What’s app-ening in your local waterway?:
Screen capture of the FISH app (via Penn State Agricultural and Environmental Center).
Everyday explorers are now using their smartphones to document what they see in their local waterways. It’s thanks to an app called FISH – or first investigation of stream health.
“Anybody any place can use this to track data,” says Kristen Kyler of the Penn State Agriculture and Environment Center.
She says the app has a simple question and answer interface. Users drop a GPS pin to enter their location, and then record observations about water clarity, and animal and plant life.
The information is then made available to scientists and others who want to evaluate stream health, and monitor how restored areas are changing over time.
Get Schooled:
- Learn more about the FISH app.
- Read more about the app from Penn State Extension.
- Find the FISH app on iTunes
- Funding for the app was provided from the Conewago Creek Initiative.
Hear More:
What is the benefit of the app? Listen to Kristen Kyler explain:
The fine print:
- This segment was produced in partnership with Cornell’s Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future and made possible by the Foundation for Pennsylvania Watersheds.
