Aroha Walsh found all sorts of life when she waded into Fernald Brook and took water samples on a recent summer morning.

Six stoneflies. Four caddisflies. Two beetles. A midge. Three leaches. Seven worms. Two elvers. A snail. They were all right there, in the stream across from the entrance of the future Rachel Carson Wildlife Refuge on Brown Street in Kennebunk.

Aroha, a girl scout and an eighth-grader at the Middle School of the Kennebunks, visited the stream on Thursday, June 23, with Tessa Houston, who is the Maine Conservation Corps’ liaison to the refuge. They were there to collect water samples – specifically, to sort the critters they found and record them on a spreadsheet.

Aroha and Houston focused on three sites along the stream: a spot where a tree had fallen, another crowded with logs and branches, and one where plants, such as skunk cabbage and cinnamon ferns, were plentiful.

“We’re ... checking the water’s health,” Aroha said, clipboard in hand and ice cube trays filled with samples at her feet.

And they’re contributing what they find to a statewide database that will help water districts and other environmental departments and agencies to determine which streams in Maine are healthy and which may need closer attention.

Aroha is wearing a few hats as she and Houston sample streams throughout the region this summer. She’s a Girl Scout with the Daniel Webster Council's Troop 164 in New Hampshire. She’s a Stream Explorer, a current member of Maine Audubon’s community science project focusing on wildlife habitats and water quality in the state. And she is an aspiring marine biologist – someone who wants to go to college in Maine and become an advocate for the environment throughout her career.

Angels walk among us:Maine man's home gets extreme makeover thanks to volunteers

Aroha is sampling streams this summer to fulfill her scouting troop’s community service requirement, but she has become a true Stream Explorer in her own right. She has become an advocate for Stream Explorers, which she said needs volunteers to remain active, and she has even met with a representative of the Gov. Mills administration to discuss ways to raise awareness about the program.

“I think it’s really important that people start to recognize this program,” she said.

Maine Audubon partners with the Lakes Environmental Association, the state’s Department of Environmental Protection, and the Portland Water District to recruit volunteers to be Stream Explorers. Aroha went through the process of becoming one, attending webinars about collecting methods and about identifying macro-invertebrates – creatures without backbones that are visible to the human eye, as Houston described them.

Aroha can name at least three reasons why she’s interested in marine biology. To begin with, she lived in Hawaii for a few years, so she was well surrounded by the ocean – and then, of course, she moved to Kennebunkport here in Maine, where she continues to be near the water. Aroha also became interested in the health of local waters when her science teacher took her and her classmates on a field trip to explore nearby intertidal pools. Her interest skyrocketed when she then passed on her knowledge to local kindergarteners during a “Teach at the Beach” excursion.

“I think this is going to last a very long time for me,” she said.

In her notes from June 23, Aroha provided a description of the sites at Fernald Brook that she sampled. The area has “overgrown banks bordering a road,” and a “slow-moving stream emptying into a stagnant catchment area.” The stream, she wrote, has “film on the top of the water” and a “pollen and chemical sheen.” She recorded that she spotted a discarded container floating in the water.

“So far, this stream isn’t in the best condition,” Aroha said as she and Houston concluded their time at the first of three spots they would sample along the stream.

Aroha said she and Houston had found “tolerant species,” or ones that are more adaptable than sensitive or moderately sensitive ones when it comes to the salinities and temperatures of the water. Houston suggested that the spot in the stream could have a high salinity because it is located near the road, which is perhaps salted for the safety of motorists in the summertime.

The populations of tolerate, sensitive and moderately sensitive species are indications of a water’s health, according to Houston.

When Aroha emailed me last month to see if the York Weekly and Coast Star would be interested in writing about her efforts, she emphasized her gratitude for the adults who have served as mentors and worked alongside her on this project. In addition to Tessa Houston, there’s Carina Brown, of the Portland Water District, who trained Aroha; Hannah Young, the program manager at Maine Audubon who oversees the Stream Explorers Program; and Wendy Tauber, her scoutmaster in Troop 164 in Portsmouth.

“I have a lot of gratitude for everyone who’s helped me,” Aroha said.

For Aroha’s mentors, the feeling is mutual. Of working with Aroha, Houston said, “Having someone who’s enthusiastic and young is awesome.” Brown called Aroha an “inspiring young environmental steward.” Tauber also raved about the young scout.

“I am truly inspired by her,” she said of Aroha on Wednesday afternoon. “She brings with her a wealth of knowledge and leadership abilities that are just a breath of fresh air.”

Shawn P. Sullivan is an award-winning columnist and is a reporter for the York County Coast Star. He can be reached at ssullivan@seacoastonline.com.