The Open Source Science Project: Public involvement in a longitudinal nutrient survey of the MissouriMississippi River

*Priyan Weerappuli1, Jeffrey Strock2, William Richardson3, Robert Hrabik4, Jason Crites4, R. Eugene Turner5, Clifford Ochs6
1The

Open Source Science Project, 2University of Minnesota, 3USGS La Crosse WI, 4Missouri Dept. Conservation, 5Louisiana State University, 6University of Mississippi
The research project proposal was posted on The OSSP website and included the total budget needed to conduct the study, an itemized breakdown of the costs comprising the total budget, a map (embedded from Google maps) displaying all 606 proposed sampling sites, and a detailed overview of the research study and its objectives. Individuals seeking to volunteer as samplers were provided with a web form where they could enter their zip code in order to identify the sampling sites nearest to them; and were provided with a second form through which to request the sites they were willing and able to sample.
Used with permission: Wikimedia Commons

Abstract
In October 2010 we proposed, and initiated, a citizen-led nutrient survey of the MissouriMississippi River system. The goals of this survey were to: (1) identify hot spots where nutrients may be entering the river system in particularly high concentrations; (2) better understand the processes by which these nutrients are transported along the length of the river before they are ultimately released into the Gulf of Mexico; and (3) increase the transparency of the research process to the public by improving access to high quality scientific information, and creating opportunities for citizens to directly participate in the acquisition of new knowledge. In the eight months that followed, we raised funds for this project via small grants (microinvestments) submitted by individual citizens; and recruited volunteer samplers from colleges and universities immediately surrounding the river system. Challenges encountered with regard to the implementation of citizen science on this scale have included those derived from (1) coordinating a large group of distributed volunteers; (2) raising funds for basic research projects; and (3) addressing volunteer/investor concerns regarding external events (e.g. flooding).

Contact information was also provided for volunteers and investors to contact the research team.

Materials and Methods Summary and Conclusions

Fund-raising and the recruitment of volunteers for the survey were primarily conducted via a web-based platform, and a series of outreach efforts including media interviews, Facebook ads/messages, and direct phone/email announcements. Investors submitted anonymous investments and commitments to invest via a series of web forms posted on The OSSP website. Volunteer samplers were recruited primarily from colleges and universities located in the regions immediately surrounding the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers, and were contacted via phone calls/emails to faculty, interviews/articles submitted to news outlets, partnerships with non-profit organizations (i.e. the 1 Mississippi Campaign), and in-person laboratory visits. Testing services were contracted to TestAmerica Laboratories, and all documentation pertaining to these services (i.e. cost estimates, testing protocols, and material sources) were posted online alongside the project proposal. The two fundamental challenges encountered in preparing the citizen-led nutrient survey initially proposed, proved to be (1) raising and retaining the funds submitted by individual investors and (2) addressing questions and concerns expressed by investors and volunteers regarding (a) the effect of flood events on the validity of experimental results, (b) the effect of flood events and media coverage of flood events upon the subsequent public perception of experimental results, and (c) a lack of general understanding regarding the conditions that could be defined as normal river conditions. In developing similar citizen-led research projects in the future, variables worth further study are the expectations with which individuals invest in such research, and what steps can be taken to unify these expectations with the realities of scientific inquiry.
* Corresponding author. priyan@theopensourcescienceproject.com

Over the course of seven months, an estimated 175 volunteer samplers were assigned to sites located on the Upper Mississippi and Missouri Rivers. Assigned sampling sites along the Lower Mississippi River were more sparse due to the lack of colleges and universities near the river.

Objective
To gain a greater understanding of the source and seasonal patterns which characterize the introduction of nutrients into these rivers, and the eventual transport of these nutrients into the Gulf of Mexico where they are believed to be responsible for the creation of hypoxic zones.

Two fundamental decisions regarding this project were made in the interest of ensuring volunteer safety. The first decision was to add hydrochloric acid preservative to the sample bottles at the TestAmerica Laboratory, . and by the TestAmerica staff, as opposed to doing so in the field. The second decision was to schedule sampling dates only if river levels were below flood stage.