“The goal of the Ontario Lake Partner Program (LPP) is to better understand and protect the quality of Ontario’s inland lakes by engaging citizens in a volunteer-based water quality monitoring program. The program is a long-term collaboration between the Federation of Ontario Cottagers’ Associations (FOCA) and the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP) with annual water samples analyzed by Ministry scientists at the Dorset Environmental Science Centre (DESC).”[1]
The Federation of Ontario Cottagers Association (FOCA) has partnered since 1996 in the Lake Partner Program (LPP). The LPP is a province-wide, volunteer-based, water-quality monitoring program – the largest of its kind in Canada. Each year, over 600 volunteers collect total water samples and make monthly water clarity observations on their lakes. Ministry scientists at the Dorset Environmental Science Centre (DESC) analyze for total Phosphorus, and in some water bodies for Calcium and Chloride. A very good document that outlines the water quality issues, the history and current operation and management of the LPP program and discussion about the data collected can be found in the following link:
https://foca.on.ca/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/LPP-Long-Report_FINAL-REPORT.pdf
[1] https://foca.on.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Lake-Partner-Program-Volunteer-Registration-Form.pdf
Bay Of Islands Community Association