A north Wales Rivers Trust Citizen Science Project
Become a citizen scientist
Joining a Lab Dŵr™ Hub equips volunteers with training and the necessary equipment to monitor and protect the health of our waterways across North and Mid Wales. By monitoring pollution, conducting chemical tests and invertebrate identification you’re helping to bridge the gaps in water quality data.
Chemical testing
Phosphate - High phosphate levels can be harmful to rivers because they trigger eutrophication, which then affects water quality causing harm to plants and wildlife.
Electrical conductivity - assesses the concentration of dissolved ions, salts, and minerals. It acts as a rapid indicator of pollution, such as agricultural runoff, sewage, or industrial discharge, which increases conductivity.
Temperature - dictates the physical, chemical, and biological processes in water, including controlling the solubility of oxygen. Lower oxygen levels are found in warmer water.
pH - A very high or very low pH means that water can be toxic for aquatic life. The pH range that is suitable for aquatic plants and animals is 6.5 to 9
Nitrate - High nitrate levels can be harmful to rivers because they trigger eutrophication, which then affects water quality causing harm to plants and wildlife.
What are we testing for?
2026 Live Data Map
2024-25 Data Map
Invertebrate testing
Some of our hubs take part in SmartRivers which is a nationwide citizen science project that monitors river health by analysing aquatic invertebrates. In partnership with Wildfish, we survey invertebrates in four key areas: the Afon Ogwen, Afon Braint, Nant Peris and Afon Ddrudwy. Citizen scientists identify invertebrates down to species level at four/five sampling sites per river. This data reveals long-term trends, helping us track the impact of our work. For more details, explore our results so far below.
Joining a Lab Dŵr Hub
Our Lab Dŵr hubs are a real community effort, being led by local people who care passionately about their local river. Joining a Lab Dŵr Hub is a fantastic way to meet likeminded people, gain new skills and be part of the movement for cleaner rivers. Kits are shared between volunteers across the river catchments / areas listed below.
Lab Dŵr Dyffryn Dyfi
Lab Dŵr Clwyd
Lab Dŵr Dyffryn Ogwen
Lab Dŵr Ynys MON
Lab Dŵr Cegin
Lab Dŵr Llanberis
Lab Dŵr Conwy
To sign up or express interest please complete the form below adding the name of the hub you would like to join into the subject box.
