We're currently recruiting Stream Team volunteers! Fill out the interest form if you want to be part of the team.

Where community meets science!

Ever looked at a clear stream and wondered what's really in it? Or how the health of our waterways impacts everything around us? Well, guess what, you're already thinking like a scientist!

The Stream Team, our volunteer water quality monitoring program, can turn that curiosity into action! No need to be a lab coat-wearing, microscope-using expert - just someone who cares about their community and the world we live in.

What do the data say about stream health?

Winter 2024/5 Results Summary

January 2025 was unusually dry, with 1.65” of rainfall compared to an average of 5.58” of January rain in 2020 through 2024. This means that flow was low in most streams.
Monitored air temperatures across sites were slightly warmer in Winter 2024/5 than they were in Winter 2023/4.
Dissolved oxygen is the amount of oxygen available to aquatic animals living in streams. Dissolved oxygen levels were higher than the expected range at several sites, likely due to photosynthesizing algae. Equipment failures prevented several teams from collecting readings – these should be resolved for Spring monitoring.
Conductivity is a measure of the water’s ability to pass an electrical current. It is measured in microsiemens per centimeter (μS/cm). Conductivity readings were the highest they have been during any monitoring season. This may be due to snow operations in which crews applied brine to the roads shortly before several site measurements were taken.
pH is a measure of acidity or alkalinity. It is measured on a scale of 1 to 14; 1 being the most acidic, 7 being neutral, and 14 being the most alkaline, or basic. The pH results were within normal ranges.

Want more details? Check out the Winter 2024/5 Monitoring Report and the data app.

Fall 2023 Debrief Video

Data Quality Requirements

Chapel Hill Stream Team is a tier 2 water quality monitoring program. This means that the data can be used to identify pollution hotspots in Town, but the data cannot be used for regulatory purposes. Our previous volunteer water quality monitoring program, Stream Team 1.0, was a tier 1 program, meaning the data could only be used for educational purposes, and the equipment lacked the precision and accuracy of our new tier 2 equipment.

To become a tier 2 program, Chapel Hill Stormwater staff had to draft a Quality Assurance Program Plan, or QAPP, that was approved by NCDEQ before the program launched in October 2023. The Chapel Hill Stream Team 2.0 Quality Assurance Program Plan outlines the data management requirements, training and certification requirements for volunteers, equipment accuracy, and data verification requirements.

Where are the 10 sites?

Want to see photos of the sites? Check out the photo album at the bottom of this page.

Site 1: Cole Springs Branch near Cedar Street

Coordinates: 35.9305188558, -79.0448993588 (Google Maps link)
Nearest bus stop: Martin Luther King Junior Boulevard at Bolinwood Drive (Stop ID 3245)
Nearest bus lines: G, NS, NU, T
Cole Springs Branch is a tributary of Bolin Creek, and the sampling site is towards the end of Cedar Drive. The stream drains an older residential area with large lots and a good buffer zone, and the surrounding area is largely forested. This rocky stream, with a lot of boulder and rubble as well as some sand and gravel, has excellent aquatic habitat. It is also a bug monitoring site.

Site 2: Crow Branch below Ashley Forest Road

Coordinates: 35.9448132, -79.0539692 (Google Maps link)
Nearest bus stop: Martin Luther King Junior Boulevard at Ashley Forest Drive (Stop ID 3334)
Nearest bus lines: HS, NS, T
Crow Branch is a small tributary of Booker Creek. The site is tucked into a neighborhood and is just downstream of a bug monitoring site. It is a rocky bottom creek.

Site 3: Schoolhouse Creek at Library Drive

Coordinates: 35.93055899280, -79.03611498830 (Google Maps link)
Nearest bus stops
- E Franklin Street at Estes Drive westbound (Stop ID 3259)
- E Franklin Street at Estes Drive eastbound (Stop ID 3260)
Nearest bus lines: 400, 405, CL, D, F
This site is at the Chapel Hill Public Library! The actual monitoring site is a little upstream from the GPS point. This small stream has poor aquatic habitat due to the largely sand substrate. It is a bug monitoring site, and the aquatic life found in this stream suggests that the site does not dry up completely during drought periods, hinting at the possibility of some springs in the watershed. Schoolhouse Creek appears to be intermediate between the Slate Belt and Triassic classifications, with more clay than a normal Slate Belt stream.

