A key to Sierra Streams Institute’s success in accomplishing its mission has been our dedicated volunteer team. Volunteers monitor streams for water quality, process samples in our two in-house labs, enter data, and help with outreach. Detailed volunteer descriptions and the link to the sign up form are below. In general, positions can be flexible depending on your schedule. We are always looking for more volunteers! While we welcome those with scientific backgrounds, no experience is necessary for any of our volunteer positions. All volunteers will receive training for their positions.
We are partnering with BriarPatch Coop through their new PatchWorks program to increase community engagement in Nevada County. By volunteering with SSI through the program, you will get discounts on your groceries at BriarPatch! More information on the program can be found here.
Volunteer Positions
Water Quality Monitoring
Water quality monitoring happens during a two-week period every January, April, July, and October. We currently monitor 10 sites on Deer Creek and 10 sites on the Bear River, and are always in need of committed monthly volunteers and substitute monitors. Each site is monitored by a pair of volunteers who go to the same site together every month. Water quality monitoring takes anywhere from 1-3 hours depending on the distance to the site and generally entails:
- Picking up equipment at our office in the morning (or meeting your partner at the site)
- Driving to the site
- Measuring temperature, dissolved oxygen, conductivity, pH, and turbidity using meters in the field and collecting water samples to bring back to the lab for analysis
- Delivering your equipment back to the office
Water Chemistry Lab
Every afternoon during quarterly monitoring weeks, SSI processes water samples collected in the field for nitrates, phosphates, and bacteria. Work in the water chemistry lab takes 1-4 hours, depending on the number of samples and volunteer availability. From June-October, there are also opportunities to process algae samples. We also have internships available for high school and college students; please see click here for more information. The water chemistry lab work entails:
- Following strict protocols
- Handling chemicals safely
- Recording data
- Properly cleaning lab equipment after use
Benthic Macroinvertebrate (BMI) Lab
Benthic macroinvertebrate lab work entails using a microscope to count and sort aquatic insects from debris. The lab is open to new volunteers the first Wednesday of each month 9am to 2pm. If you are interested in learning more, please contact the lab manager at bugs@sierrastreamsinstitute.org.
If you are a high school or college student who is interested in working in the BMI lab, please see our internship page here for more information.
Data Entry
We rely on our volunteers to enter the data we collect in the field and the labs into our database. Data entry is by far our most flexible volunteer opportunity and can be done any day or time at the volunteer’s convenience, so long as you coordinate with the lab manager beforehand. Data entry entails:
- Carefully entering data from datasheets into an Airtable database on the computer
- Following a protocol
- Attention to detail
Outreach
Outreach volunteers assist us in event planning and creating outreach materials for social media, our newsletter, and for print. Outreach volunteering is flexible depending on the volunteer’s schedule and our current outreach needs.
Other
We occasionally have other volunteer needs for education, one-time surveys, or other events. These opportunities will be posted on our website and social media as they occur.
If you have something to add to Sierra Streams that does not fit into any of our established volunteer categories, please let us know on the volunteer sign-up form and we will do our best to find a volunteer position that suits you!