 The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife's (WDFW) Puget Sound Assessment and Monitoring Program (PSAMP), Snohomish County Marine Resources Committee (MRC), Snohomish County Public Works-Surface Water Management, Washington Sea Grant, and NOAA's Mussel Watch collaborated to; “conduct field-sampling for the 2009/10 Mussel Watch season in Washington waters, evaluate the possibility of merging field sampling with existing toxic contaminant monitoring in Puget Sound, demonstrate and evaluate the use citizen scientists as a primary resource for conducting field work and investigate the feasibility of Mussel Watch as a monitoring tool in Puget Sound.” This involved a representative from NOAA assisting PSAMP staff and volunteers with a successful sampling of all Mussel Watch sites.The result of this pilot project was a significant reduction in labor time of professional staff in the field due to the assistance and proper training of citizen scientist volunteers.Proper training of volunteers is necessary to maintain consistent and accurate collection methods.