The Saw Kill Watershed Database is a collection of water quality and watershed data dating back to the 1800’s. This community-facing database and visualization platform is designed to help us understand and explore the Saw Kill watershed together. The database and it’s capabilities will continue to expand as Saw Kill Watershed communities engage with and create data about our home. These data have been collected by hundreds of local volunteers, artists, community leaders, researchers, students, and municipal workers. This database has been created through a partnership between Saw Kill Watershed Community and the Bard Community Sciences Lab , with support from the Hudson River Foundation . The goal is to provide publicly accessible, actionable watershed data to community members, to keep them informed on the health of their local watershed, and to answer community questions and concerns.
The Saw Kill is a “direct drainage” tributary to the Hudson River, a source of drinking water, and also a place where treated water is released. The stream and its watershed contain a variety of ecological communities—aquatic, wetland, woodland, field—that support diverse populations of plants, fish, and wildlife.
The Saw Kill Watershed Community (SKWC) unites area residents who are interested in protecting their water by maintaining the health of the Saw Kill and its watershed. Through our partnership with SKWC, Bard faculty and students have been able to collaborate with community members to do research with a real impact on campus and in the local area. Ongoing projects include amphibian and eel monitoring, and a comprehensive water quality monitoring program powered by citizen scientists.