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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to The potential for freshwater citizen science to engage and empower: a case study of the Rivers Trusts, United Kingdom
ClearThe benefits and negative impacts of citizen science applications to water as experienced by participants and communities
Researchers surveyed participants in citizen science water monitoring projects to understand both the benefits and challenges of public involvement in scientific research. They found that while citizen science projects generate valuable data and increase public awareness of water issues, participants also reported frustrations with technology, data quality concerns, and unclear communication from project organizers. The study offers recommendations for improving citizen science program design to enhance both scientific outcomes and participant satisfaction.
Making citizen science count: Best practices and challenges of citizen science projects on plastics in aquatic environments
This paper reviews best practices and challenges for citizen science projects focused on plastic pollution in aquatic environments, finding that while citizen science can effectively gather large-scale data and raise public awareness, data quality and consistency remain significant challenges.
Citizen science approaches for water quality measurements
Researchers reviewed 72 studies that used citizen science — data collection by trained volunteers rather than professional scientists — to monitor surface water quality, evaluating the methods used and the strengths and weaknesses of each approach. The review highlights citizen science as a valuable complement to traditional water monitoring, particularly for expanding geographic and temporal coverage of data collection.
Setting Sail for Science- exploring water quality through water sports
Researchers investigated how water sports enthusiasts, open water swimmers, and other water users can contribute to public engagement and citizen science monitoring of water quality decline in the UK. The study found that these stakeholders play elevated advocacy roles due to their direct investment in aquatic environments, and explored how their participation can be leveraged to better understand and address freshwater and coastal pollution.
Citizen science against the plastic soup: background, motivation and expectations of volunteers studying plastic pollution on Dutch riverbanks
Researchers surveyed 122 citizen scientists in the Dutch Clean Rivers project before and after one year of monitoring plastic pollution on riverbanks, finding that participants were predominantly middle-aged, highly educated, and motivated by activist goals of tackling plastic pollution at its source, while more personal motivations such as learning and enjoyment declined significantly over the participation period.
Citizen science sampling programs as a technique for monitoring microplastic pollution: results, lessons learned and recommendations for working with volunteers for monitoring plastic pollution in freshwater ecosystems
Volunteers monitored microplastic contamination along 550 km of the Ottawa River in Canada using a standardized method, finding microplastics at almost every sampling site. Citizen science programs like this show promise for scaling up microplastic monitoring at low cost.
Monitoring and Promoting Citizen Engagement in Assessing the Ecological Status of Ave River: A Case Study in Northern Portugal
Not relevant to microplastics — this Portuguese study assessed the ecological health of a river using biological and chemical indicators and recruited citizen scientists to help monitor water quality, with no focus on microplastics.
Schoolchildren discover hotspots of floating plastic litter in rivers using a large-scale collaborative approach
A large-scale citizen science project involving schoolchildren detected microplastic hotspots in rivers across multiple European countries, demonstrating that collaborative monitoring can generate spatially extensive data on riverine plastic pollution.
Monitoring biological water quality by volunteers complements professional assessments
Researchers found that volunteer-collected macroinvertebrate data from a Dutch citizen science program generated water quality assessments closely comparable to professional assessments, demonstrating that community monitoring can meaningfully complement conventional biological water quality monitoring.
Can we investigate microplastic pollution with school students? Experiences from eight years of citizen science research
Researchers shared eight years of experience from the Plastic Pirates citizen science program involving over 24,000 school students and teachers in microplastic research across Germany, addressing challenges of contamination prevention, particle size, and sample processing in non-laboratory settings. The study evaluated the feasibility and scientific validity of engaging young citizen scientists in standardized riverine microplastic monitoring.
Citizen science: An alternative way for water monitoring in Hong Kong
This study explores the potential of citizen science as an approach to water quality monitoring in Hong Kong, where scientific data on urban rivers is limited. It argues that engaging community members in data collection could help fill critical gaps in freshwater environmental monitoring.
Longitudinal Study of Motivation, Attitude, and Knowledge of Citizen Scientists Monitoring Plastic Pollution On Dutch Riverbanks
Researchers conducted a longitudinal study of 403 citizen scientists participating in the Dutch Clean Rivers riverbank plastic monitoring project between 2017 and 2021, finding that project action and environmental motivations increased significantly within the first year while knowledge of scientific research methods also improved.
