The LakeKeepers manual is a comprehensive guide to lake stewardship and ecology in British Columbia. Anyone concerned or even curious about our provincial lakes will find this manual useful and informative. It is an educational resource, lake monitoring training guide, and toolkit for developing successful community stewardship initiatives. 

The 2022 version of the manual is now available by clicking on the adjacent image. If you have any comments on the manual, please let us know, as we will be updating it on an annual basis.

The BCLSS invites anyone with an interest in lake conservation to become a member of the society, so that we can work together to strengthen the stewardship sector and keep lakes clean and healthy, for generations to come.

Good water quality is important for aquatic life and wildlife that rely on lakes for food and habitat, and to people, who use lakes for drinking water, fishing, boating, swimming, other recreational uses, and for the natural beauty they offer. There is an increasing need for individuals and groups throughout the province to take on a greater role in stewardship activities and water quality monitoring as citizen scientists. Collection of lake data by citizen scientists is important for the protection of lake water quality. Volunteer-collected data provides valuable baseline and background information, that helps us examine and understand what is happening in aquatic environments and observe long term trends.

The BCLSS and the BC Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy (ENV) recognize the importance of citizen science and assists individuals and local groups with taking on a greater role in caring for lakes through the BC Lake Stewardship and Monitoring Program (BCLSMP). This program was launched in 2003, in partnership between BCLSS, the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy (ENV), and volunteers. Visit the new BCLSMP website.

Under the BCLSMP, volunteers are provided with training, equipment, and support to facilitate the collection of water quality data and observations from lakes in BC. The program is unique in that it gives dedicated volunteers the knowledge and tools to become stewards of their favourite lake. It also promotes community-based involvement and extensive collaboration efforts.

LEVELS OF STUDY

This program includes five different levels of monitoring. The level of study that is chosen is based on the volunteer commitment, resources available to the region, and the specific concerns for the lake itself. The BCLSS currently manages all provincial Level 1 programs while ENV manages all Level 2 & 3 programs.

After three years of monitoring, the data collected by volunteers from each lake will be summarized into a lake-specific report by the BCLSS. It is important to note, however, that a minimum of 12 equally spaced samples taken throughout the spring/summer seasons are required in order to conduct meaningful data analysis. The lake reports are reader-friendly and will describe the trends in the lake parameters that were monitored. The report will also provide the residents and seasonal users of the lakes with an idea of potential changes in water quality and will identify any problems associated with these changes. Where possible, the reports will make recommendations for further lake monitoring and assessment. Please refer to our library page to view lake reports already completed.

The Secchi Dip-In takes place during Lakes Appreciation Month, July 1^st to 31^st. This is an international effort of the North American Lake Management Society during which volunteers collect a snapshot of the water quality in their local lake. Volunteers from across North America have participated in this event for over twenty-five years, gathering important environmental information about their lakes. The BCLSS has been a collaborator of this event in BC since 2002!

The Secchi disk is one of the most basic tools for evaluating water quality of lakes. It measures water transparency (clarity) which is a good indicator of the impacts from human activity on the land surrounding a water body. If transparency is measured through the season and from year to year, trends in transparency can be observed. It can serve as an early warning that activities on the land are affecting water quality. 

Father Pietro Angelo Secchi, scientific advisor to the Pope, was asked by Commander Cialdi, head of the Papal Navy, to develop and test a new water transparency instrument in the Mediterranean Sea.  This instrument, now named the Secchi disk, was first lowered from the papal steam yacht l’Immacolata Concezione (The Immaculate Concenption) in the Mediterranean Sea on April 20, 1865.

The typical Secchi disk used in lakes is an 8-inch disk with alternating black and white quadrants. It is lowered into the water until the observer can no longer see it. The depth of disappearance, called the Secchi depth, is a measure of the transparency of the water. 

Transparency decreases as the amount of particulate materials – such as algae and suspended sediment –  increases. In other words, the water becomes less clear when there is more algae or sediment suspended in the water. The amount of algae that grows in a lake is affected by the amount of nutrients coming from sewage treatment plants, septic tanks, and lawn and agricultural fertilizer, as well as suspended sediments washed from construction sites, agricultural fields, urban storm runoff, or  churned upward from bottom deposits. Determining water clarity is the first step in assessing the health of a lake. 

The BC Lake Stewardship Society organizes the provincial Dip-In and submits the data to the North American Lake Management Society (NALMS). You can explore historical Dip-In data on the Water Quality Portal.

If you would like to participate in the Secchi Dip-In, please contact marie@bclss.org. Put your lake on the map!