Monitoring water quality helps keep streams safe. But data alone won’t drive action if the right people can’t see or understand it.
Downstream has the tools to turn data into stories.
WaterWatch is a comprehensive digital platform that supports data collection, management, and visualization. WaterWatch provides a standardized, rich and engaging website visualization of water quality data that people can interact with in real time on mobile devices or desktop. The Downstream Project developed WaterWatch in a partnership with The Commons, the region’s premiere nonprofit data-solutions developer.
The lastest evolution of WaterWatch was implemented for the Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council in Michigan, in 2025 Downstream and The Commons partnered with Friends of the Shenandoah River to deploy the platform in the Shenandoah watershed. We created a data management and visualization system for collecting, managing, and visualizing E. coli monitoring results. The data are managed in a cloud-based database with connected interactive dashboards allowing community members to better follow and understand the risks of water-based recreation in summer.
By integrating website data visualization with social media platforms, WaterWatch helps convert social media “likes” into new members and volunteers.
The Downstream team customizes each Water Watch integration depending on an individual partner’s needs.
