About Us
The Watershed Volunteer Program (WVP) is an effort to engage community members in an array of active management projects to improve watershed conditions. WVP promotes stewardship through learning opportunities, monitoring activities, restoration projects, and community outreach.
Who We Are
Established in 2012 with support from Ohio Environmental Education Fund, and currently in partnership with Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District, WVP is a Natural Resources volunteer program of the Cleveland Metroparks. Over the last twelve years, more than 2,500 volunteers contributed 35,000+ hours and 339 became Certified Watershed Stewards (see below for more on the Watershed Stewardship Certification).
The WVP staff includes Program Coordinator Sara Corrigan with seasonal support and is overseen by Stream Restoration Ecologist Elizabeth Hiser.
Contact us at [email protected].
Start the Journey to Watershed Stewardship
What is a Certified Watershed Steward?
Our goal is to engage volunteers in watershed health by offering workshops, trainings, and monitoring/restoration projects throughout Northeast Ohio. To this end, we offer a Watershed Stewardship Certification for registered volunteers who participate in a total of 10 hours of primary events, with at least 1 event in each event category - learning, monitoring, and restoration.
Where to Begin
- Come to an event! See a list of events.
- Subscribe to our bi-weekly e-newsletter.
- Apply with Cleveland Metroparks Volunteer Services. Click here for more information. Upon completing the Cleveland Metroparks volunteer process, your participation with WVP will count towards your Watershed Stewardship Certification and Cleveland Metroparks volunteer milestones.
The Work that We Do
Learning Opportunities - Workshops and presentations from water resource professionals, researchers, and volunteers
Watershed Restoration – Native seed collection and cleaning workshops, invasive plant removal, streamside and wetland restoration projects, green infrastructure maintenance
Hydrology Studies - Streambank erosion assessment and cross-section / longitudinal profile monitoring
Stream Quality Monitoring - Macroinvertebrate and water chemistry monitoring
Community Outreach - World Water Day, Clean Water Fest, community events, etc.
Watershed Wednesdays - Learn about our local watershed groups, network with local watershed professionals, and link up to get more involved with different watershed groups
Questions? Still not sure where to get started?
Check out more program details here.
Contact us at [email protected].