2008 Lake Vermilion CLMP+ Study

Mid-Summer Progress Report     by Mel Hintz

[Edited from an article in the August 2008 issue of The Vermilion Sportsman]

In early July, Sportsmen’s Club volunteers completed the first half of the collection, processing, and shipping of water samples from the eight sites selected for study as part of the state-sponsored Citizen Lake Monitoring Program Plus (CLMP+). A map showing the location of the eight sites is shown below and in the May issue of our Sportsmen’s Club newsletter. Samples were collected on June 2nd , June 23rd, and July 7th. The volunteers will get a break as staff from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) will be collecting water samples from the eight sites during the third week of July. This allows them to check the accuracy of our work as well as to re-supply our three volunteer teams with the materials needed for the remainder of the season which has sampling dates scheduled for August 4th, August 18th, and September 2nd. MPCA staff will also be collecting the last set of samples for this season in late September.

For each of our three volunteer teams, the process of field collection, on shore processing, and delivery of the samples for shipment to the lab takes approximately four hours. Following is the sampling procedure for each site: 1) locate the site using GPS coordinates, 2) fill in the data and observation sheet, 3) note current weather conditions, the physical condition of the lake water, and the lake’s recreational suitability, 4) take a Secchi transparency reading, 5) record a temperature and dissolved oxygen profile from the lake surface to the bottom, and 6) collect water samples for laboratory analysis and/or on shore processing.

On shore processing consists of filtering the lake water to collect a chlorophyll-a sample and preserving an algae sample by adding Lugol’s solution. The MPCA provides specialized equipment and supplies used in the collection and processing of the water samples. The samples are refrigerated or frozen (in the case of the chlorophyll sample) before they are packed in ice and delivered to the DNR Office in Tower or the U.S. Forest Service Office in Cook for shipment to the lab the following day.

MPCA staff will analyze the laboratory results and prepare a written report after the sampling is completed in late September. Their report will be covered in a future issue of our newsletter and will be posted on this website.

High Resolution Map Available 

A high resolution version of the map above is available here [1040 KB PDF] for those with broadband internet connections.

[Editor's note: The hi-res map uses special cartography fonts that do not display properly in some internet browsers. If the red triangles marking each sample site are not visible on the hi-res map in your browser, we recommend you "right-click" on the link above, save the PDF file on your computer, and then use Adobe Reader® to display or print the map.]