Alex Worgo will be joining Gunpowder RIVERKEEPER® this summer for his capstone project. He will look at invasive snakeheads and mud snails and how different water quality affects their populations and surrounding ecosystems. He is a Master’s student at Unity College, where he will be receiving a degree in wildlife biology, conservation and management. He …
Gunpowder Riverkeeper is honored to take part in a monitoring program with the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC). Every day, several NASA satellites circle the globe from the North to the South Pole. As the earth turns, these satellite routes will cross over the entire planet, one swath at a time. Some of these satellites …
Gunpowder Riverkeeper, in partnership with Waterkeeper Alliance, is protecting local communities by providing vital data through PFAS sampling. Gunpowder Riverkeeper staff and volunteers will be using Cyclopure Water Test Kits to sample for PFAS in stream segments throughout the Gunpowder and Bush watersheds. This is a National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)-funded, convenient, and …
Studies have shown a linkage between PFAS exposure and change in liver enzymes, cardiovascular effects (such as high blood pressure or pregnancy-induced hypertension), decreased antibody responses to vaccines, and developmental effects (such as small decreases in birth weight). The EPA has also established PFAS as a possible carcinogen, as there is a link between PFAS …
PFAS (Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl substances) are a large group of human-made (synthetic) compounds. They’re an emerging contaminant with minimal state and federal regulation. They are also bioaccumulates, meaning the chemical accumulates gradually over time in organisms, particularly fish. In October 2021, the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) issued its first fish consumption advisory based …