DRBC staff (blue shirts) talk to people at the Delaware River Festival. Photo by the DRBC. Click for larger image.

Earlier this month, DRBC staff spent a beautiful day along Camden's Delaware River waterfront at the Delaware River Festival. This area is part of the Delaware River Estuary, the tidal part of the river where fresh and salt water mix.

The festival offered educational activities, recreational opportunities and more on both sides of the Delaware River, with free ferry rides allowing attendees to participate in all of the offered activities in Camden and Philadelphia.

If one thing was clear amidst the palpable excitement of the day, it was that the Delaware River is a central feature of cultural identity and local livelihoods. Everyone has a story to share about the river!

DRBC staff connected with children and families to talk about the abundance of life that the river basin supports, namely bald eagles, American shad, horseshoe crabs and macroinvertebrates (aquatic bugs). Many attendees were surprised to learn that some bugs actually indicate healthy water conditions! Discussions with local residents also centered on where drinking water comes from and how it is diverted as a shared resource across the Delaware River Basin. Many passersby were pleased to learn of the strides made in water quality over its history and expressed hope for its continued improvement for future generations.

The Delaware River Festival's purpose is to foster connections and signal unity between the two river cities. In this urban region, the river is a vital natural resource and important for commerce, industry and trade. It is a source of drinking water and also a means of recreation.

Hosted collaboratively by the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary on the Philadelphia side and the Center for Aquatic Sciences on the Camden side, the festival kicked off River Days 2023. Both groups are partners of DRBC under the Our Shared Waters initiative, which is an effort of Delaware River Basin stakeholder groups to educate the public and decisionmakers about the current state of the Basin and the opportunities available to support its continued sustainability.

DRBC staff thoroughly enjoyed participating in this event that focuses attention on the Delaware River and its estuarine environment around Philadelphia and Camden.

DRBC staff (blue shirts) talk to people at the Delaware River Festival. Photo by the DRBC. Click for larger image.	A family enjoys playing with DRBC's baggo boards at the festival. Photo by the DRBC. Click for larger image.	The Delaware River as seen from Camden's waterfront. Photo by the DRBC. Click for larger image.

Check out this timelapse of our table at the 2023 Delaware River Festival. We had a great time chatting about our shared water resources with everyone who stopped by!

DRBC staff chat with a young attendee at the Trenton River Days Fair. Photo by the DRBC. Click for larger image.

The DRBC team was thrilled to return to the Trenton River Days Fair this year at Trenton's South Riverwalk Park! The fair allowed attendees to participate in fun, free and interactive activities that celebrated our shared water resources and highlighted the local community.  

Our staff proudly teamed up for another year with SPLASH. SPLASH stands for Student Participation in Learning Aquatic Science & History and is a Lambertville-based nonprofit whose mission is to provide unique educational adventures that inspire both children and adults to learn about the Delaware Watershed, STEM sciences, local history and more. The organization has also been a longstanding partner of DRBC through the Our Shared Waters initiative, which seeks to build public awareness of the far-reaching natural resource value of the Delaware River Basin. 

Together, DRBC and SPLASH teamed up to teach about macroinvertebrates (aquatic bugs or macros) in the Delaware River. Many folks who stopped by the SPLASH/DRBC table were surprised to learn that these bugs are actually an important indicator of water quality. Macros are found nestled on a waterway's bottom amidst muddy sediments and under rocks. Because some macroinvertebrates are so sensitive to water conditions (and referred to scientifically as "pollution intolerant"), if they are found in present conditions, it means that water quality is clean enough to support their survival. Examples of "pollution intolerant" macroinvertebrates include mayflies, stoneflies and caddisflies.

Members of the SPLASH team collected live macros from the Delaware River to bring to display for fair attendees. The samples included several pollution intolerant species, which indicates clean and healthy water at their sample site. DRBC brought older preserved samples of different macro species, ranging from tiny worm-like creatures to much bigger organisms that are easier to see with the naked eye. Mayflies, dobsonflies and stoneflies were just some of the many macros festivalgoers were able to get up close to and learn more about at our table.

The Trenton River Festival was a great opportunity to bring the worlds of science, experiential learning and local knowledge together. Our staff was thrilled to see people of all ages get excited about this science. Their excitement shows just how much local communities have a stake in learning about what lives beneath the surface in their backyards—and, by extension, the role we all can play in water resource stewardship.

This educational community event was a part of River Days 2023 and organized by a host of Trenton-area organizations, showing the true value of local partnerships. Thank you to The Watershed Institute, Mercer County Park Commission, Tulpehaking Nature Center, Friends for the Abbott Marshlands, the Alliance for Watershed Education of the Delaware River, Mercer County, ArtWorks and the City of Trenton for putting on this great event!

Four young adults visit the DRBC table. Photo by the DRBC. Click for large image.	Two people stop by the DRBC table to talk about the river. Photo by the DRBC. Click for larger image.	A map of activity locations for the 2023 Trenton River Days Fair. Photo by the DRBC. Click for larger image.