8th National Monitoring Conference

Join us in Portland for the National Water Quality Monitoring Council’s 8th National Monitoring Conference – Water: One Resource – Shared Effort – Common Future on April 30 – May 4, 2012. This national forum provides an exceptional opportunity for federal, state, local, tribal, volunteer, academic, private, and other water stakeholders to exchange information and technology related to water monitoring, assessment, research, protection, restoration, and management, as well as to develop new skills and professional networks. Abstracts are due by September 23, 2011.

Conference themes will cover your water management & science needs, including:

• Addressing Contaminants and Emerging Threats to Water Quality and Aquatic Ecosystems
• Addressing Climate and Water Availability Issues
• Evaluating and Managing Water Protection and Restoration Activities
• Communicating Science and Data to Decision Makers and the Public
• Applying Innovative Monitoring Technologies and Methods
• Strengthening Monitoring Collaboration and Partnerships
• Managing and Sharing Water Quality Monitoring Data
• Strengthening and Advancing Assessment Methods and Models

Of special note...
For the first time, this biennial NWQMC conference and River Network’s National River Rally are coordinating an overlap day (May 4th) with mutually developed themes and presentations geared toward fostering improved collaboration between government and nonprofit groups working together for clean water. (www.rivernetwork.org/)

Registration Information
Registration includes breakfasts and lunches and one evening reception. Attendee scholarships might be available.
■ Attendee: $400 (early registration); $475 after February 17th, 2012
■ Oral or Poster Presenter: $355 (early registration); $430 after February 17th, 2012

For exhibitor and sponsorship information please contact Greg Arenz, garenz@nalms.org. For questions related to programming, please contact the 2012 National Monitoring Conference Co-chairs Cathy Tate, cmtate@usgs.gov, Jeff Schloss jeff.schloss@unh.edu or Alice Mayio, Mayio.Alice@epa.gov. To be placed on a mailing list, please contact Philip Forsberg, forsberg@nalms.org. To learn more about the Council and previous conferences, visit: acwi.gov/monitoring/.

The NWQMC is requesting abstracts for oral and poster presentations that are applicable to the monitoring of rivers, streams, lakes, groundwater, wetlands, estuaries and the ocean. The conference prides itself on attracting attendees and presenters from across the globe and from all types of monitoring organizations. Provided below are candidate topics that address the conference themes and components of the NWQMC’s monitoring framework. This list is intended to spark thinking about issues that might be addressed, and should not be considered comprehensive or limiting.

Addressing Contaminants and Emerging Threats to Water Quality and Aquatic Ecosystems
 Tracking and evaluating harmful aquatic blooms
 Monitoring for pharmaceuticals
 Monitoring for endocrine disrupting compounds
 Transport and distribution of mercury through aquatic systems
 Microbial source tracking, PCR, and predictive models for microbiology
 Nanomaterials in the environment
 Monitoring water quality impacts of energy development
 Invasive species monitoring
 Assessing nutrients, sediments, and other stressors

Addressing Climate and Water Availability Issues
 Assessing effects of climate change on water availability and quality
 Assessing effects of hydrologic alteration of water resources
 Groundwater and surface water interactions

Evaluating and Managing Water Protection and Restoration Activities
 Nonpoint source monitoring to meet the needs of TMDL implementation
 Monitoring the effectiveness of BMPs
 Assessing green infrastructure/low impact development performance
 Monitoring the effectiveness of habitat restoration actions
 Dam removal and associated water quality impacts
 Identifying causes of stream impairment due to multiple stressors
 Use of continuous water quality monitoring data in regulatory applications
 Economic costs and benefits of watershed protection

Communicating Science and Data to Decision Makers and the Public
 Innovative outreach and communication approaches
 Reporting on program effectiveness
 Analyzing and presenting water quality data
 Educational campaigns
 Curricula for water quality analysis
 Making water quality data relevant to national, state, tribal, and local policy
 Connecting water quality to human health concerns

Applying Innovative Monitoring Technologies and Methods
 Real-time monitoring
 Advances in sensor technology and application
 Using passive sampling devices
 Satellite image interpretation for water applications
 Incorporating innovations into network design
 Nutrient source tracking using multiple lines of evidence

Strengthening Monitoring Collaboration and Partnerships
 Enhancing partnerships through state and regional monitoring councils
 Expanding the use of volunteer data by state partners
 Sustaining programs in times of declining budgets
 Using information/data collected for community projects
 Data sharing and program management success and challenges
 Large river basin monitoring strategies

Managing and Sharing Water Quality Monitoring Data
 Implementing data standards for data sharing
 Frameworks and techniques for integrating water quality data from diverse sources
 Developing local, regional, and national water quality data exchanges
 Data management approaches for diverse monitoring groups
 Screening techniques to implement data quality objectives in data queries
 Using web services for dynamic data access
 Geospatial tools for data integration
 Using diverse data types together for analysis and assessment

Strengthening and Advancing Assessment Methods and Models
 Assessing methods and data comparability
 Developing the “biological gradient” across jurisdictions and water types
 Assessing ecosystem services
 Developing reference conditions
 Integrating data sets and network designs to support water quality assessment
 Geospatial assessments of water quality
 Tracking trends in water quality
 Improving and enhancing biological assessments
 Success stories from the 106 grant program

Instructions for Submitting Abstracts
To submit abstracts, logon to acwi.gov/monitoring/conference/2012/ and follow the instructions for abstract submittal.

Proposals for extended sessions (workshops, short courses, and panel discussions) can be made using a form available on the Conference web page.

All abstracts must be received no later than September 23, 2011
Authors of abstracts accepted for oral and poster presentations will be notified by January 16th, 2012 and will receive further guidelines for preparation of presentations, papers, and posters. All presenters must register for the conference