Fearn, and our entire network of water quality monitors, for your dedication to the betterment of Dog River water quality. Also thank you to Mobile Bay National Estuary Program (MBNEP) for your support and for funding our monitoring supplies.