Our work is carried out though these major programs (Click on titles to go to project pages)
Haw River Watch
Since 1995 our citizen stream-monitoring project has given us direct information on the condition of the river and its tributaries. We have trained and provided equipment to over 200 volunteers to assess water quality through basic testing and macro-invertebrate counts. In addition, volunteers act as watchdogs on their part of the river throughout the year, alerting us to pollution threats and providing vital information on the health of streams. These volunteers form the backbone of our annual river clean up as well, the “Clean-Up-A-Thon”.
Haw River Learning Celebration
Since 1990, this solar-powered, traveling environmental education program has reached over 40,000 fourth graders from six counties the river connects. The three week Learning Celebration features a unique curriculum of outdoor activities where students explore the river ecosystem through interdisciplinary and hands-on activities. Science, art, music, giant puppets and the wildlife of the river combine to make memorable experiences that nurture environmental stewardship. More than 1000 volunteers from all walks of life have come together to make the Learning Celebration happen over the past 31 years.
Haw River Land Conservation
We are increasingly concerned that the very fast growth underway in the Haw River watershed urban areas, and its overflow of sprawl development, is encroaching on wetlands, pristine creeks and hardwood forests in the riparian areas at an alarming rate. We work with state and federal agencies and land conservation groups to identify and preserve fragile ecosystems and larger intact pieces of land. We have received grants and funding to protect the headwater springs of the Haw River in Forsyth County and partnered to establish the Lower Haw River State Natural Area in Chatham County.
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Clean-Up-A-Thon
Each March we organize a river cleanup day, where volunteers clean up sites in the Haw River watershed. Canoeists travel down the river picking up trash as they go; volunteers clean up the shores of Jordan Lake; homeschoolers, scout troups, school groups, neighborhoods, and communities participate, taking hundreds of bags of trash out of our waterways. Financial support from local businesses and individual sponsors help the Haw River Assembly continue our work all year to protect the river & Jordan Lake.
Watershed Education
The Haw River Assembly is available for educational programs for schools, community groups, and partnering organizations. Contact us at info@hawriver.org for more information.