Alberta Lake Management Society Newsletter
February 2015
Why Is My Lake Changing Colour?

Minnie Lake, 2014.
In 2014, two of the lakes ALMS monitored through the LakeWatch program suddenly turned glacial in colour. While this might sound picturesque, it can be an alarming phenomenon for lake residents - so what is the most likely cause of these surprising occurrences?

These events, referred to in the literature as 'whiting events', are not entirely uncommon: in the summer of 2001, all of Lake Michigan turned white as observed from a NASA satellite.  Fortunately, the cause of most whiting events, calcium precipitation, is rather benign. According to a review paper by Dittrich and Obst (2004), calcium precipitation is induced by the photosynthetic activities of picoplankton, a microscopic group of phytoplankton. These events typically occur at the height of picoplankton biomass, and, while many factors can influence the likelihood of a whiting event, mesotrophic lakes seem to be the most susceptible.

Since 2010, ALMS has observed three whiting events - all of which occurred in mesotrophic lakes: Crane Lake, Minnie Lake, and Marie Lake.

Has your lake experienced a whiting event? Let us know!
Lake Michigan, 2004.
Stewardship Opportunities in 2015!

  Mayatan Lake                                         
Though it is only February, many lake stewards are looking ahead to the summer of 2015 and asking themselves: what can we do?

 

Fortunately, opportunities for citizen scientists at lakes are numerous:

 

  • The LakeWatch Program, our most rigorous monitoring program, pairs local stewards with ALMS technicians in order to collect water quality data throughout the summer months. While our program size is always dependent on funding - make sure you contact ALMS to have your lake added to our list of potential lakes for 2015!
  • Maybe you're interested in aquatic plants? Attend one of our Invasive Aquatic Plant workshops this summer to learn how to monitor for these potential threats! Or, contact ALMS to bring one of these workshops to your community!
  • Interested in tracking water clarity throughout the summer? Why not contact ALMS for more information on our Secchi Disk Program? This is a simple tool that can provide you with lots of valuable water quality data about your lake!
  • In 2015, AWQA Kits will be made free to order on our website! These kits are great tools for teaching about important water quality parameters such as pH and temperature, and are a great way to get your feet wet!
  • Tossing and turning at night thinking about zebra and quagga mussels? Contact ALMS for a zebra and quagga mussel substrate to keep an eye out for these harmful invasive species!

Don't see something you're interested in? Let us know and we can help you come up with stewardship activities for your lake!  

Aquatic Invasive Species
In early January, ALMS was fortunate to attend the Alberta Aquatic Invasive     Species Summit in Calgary, AB. This was an informative event with knowledgeable speakers. One of the main highlights was hearing from other jurisdictions who already have serious invasive species: how did they contain the threat? what eradication methods have been tested? how did the public respond to the strategies?

In 2014, the Alberta Water Council had Hutchinson Environmental Ltd. produce a report which examined the strategies used by other jurisdictions to manage and prevent invasive species. The report can be found here.

Moving forward, Alberta will have to pull what works from other jurisdictions to create a strong invasive species plan for our province. Who will fund the programs? Who will be in charge of a rapid response plan? Will rapid response plans be species specific? These are all questions which many people are working hard to answer - and we look forward to being a part of that conversation moving forward!

This summer, look for ALMS collecting data on invasive aquatic mussels and plants! Also, keep an eye out for the sniffer dogs once again working at highway check stops!

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Whats new?

Events
Trochu, AB March 26
  
Environmental Jobs!
 
ALMS has been out and about!
ALMS presented at the Old Timer's Fishing Club on January 13th!

ALMS presented a portion of a presentation at the Alberta Aquatic Invasive Species Summit on January 14th!

ALMS presented in Bonnyville at the Moose Lake AGM on February 3rd!

ALMS was in attendance at the Stewards in Motion event on February 5th!

ALMS shared a booth with LILSA at SnoMo Days out on Lac Ste.Anne on February 15th!

ALMS attended the ABMI Better Management Through Environmental Monitoring conference on February 17th!