Lake Partner Program
Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks
This program is run by the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP), and involves individuals collecting total phosphorus, chloride and calcium samples in early spring, and water clarity measurements with a Secchi disk once a month through the summer. With the exception of Little Lake which is monitored annually, inland lakes in the Severn Sound watershed are monitored by SSEA on a roughly 5 year cycle. Citizen science monitoring through the Lake Partner Program, along with SSEA’s Shore Watch program, fills the data gap in between comprehensive SSEA surveys.
As of 2022, the following inland lakes are being monitored by volunteers: Farlain Lake, Lake Couchiching, and Bass Lake.
The following inland lakes need volunteers to collect measurements: Orr Lake (historical data available), and MacLean Lake (historical data available).
If you are interested in collecting samples for any of the above lakes that are not currently being monitored, please contact the SSEA office and lakepartner@ontario.ca. Visit the MECP’s LPP website or the Federation of Ontario Cottage Association LPP page for more details.
Results
Phosphorus, Secchi depth, chloride and calcium results for any of the above lakes, as well as various locations sampled historically in Severn Sound and Honey Harbour, can be viewed here.