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Announcing our NC State Lab Certification in Benthic Macroinvertebrate Sampling!

February 5, 2025

Northern basin lab becomes first state-certified non-profit macroinvertebrate sampling lab in North Carolina

Great news from our Northern Catawba Basin! The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s (DEQ) Division of Water Resources has recently certified Catawba Riverkeeper’s Northern Basin lab for benthic macroinvertebrate sampling, a common method of water quality assessment. This method examines the presence of aquatic insects in streams—the presence of diverse, stable, and pollution-sensitive populations of these macroinvertebrates indicates good water quality. In other words, when water quality deteriorates, certain animals serve as indicators of the change in water health.


To support the work being done across the state of North Carolina to monitor water quality in this way, our Northern Basin Director, Grant Buckner, spent the last two years completing requirements to become a state-certified laboratory for the use of macroinvertebrates to monitor water quality. After countless hours of training in the lab and the field, and after completing multiple bioclassification assessments, we have successfully demonstrated our capability and proficiency in performing biological analyses for certified parameters. This means that Catawba Riverkeeper is now qualified to report biological monitoring data to the Division of Water Resources for compliance with National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System regulations. Catawba Riverkeeper is now one of only eight labs in the state of North Carolina to receive this certification, and the only non-profit lab to do so.


With this certification, we will be able to conduct assessments of streams that have been overlooked or where new concerns have arisen. Not only will these assessments better inform our restoration work (and the work of our partners), but data from this lab will also influence the NC Department of Environmental Quality’s 303(d) list of degraded water quality in streams across the state.


This newly state-certified lab is located in the Foothills Conservancy of NC’s building in downtown Morganton, NC, where Grant Buckner is based, along with our Lake James Program Manager, Sophie McCarthy. Foothills Conservancy and the Lake James Environmental Association have been important partners in our shared work to protect water quality in the region.


This state laboratory certification has been made possible by generous contributions from Chip & Martha Whitfield, the Rostan Family Foundation, the Community Foundation of Burke County, and the Attorney General Environmental Enhancement Grant.

Navigating the Legislative Process: How You Can Help Shape Laws to Protect the Catawba-Wateree River

By Ellie Riggs • January 17, 2025
On January 8th, the Policy Team traveled to Raleigh to kick off the 2025-2026 Legislative Session and celebrate the swearing-in of North Carolina’s 170 new lawmakers. Just a week later, South Carolina’s 126th General Assembly convened in Columbia. Congratulations to all the new legislators! We are excited to work with you to protect the waters of the Catawba-Wateree River. Before we dive into the details of our advocacy work this year, let’s take a step back to your middle school civics class. What exactly is a General Assembly? What is a legislative session? And how does an idea become a law? In both North and South Carolina, the General Assembly is the government body responsible for making state laws. It’s divided into two chambers: the House of Representatives and the Senate. Each member of the General Assembly is elected for a two-year term to represent the constituents from their district—including you! In January of each odd-numbered year, the new NC and SC General Assemblies convene for the first time in Raleigh and Columbia to begin their legislative sessions. During this time, legislators meet with constituents, lobbyists, government staff, and each other to discuss issues and solutions, introduce bills (drafted proposals for new laws), and vote on legislation. The goal of a legislative session is to create and pass laws that address state needs and shape the future of our communities. In NC, the General Assembly meets on a biennial schedule, with a “Long Session” from January to August of odd-numbered years and a “Short Session” in May of even-numbered years to adjust the budget. SC’s General Assembly convenes annually from January to May. So, how does a bill become a law? The process begins when a concerned citizen or advocacy group, like Catawba Riverkeeper, presents an idea to a legislator. If the idea gains support, it’s drafted into a bill and introduced into one chamber, where it’s debated and refined by a committee. If the bill passes the first chamber (in NC, this must happen before May 9th of the Long Session), the process repeats in the second. Once both chambers approve the bill, the governor can sign it into law. However, it’s rarely as simple as the Schoolhouse Rock “I’m Just a Bill” song suggests. Proposing a bill requires a tremendous amount of work, including extensive background research, numerous meetings with legislators, and meticulous conversations and email exchanges to fine-tune the text. Even after this, the bill can face delays, revisions in committee, or a veto from the governor. No wonder “Bill” from “I’m Just a Bill” looks so worn out! There is still one crucial step in the process that Schoolhouse Rock left out, and it involves YOU! As a constituent, your voice can directly influence laws that impact your life. Legislators derive their power from the people they represent, and their decisions are shaped by your concerns. Urging your Senator and Representative to support bills that matter to you is a powerful way to help pass legislation. It’s easy to do! Visit ncleg.gov or scstatehouse.gov to find your lawmakers’ contact information. You can email them to express your support for bills you care about. These websites also let you track the progress of bills as they move through the legislative process. Despite the challenges and complexity of the legislative process, advocating for our river is a central part of Catawba Riverkeeper. Every piece of our 2025-2026 Legislative Agenda and every bill we support has the potential to make meaningful impact on the health of our streams, rivers, lakes, and communities. Advocacy is also a team effort. While the Policy Team is brainstorming new ways to address stormwater runoff, meeting with legislators to discuss the importance of outdoor recreation, and drafting legislation to support disaster recovery, the work of advocating for our waterways requires all our voices coming together to create positive change. We hope that you will join us in being a voice for our waters this legislative session! Visit our Advocacy Page to learn more.

Highlights from 2024

December 20, 2024
Another busy year is in the books!

Progress continues this fall at the Outdoor Classroom

November 18, 2024
Though the direct impacts from Hurricane Helene were not as severe throughout the Lower Catawba and Wateree watersheds within our basin, there was still significant flooding and ensuing damage. When our Southern Basin Watershed Manager, Rachael Rosenstein, visited our Outdoor Classroom property in Fort Lawn, SC a few days after the Hurricane passed through, it was evident that the property had essentially become a part of the Catawba River as the water flowed through the fields. The local mallard population was thankful to have somewhere to shelter, but the storm left us with some downed trees and carried benches, picnic tables, and other loose items to different spots on the property. Since then, we have been able to collect all those items and return them to where they belong. Prior to Hurricane Helene, a different storm caused a tree to fall on top of the building at the property. Thanks to the help of Catawba Nation and Metcon, a general contracting company, we were able to get the house debris cleared out before the end of September. After the Hurricane, these partners were also were able to repair the damage the tree caused. Thanks to their help, the building is now sealed up, and we can use it as-needed. We have more fun projects in the works, as well! We are excited to share that we were able to put up one bat box in November (pictured above), and we will be installing another one soon. We are still working hard on the prairie restoration which we received a Duke HEP grant for in 2023 and hope to be making more progress on that this fall. Thanks to funding from the Catawba Nation Foundation and the Arras Foundation, we will be installing a park-style restroom on the property within the next year. This will allow for increased programming at the property. We also received a grant from Athletic Brewing’s Two for the Trails program that will help partially fund a boardwalk trail! We are grateful to be making headway on this project, but we are still working to raise the remain funds needed to move forward with building the boardwalk. All-in-all, we have a lot to be thankful for and a lot to look forward to at the Outdoor Classroom!
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