Students from Three Rivers Community College conducted their biannual rapid bioassessment for branches of the Eightmile River in Lyme, Salem and East Haddam on April 30. Salem resident Diba Khan-Bureau, professor of civil and environmental engineering at Three Rivers, said her classes have volunteered to do the studies for the last 15 years.

For the assessment, volunteers collect and identify insect larvae and other invertebrates from the water, and the data is submitted to the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. Khan-Bureau said the invertebrate population of a stream is an indicator of water quality, and the April 30 surveys indicated the Eightmile River is in good health.