How to add a report to Water Reporter

“I wish this form was more complicated,” said no one ever. With that in mind, we designed the Water Reporter reporting feature for individuals to populate our interactive maps and news feeds to stay vigilant about the health of our waterways. With Water Reporter, you can singlehandedly share critical observations regardless of what you’re doing outdoors.

Just to be clear, to log viable data through the Water Reporter community you don’t need to attend a day long training, get sent a special monitoring kit, or dictate highly specific directions to your coordinators. Organizations and individuals alike can use Water Reporter to collect and share information to restore watersheds. But even the most savvy user on the most intuitive platform can get a leg up with few guiding steps on how to submit a report.

So we’re dedicating a whole post to exploring the core of Water Reporter: submitting a report. This is an action that every single user will use in Water Reporter, so understanding how to do it and what it does is important.

Submitting a Report

This is the screen where every new report gets born. Let’s walk through how to submit a report from your favorite watershed spot.

1. Tap on the camera icon to add a photo. You can take a photo or choose one from your library.
2. Write a few words about the photo in the comments field.
3. Confirm or backdate the report submission date.
4. Press the pinpoint to confirm the location. The blue circle shows the location.
5. To associate your report to a group, toggle on the organization. You can choose from any affiliated organization.
6. When you have filled every field to your satisfaction, click the blue circle to share the report.

What happens to your submitted report?

Unlike other pollution reporting and citizen science apps, we want you to stay engaged after contributing. Every submitted report automatically appears in a minimum of three places: on your profile, in affiliated organization and watershed feeds, and on the Water Reporter community map. And anytime comments are added or action is taken on your report, you’ll receive a notification email. You can explore other reports, write comments, and connect with other users.

Where do notifications come in to play?

1. If you toggled an organization, an administrator from that organization will receive a notification email when you submit the report.
2. Any time someone comments on your report, you’ll receive an email. If an organization administrator takes action on your report, you’ll receive an email.

That way, going forward, every time something in the watershed inspires you, concerns you, or catches your attention, you will remember to submit a report. Now go forth and report!