Visit the EPA’s How’s my Waterway site to learn all sorts of things about your local waterways. Just type in an address and check out water quality, what’s being tested for in the water, swimming and fishing conditions, as well as aquatic life status.

You can also learn about the quality of the water in our local rivers, creeks and lakes by what kinds of bugs you find in the water! Benthic macroinvertebrates are aquatic animals without a backbone. They are great water quality indicators because some are very sensitive to pollution, while others are more tolerant. With a water net in hand, investigate water quality by surveying what kinds of water critters you catch. Use the Water Quality mobile app to identify your macroinvertebrate, then research it’s pollution tolerance.