What Have Volunteers Found?
After Several years of monitoring a particular site, a valuable record of water quality trends is established. the three LWLM graphs on this page document seasonal changes in water temperature and dissolved oxygen for a five-year period.
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The gray, dashed lines represent the minimum standard of dissolved oxygen (5ppm) for waterbodies classified as "Fish and Wildlife". Sources of all data: Deutsch et al. 1995, 1996, 1998b, 1998c, 1999. |
| Citizen Monitors: |
BJ and Bill Niedermeier Bill and Linda Stewart |
| Citizen Monitors: |
Dick and Mary Bronson |
| Citizen Monitors: |
Stan and Virginia Pietrzykowski Diana and David French |
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Water Quality at the three sites (left) was generally similar. Surface water temperature of the lake varied from about 7 to 32 degrees centigrade(C) on an annual cycle. Dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations fluctuated inversly with temperature (as expected) and ranged from about 6 to 11 parts per million (ppm) at sites 3 and 5. These DO values were consistently above the minimum 5 ppm required for the "Fish and Wildlife" classification. |
Dissolved oxygen at site 2 (closer to effluents and runoff from Alexander City) was sometimes below 5 ppm in the summer, indicating pollution in the upper part of the lake.
This water quality information reveals the importance of sampling several sites on a lake. Water quality often varies place to place because of natural factors or pollution. Gathering data from many sites leads to a better lake assessment and better lake management.
This report was compiled by Alabama Water Watch program personnel
in partnership with Lake Watch of Lake Martin.
