Creek Freaks Group

Since September 2003, the Creek Freaks, a Georgia Adopt-a-Stream team of middle and high school students, have met monthly at Phinizy Swamp Nature Park to monitor the health of Butler Creek. Each monitoring event is conducted in accordance with Georgia Adopt-a-Stream guidelines. Their data is submitted to Georgia Adopt-a-Stream’s online database.

Monitoring
Chemical monitoring: Each month, the Creek Freaks collect water samples from Butler Creek and conduct various chemical tests including dissolved oxygen, pH, turbidity, salinity, alkalinity, and conductivity.

Biological monitoring: Quarterly, the Creek Freaks sample aquatic macroinvertebrates in Butler Creek, such as dragonflies, mayflies, scuds, shrimp, and clams to determine a water quality rating. A diverse group of macroinvertebrates from pollution-sensitive to pollution-tolerant organisms indicates a healthy creek habitat.

Bacterial monitoring: Every month, Creek Freaks collect water samples to test for the presence of E. coli bacteria. A large number of colony-forming E. coli units may indicate a sewage spill or a leaking sewer pipe, but could also be caused by a large beaver population upstream.

The goals of the Creek Freaks are to:

• Evaluate and protect waterways
• Practice hands-on science and field research
• Learn methods for sampling and determining baseline water quality
• Understand the connection between streams and their watershed
• Increase community awareness of non-point source pollution and water quality issues
• Integrate with a statewide project for monitoring the health of local streams

Creek Freak History

Environmental Youth Award presented by President George W. Bush.

Join us in the creek! Call the Education Office at 706-796-7707