Rich Gradoville reads the results of a test strip he dipped into a spot along the Des Moines River to monitor the nitrate levels, and records the results on an app on his phone. (Photo by Cami Koons/Iowa Capital Dispatch)
On Monday mornings, Rich Gradoville visits the streams near his home in Johnston, not for fishing or recreating, but to test the nitrate concentration of the flowing water.
The retired school teacher is part of a network of citizen scientists contributing to the Nitrate Watch program, through the Izaak Walton League of America, to monitor the levels of nitrate and nitrite in surface and drinking water across the country…