Site 4:Booker Creek at Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd

Coordinates: 35.9528124005, -79.0603068391 (Google Maps link)
Nearest bus stop: Homestead Road at Martin Luther King Junior Boulevard (Stop ID 3331)
Nearest bus line: HS
This site is near the Homestead Aquatic Center and Park. Booker Creek has a forested buffer next to the stream, but it drains a largely residential area. The substrate is rocky, but flows are low enough that this stream may have intermittent flow in some years. It is also a bug monitoring site.

Site 5:Jolly Branch below Chapel Hill High School

Coordinates: 35.941715405, -79.0829810986 (Google Maps link)
Nearest bus stop: Chapel Hill High School (Stop ID 3614)
Nearest bus line: HS
Jolly Branch is a tributary of Bolin Creek. This site is in Carolina North near Chapel Hill High School. This small stream, around 1 meter wide, has good, rocky habitat, but severe bank erosion in many places. The surrounding area is largely forested, with several residential areas further upstream, as well as Chapel Hill High School and Smith Middle School. It is a bug monitoring site, and the aquatic life at Jolly Branch indicates that it may stop flowing (or go dry) during drought periods.

Site 6: Bolin Creek at Umstead Park

This site is accessible for mobility devices!
Coordinates: 35.922823, -79.059967 (Google Maps link)
Nearest bus stop: Umstead Drive at Umpstead Park eastbound (Stop ID 3041)
Nearest bus line: N
This site is along the Bolin Creek Greenway near Umstead Park. The headwaters of Bolin Creek are located north of Carrboro, northwest of the intersection of Homestead Road and Old NC 86. Beginning in more undeveloped areas, Bolin Creek drains progressively in more urban and developed areas through Carrboro and Chapel hill. It is approximately eleven miles long, the majority of which falls within Carrboro’s jurisdiction. Bolin creek has good rocky substrate. It is also a bug monitoring site.

Site 7: Dry Creek at Silver Creek Trail

Coordinates: (Google Maps link)
Nearest bus stop: East Chapel Hill High School (Stop ID 3418)
Nearest bus line: T
This site is tucked into a neighborhood along Dry Creek Trail near East Chapel Hill High School. Dry Creek is a small stream on the eastern side of Chapel Hill which flows to New Hope Creek, which flows into the Upper New Hope Arm of Jordan lake. It falls within the New Hope Creek watershed. It is also a bug monitoring site.

Site 8: Booker Creek at Willow Drive (4 spots available)

Coordinates: 35.929099, -79.021458 (Google Maps link)
Nearest bus stops:
- University Place (Stop ID 3377)
- Willow Drive at Connor Drive (Stop ID 3750)
Nearest bus lines: A, F
This site is tucked into a neighborhood near University Place. This segment of Booker Creek drains a largely residential area. The stream appears to have been channelized at some time, with a very entrenched channel. The substrate is entirely sand and clay which made finding good habitat difficult. It is also a bug monitoring site.

Site 9: Fan Branch near Scroggs Elementary

Coordinates: 35.879425, -79.069781 (Google Maps link)
Nearest bus stop: Southern Village Park and Ride (Stop ID 3174)
Nearest bus line: NS
This site is along the Fan Branch Trail near Scroggs Elementary School. Fan Branch is a major tributary of Morgan Creek, located downstream of University Lake. Morgan Creek is a tributary of University Lake, and Fan Branch falls within the Morgan Creek watershed. The majority of the surrounding area includes residential areas, towards the southern part of Chapel Hill. The stream sediment is almost entirely composed of sand and gravel, but there is also good aquatic habitat visible as well as an adjacent buffer zone. It is also a bug monitoring site.

Site 10: Bolin Creek near Community Center

Coordinates: 35.927839, -79.035669 (Google Maps link)
Nearest bus stops:
- East Franklin Street at Plant Road westbound (Stop ID 3263)
- East Franklin Street at Plant Road eastbound (Stop ID 3264)
Nearest bus lines: 400, 405, CL, D, F
This site is along the Bolin Creek Greenway upstream of the Franklin Street bridge. This segment of the creek, which runs parallel to a concrete greenway path, drains a heavily developed area that includes both Downtown Carrboro and Downtown Chapel Hill. The stream bottom is rocky, with the more upstream section including more sand.

What do volunteers do?

Volunteers agree to a one-year commitment.

Monitor one of 10 Chapel Hill creek sites for at least one year in October, January, April, and July
Attend two trainings, one in the fall and one in the spring, to learn how to measure
- pH,
- dissolved oxygen,
- electrical conductivity, and
- habitat health
Help the Town identify pollution hotspots
Contribute water quality data to the scientific community.