Rivers of Alabama Course with AU OLLI January 25th – March 8th 2021 Registration Info
Info Coming Soon! Virtual Alabama Water Watch Bacteriological Monitoring Workshop
How to Design and Install a Rain Garden Alabama Watershed Stewards Workshophosted by ACES Water Program Free online workshop via Zoom March 11th-12th 2021 Registration Info
2021 Virtual Mountains to the Gulf Excursion Hosted by Legacy, Partners in Environmental Education March 22nd – 26th 2021 More Info
Save the Date! Alabama Water Watch Annual Meeting June 26th, 2021
If you need to come by our office, please call or email to make an appointment.
Current Monitors
Please note that monitors in need of recertification have been given an extension of their certifications until further notice. They will be permitted to enter data. Please check this post regularly for early 2021 updates.
Current monitors can continue to monitor water as long as they abide by all safety guidelines and requirements. Each monitor has a unique situation related to where they monitor, and with whom they monitor. Please use the following resources to make the best decision for your situation, and don’t hesitate to contact AWW if in doubt.
If you are a certified AWW monitor and need some help to get started monitoring at an orphaned site or a new site, in the form of a water chemistry test kit, water chemistry reagents to refill an existing kit, or bacteria supplies, this mini-grant program is for you!
The Alabama River is considered the heart river of the state. The Alabama is the state’s longest river, flowing for 315 miles and draining 11% of the state in 18 counties. The Alabama River is formed by the confluence of the Coosa and Tallapoosa Rivers just north of Montgomery. The mighty river begins at the Fall Line, an imaginary line demarcating the area of Alabama’s ancient coastline. The Alabama River serves as the unifier of Alabama’s Eastern Rivers, the Coosa and Tallapoosa and her western rivers, the Cahaba, Black Warrior and Tombigbee.
Free-flowing, or un-impounded, sections of the river show many high bluffs formed as the chalky soils of the Black Belt were carved away. Pictured above is Hatcher Bluff (estimated to be 350 feet high in 1925) along the Blackwell Bend of the main stem of the Alabama River near Sardis, AL.
NOTABLE TRIBUTARIES
AUTAUGA CREEK
Autauga Creek runs through Prattville, Alabama, home to the Daniel Pratt Gin Factory founded by the famous Alabamian Daniel Pratt in the 1830’s. After the Civil War, Pratt became the first millionaire in the South.
CATOMA CREEK
Catoma Creek, near the city of Montgomery, is known for its fossils including a famous Mastodon tooth found in 2005.
DAMS ON THE ALABAMA
Development of the Alabama River for improved navigation began in 1963. The navigation system now consists of three locks and dams at Claiborne, Millers Ferry, and Robert F. Henry and provides for a nine foot deep channel from Mobile to near Wetumpka. Millers Ferry and Robert F. Henry allow for the production of hydroelectric power.
Claiborne Lock and Dam created Claiborne Lake, the state’s smallest reservoir at 5,930 acres with 216 miles of shoreline.
WILDLIFE
Up to 144 species of fish have been documented from the Alabama River subbasin. Species of concern include the Blue Sucker, Alabama Shad, Southern Walleye, Paddlefish, Gulf Sturgeon, and Alabama Sturgeon. The Alabama Sturgeon and a number of important mussel species rely on the stretch of river below Claiborne Lock and Dam which is the last, largely unregulated, big river habitat in Alabama.
Travel down rivers through time to encounter the rich human history and natural wonders that have defined Alabama. Along the way, we will celebrate an array of magnificent rivers filled with unique plants and animals, shaped over the ages by a remarkably diverse geology. Accept the challenge to restore and protect our rivers for their economic, cultural, and ecological benefits, but most of all because it is the right thing to do.
Join Dr. Bill Deutsch and the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at Auburn University as they journey through Rivers of Alabama, a 7-week Zoom course that will allow participants to explore the wonders and mysteries of Alabama’s Rivers.
The Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) and the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) sample fish in Alabama’s rivers, streams, and lakes, to compile the Annual Alabama Fish Consumption Advisory. Fish Consumption Advisories provide information and recommendations about eating fish from Alabama rivers and lakes that may be contaminated. This information enables people to make more informed choices about the types of fish they eat, and how much to consume.
