Eyeonwater Australia

Australia's rivers, lakes, estuaries, and coastal waters span vast and often remote regions, making frequent water quality monitoring both expensive and logistically challenging. CSIRO scientists require more ground-based observations to validate satellite data, monitor changes in water quality, and build long-term environmental datasets. At the same time, communities, schools, and citizen scientists are eager to contribute to protecting their local waterways. 

Website: https://research.csiro.au/eyeonwater/

EyeOnWater Australia leverages the dedicated EyeOnWater Australia mobile app and the underlying EyeOnWater.org platform to support everyday citizens to be environmental observers.

Using their smartphone, volunteers visit a local water body and take a photograph of the water surface following simple guidance provided by the app. They then record observations including:

Once submitted, every observation is automatically uploaded to the EyeOnWater.org platform where it is validated and stored. Via data access services the data is made available via CSIRO developed user interfaces and publications to researchers, educators and environmental managers: https://research.csiro.au/eyeonwater/.  The platform creates a growing national database of observations contributed by communities across Australia.

Teachers incorporate the app into science and environmental education. Students learn about water quality while contributing real scientific observations, connecting classroom learning with hands-on fieldwork.

EyeOnWater observations complement satellite imagery used by Australia's AquaWatch initiative. Ground observations help calibrate and validate satellite measurements, improving the accuracy of national water quality monitoring and forecasting.

Scientists use the accumulated observations to study seasonal and long-term changes in water colour, algal activity, and aquatic ecosystem health. The data extends a scientific record based on the Forel-Ule colour scale that spans more than 200 years.

By combining citizen science with cloud-based data collection, EyeOnWater Australia enables:

Increased geographic coverage of water quality observations

Faster collection of field data at low cost

Community engagement in environmental stewardship

Improved validation of satellite-derived water quality products

A continuously expanding national database supporting research and environmental management

EyeOnWater Australia demonstrates how a simple smartphone application can connect thousands of individual observations into a valuable scientific resource. Every uploaded observation strengthens Australia's understanding of its waterways while encouraging public participation in protecting one of the nation's most important natural resources.

The result is a collaborative monitoring network where citizens, schools, researchers, and environmental agencies work together through the EyeOnWater.org platform to improve the monitoring and management of Australia's freshwater and coastal ecosystems.

Whether you are participating in Eyeonwater Australia or observing waters elsewhere in the world, EyeOnWater makes it possible for everyone to contribute to water science. Together, citizen scientists are creating one of the largest collections of water colour observations