RICHMOND — The James River Association announced it has officially kicked off another James River Watch season, helping river users assess river conditions as they make plans to enjoy the water between Memorial Day and Labor Day.
JRA said nearly 100 citizen-science volunteers will support it by taking water quality samples at 38 monitoring stations across the watershed this season. The samples will be used to populate the map with key data points such as bacteria levels, turbidity, water and air temperature, and conductivity.
Additional data on the map, including river flow, are provided by the U.S. Geological Survey, it added.
JRA said this year’s James River Watch map has moved to an updated ArcGIS platform that makes it easier for users to find river conditions throughout the watershed, with bacteria data posted to the map every Friday evening at jamesriverwatch.org.
“We are thrilled to kick off our twelfth season of James River Watch on a new and improved platform,” said Bill Street, CEO of JRA. “Last year, our data showed that across the watershed, the James was safe for recreating 85% of the time. This was an improvement from the previous two years and reiterates that the James is a wonderful resource for watershed communities to enjoy, but River users need to Know Before You Go.”
The 85% result from 2024 was an improvement from 2023’s 82% and 2022’s 80%.
While the data shows overall promising trends, JRA cautions river conditions can change rapidly, especially after intense rainfall or Combined Sewer Overflow events, which can occur in Lynchburg and Richmond, and it encourages the public to check the map each Friday evening when results are posted to help stay informed of current events.
JRA notes community members can take a role in reducing pollution in the river by becoming a River Hero Home and pledging to adopt easy, river-friendly behaviors at home. JRA’s Action Network provides a platform for river advocates to help secure clean water funding, and river rats can become an official RiverRat, JRA’s first line of defense for patrolling potential pollution sources.
The James River Watch program is partially funded by the Department of Environmental Quality Citizen Water Quality Monitoring Grant Program and the Chesapeake Bay Restoration Fund.
To learn more about James River Watch, visit jamesriverwatch.org. Explore the results of the 2024 James River Watch season here.
