Busting Myths Volunteer Monitoring Survey Results

1. Busting Myths Volunteer Monitoring Survey Results James Beckley Virginia Department of Environmental Quality

2. Common Myths About Volunteers • Volunteer means free • Volunteer means poorly funded • Volunteer means poor quality/quantity • Volunteer means limited resources (e.g. lab access)

3. Busting The Myths • In September 2012, DEQ conducted an online survey of non-DEQ monitoring groups • 20 question survey designed to identify resource needs and contribution levels from these organizations • 34 organizations responded

4. What Term Best Describes The Water Quality Monitoring Group You Belong To? • Citizen Volunteer- 15 • College/University- 7 • Federal Government- 5 • Non Profit/NGO- 5 • Local Government- 2

5. How Many Sites Are Monitored By Your Group In A Year? • Values ranged from 1 to 180 • 880 total sites reported in survey • Average number of sites monitored per group was 27

6. Which Parameters Does Your Water Quality Monitoring Group Sample For? • Field parameters/ DO, pH, Temp- 25 • Bacteria/ E coli- 22 • Benthic Macroinvertebrates- 19 • Nutrients (N, P)- 15 • Water clarity/Turbidity- 13 • Other- 9

7. Does Your Monitoring Group Drop Off Samples To A Laboratory For Testing? • No- 22 • Yes- 12

8. If Yes, Is The Laboratory Operated By The Monitoring Group Or A Contracted Laboratory? • Lab operated by a monitoring group- 8 • Contracted lab- 4

9. What Is Your Group’s Primary Source Of Income To Cover Operating Costs? • Budget Allocation- 10 • Grants/ Endowment- 10 • Donation- 5 • No Funding Source- 5 • Membership Dues- 2

10. How Much Does The Primary Source Of Income Cover Operating Expenses? • 100%-12 • 90%- 4 • 80%- 3 • 70%- 6 • 60%- 3 • <50%- 5 Responses Percent Funding Of Total Budget

11. What Is The Secondary Source Of Income To Cover Monitoring Costs? • No Funding source- 9 • Grants/ Endowment- 7 • Budget Allocation- 3 • Donations- 3 • Membership Dues- 2 • Selling Services- 2 • Other- 4* * Includes 2 responses for donating personal funds or volunteering time

12. How Much Does The Secondary Source Of Income Cover Monitoring Expenses? • 50%- 2 • 40%- 0 • 30%- 7 • 20%- 5 • 10%- 6 • 0%- 9 Responses Percent Funding Of Total Budget

13. How Many Are Paid Positions, Average Number of Hours Worked and Salary? • Average paid staff per group= 1.2 • Average monthly hours worked per paid staff= 37.2 hours • Average monthly salary for paid staff = $898.38 ($24.15/ average) • Average yearly salary per paid staff = $10,780.56 • Average yearly salary for paid staff per group = $12,936.67

14. How Many Are Unpaid Volunteers and Average Number Of Volunteer Hours? • Average number of volunteers per group= 14.2 • Average number of monthly hours per unpaid volunteer= 9.4 hours • Average equivalent monthly salary for unpaid position (assume $22.60/hr) = $212.44 • http://www.independentsector.org/volunteer_time • Average equivalent yearly salary per volunteer= $1,996.94 • Average equivalent yearly salary for volunteers per group= $28,356.55

15. Estimated Annual Expenses To Perform Water Quality Monitoring

16. What Is The Primary Reason For The Group To Monitor Water Quality ? • Identify areas of good or bad water quality- 13 • Education and outreach of the public-10 • Response to a specific concern- 3 • Advocate for the environment- 2

17. Who Is The Intended Audience For The Water Quality Data Collected By The Group? • Government officials- 26 • General public- 25 • Members of the group- 24 • Academic peers- 11 • Local Partners/Schools- 4

18. How Is The Data Communicated? • Online Database/ Smartphone Application- 19 • Newsletter/Report- 17 • Power Point/Meetings- 12 • Research Paper- 9 • E-mail/Website- 5 • Radio/Podcast- 1 • Other- 3

19. Does Your Group Submit Water Quality Data To The Virginia DEQ? • Yes- 23 • No- 9

20. If Yes, is Any of the Submitted Data Considered Level III by the VADEQ? • Yes- 18 • No- 4 • Do not know- 4

21. Is Your Group Interested In Submitting Data To The Virginia DEQ? • Yes- 31 • No- 1

22. Thank you!