Community Science project expands to Stratford (UTRCA weekly, July 14, 2021)

On Tuesday, July 13, the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority (UTRCA) installed a rain gauge at the Stratford Perth Museum as part of the new Community Precipitation Monitoring Project.

“The Stratford Perth Museum is so proud to partner with the UTRCA on a number of projects, including this one,” said Stratford Perth Museum General Manager John Kastner. “Like the UTRCA, the museum is very mindful of our environmental and community responsibilities and this ongoing partnership certainly augments and enables the museum’s holistic use of our property.”

The UTRCA is installing rain gauges for 12 participating property owners across the watershed. The participants will measure daily precipitation and submit their data through the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network (CoCoRaHS) online platform. CoCoRaHS is a community based network of volunteers across North America who measure and map precipitation.

Community science engages members of the public in collecting data, which can be used to increase scientific knowledge and inform decision making. The precipitation project is the UTRCA’s second community science initiative, and will be expanded in 2022.

“We’re excited to work with property owners and gather valuable information about our watershed and the potential impacts of climate change,” said Erin Dolmage, Community Education Technician. “The Stratford Perth Museum is a great location to collect this data because of its location on the edge of Stratford.”

Funding for this community science project was provided by Royal Bank of Canada’s (RBC) Tech for Nature Grant. The grant is a multi-year commitment by the RBC Foundation to foster new ideas, technologies and partnerships focused on protecting our shared future.

Check out this video about the Community Precipitation Monitoring Project.