To make volunteering opportunities easier to access and sign up to, we have set up a new online platform called Better Impact. Better Impact is a simple system that allows people to view and sign up for voluntary sessions and has some extra perks like logging your hours, working towards achievement badges, and connecting with people in your local community. We’ll be using Better Impact for all of our volunteering activities going forward to please register by following the link below. If you need any additional support with online systems and may not have regular access to a computer or smartphone so please contact keir@arrt.org.uk.
Become a River Guardian
We're supplying water quality testing kits (measuring Phosphates, Turbidity, Total Dissolved Solids and Nitrates) and corresponding training to volunteers to create a continuous water quality testing cooperative. Increasing monitoring across our catchment (spatially and temporally), which currently has zero waterbodies achieving the acceptable standard met by the Water Framework Directive (WFD). We aim to cover the entire catchment and collaborate with groups and orgs who currently or previously collected water quality and river health data. The 'WSRT Water Quality Survey' looks at river characteristics, ecosystems, wildlife, and pollution alongside chemical readings, to provide a holistic view of river health at every site.
Find out more
Outfall safari
Our Outfall Safari volunteers are trained to systematically survey the entire length of a river to identify and locate misconnected outfalls that are polluting our streams.
Riverfly monitoring
Riverfly monitoring is a national citizen science project that trains volunteers to monitor Riverflies (aquatic invertebrates) as an indication of water quality. Volunteers receive training with us and then join a team of like-minded individuals to sample a local spot on the river each month. The data collected from the scheme helps us understand the health of our rivers, and highlights when there may be a more serious problem to address.
Balsam bashing
We are working to reduce invasive species throughout out catchment. Throughout Spring and Summer, you can join us in bashing Himalayan Balsam.