Citizen Science for Monitoring Plastic Pollution from Source to Sea: A Systematic Review of Methodologies, Best Practices, and Challenges
This systematic review examines how citizen science programs track plastic pollution from land to sea. The research found that while public participation greatly expands data collection, inconsistent methods and data quality issues limit the scientific usefulness of the results. Better-designed citizen science programs could help communities monitor and respond to the microplastic pollution in their local environments.
A new deal between Science and Society through Citizen Science: the case study of sea-surface microplastics research
Researchers explored the role of citizen science in sea-surface microplastic monitoring, arguing it can help bridge the trust gap between scientific institutions and the public. The study used a Mediterranean microplastics monitoring program as a case study showing how citizen participation improved data coverage and community engagement.
Citizens' awareness and education for tackling microplastic contamination in freshwater ecosystems
Researchers evaluated microplastic abundance in freshwater sediments and benthic macroinvertebrates at four sites with varying anthropogenic pressure along the Costa/Couros River in Portugal, combining pollution monitoring with citizen awareness and education initiatives. They found higher microplastic levels at sites with greater human activity pressure and detected microplastics inside macroinvertebrate gut contents across all sites, highlighting the dual utility of scientific monitoring and public engagement for driving microplastic mitigation strategies.
Monitoring contaminants of emerging concern in aquatic systems through the lens of citizen science
This study explores how citizen science can help monitor contaminants of emerging concern, including micro- and nanoplastics, in aquatic systems, addressing the geographic and temporal gaps in current professional monitoring networks.
Have You Ever Seen a Microplastic? A Collaborative High School–Academia Approach for Identification, Quantification and Raising Awareness of Microplastics in a River Crossing Urban Area
Researchers designed a high school–university collaboration where students collected water samples from an urban river, identified microplastics by microscopy, and contributed to local pollution mapping — demonstrating that student-led citizen science can meaningfully advance microplastic monitoring while raising environmental awareness.
Can we investigate microplastic pollution with school students? Experiences from eight years of citizen science research
Researchers reported on eight years of citizen science microplastic research conducted with school students through the Plastic Pirates program, sharing methodological experiences and lessons learned from involving more than 24,000 participants across Germany and other European countries in rigorous environmental monitoring.
A watershed-scale, citizen science approach to quantifying microplastic concentration in a mixed land-use river
Trained citizen scientists collected water samples at 72 sites across the Gallatin River watershed in Montana and found microplastics at all locations, with higher concentrations in areas downstream of urban land use. The study demonstrates that citizen science can effectively generate watershed-scale microplastic data while also linking plastic pollution to land use patterns.
Comparison of the macro-, meso- and microplastic pollution in French riverbanks and beaches using citizen science with schoolchildren
Researchers conducted a citizen science initiative with French schoolchildren to compare macro-, meso-, and microplastic pollution across 86 riverbank and beach sites, finding that riverbanks accumulated distinct plastic assemblages compared to beaches. The study demonstrated that schoolchildren can generate reliable comparative litter data, and highlighted rivers as underrepresented yet critical plastic transport pathways to the ocean.
A citizen engagement approach to water advocacy: experiences from “eXXpedition Great Lakes”
A citizen science event on the Great Lakes engaged volunteers in collecting water samples and conducting shoreline cleanups to raise awareness about microplastic contamination. The event demonstrated how community engagement can connect people to microplastic science and motivate behavior change to reduce land-based plastic pollution.
Improving Water Quality Through the Collaboration of BrantaSae, RIVER, and Citizen Science in River Cleaning Actions
Researchers documented a community-based river cleanup initiative in Indonesia that combined citizen science with systematic waste categorization. Analysis of collected waste revealed that plastic was the predominant material, with low-density polyethylene (LDPE) being the most common polymer type. The study underscores the value of community engagement in both environmental cleanup and generating scientific data about the scale of plastic pollution in waterways.
Evaluating community science sampling for microplastics in shore sediments of large river watersheds
Researchers coordinated 42 citizen science volunteers across 68 locations spanning 750 km of the Ottawa River Watershed to collect sediment samples for microplastic analysis, finding relatively low particle concentrations compared to other freshwater watersheds and demonstrating that community science effectively enables large spatial coverage while requiring strict laboratory quality control protocols.
Using citizen science to understand floating plastic debris distribution and abundance: A case study from the North Cornish coast (United Kingdom).
This citizen science study used a standardized methodology to monitor floating plastic debris off the Cornish coast of the UK, finding microplastic concentrations comparable to or higher than other European coastal regions. The study demonstrates that citizen science can generate useful, standardized data on plastic pollution in coastal waters.