HOWL Citizen Science Project

The HOWL science team set out to analyze the quality of the Hofmann Forest’s watershed in order to understand the Hofmann’s place in the coastal ecosystem as a whole and how its quality would affect the surrounding human and ecological community. However, we realized quickly that we would need help collecting hundreds of stream water samples and observations, and so we partnered with the Izaak Walton League to help us contact and get local community members involved in such an overwhelming task. Local volunteers will not only help collect samples for this large-scale citizen science project, but will also help us try out some new equipment for water sampling and testing. And so, along with your help, the HOWL Project will:

• Gain knowledge of water quality, and quantity, of the White Oak, New, and Trent Rivers in the Hofmann Forest in Eastern NC.

• Demonstrate the feasibility of using low-cost analytical equipment for water quality testing.

• Increase understanding of North Carolina’s rapidly changing coast due to the threats of sea-level rise, deforestation, agricultural expansion, and new substantial developments.