On Friday, 18 September 2026, Iimbovane welcomed a group of learners from Academy Private School, in Kuils River, to mark World Water Monitoring Day 2026 with a hands-on exploration of freshwater diversity and river health.

Learners explored the Eerste River’s urban route in Stellenbosch, to observe how the surrounding land-use may be impacting the river quality.

The morning’s activities kicked off with an interactive icebreaker by Zanlie van Zyl, a post-graduate student from The Centre for Invasion Biology to unwind learners and shake off some nerves. The learners were then introduced to the day’s activities and the different components used to assess water quality, including biological, chemical and physical characteristics, as well as the three main zones of a river system.

After a brief walk to the river, they all positioned themselves into their working groups and used the mini Stream Assessment Scoring System (miniSASS), a biomonitoring tool used to assess water quality in rivers. They sampled for aquatic invertebrates and classified each organism they found into its specific group, and thereafter used their findings to determine the health and quality of the river.

In addition to the biological assessment, the learners also measured physical characteristics, including water temperature, flow rate and river depth.

When discussing their findings, the learners considered that the heavy rain before the excursion had caused the river to flow strongly, which may have affected which river invertebrates were found during sampling. The group also explored the life cycles of different river invertebrates, and considering whether seasonal life-cycle patterns could help explain the absence of certain groups from their sampling.

The day provided an opportunity for learners to connect their classroom knowledge with real-life river monitoring and to better understand the factors that influence freshwater ecosystems.

Water sampling and microscopic analysis with Academy Private School