2010-2011 Citizens Lake Awareness and Monitoring (CLAM)
General
Problem Description
The Ohio Lake Management Society (OLMS) has developed a pilot program that will teach volunteers to take water quality samples of nine lakes in the Muskingum watershed. The project will provide water quality sampling while providing important data to the MWCD and Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.
Solution Description
The project consisted of three parts. The first part was a pilot project to collect expanded water quality data at nine MWCD lakes (water temperature/ oxygen profiles, total phosphorous, total nitrogen, chlorophyll, and standard Level I SECCHI data.) The second part includes ongoing training and coordination of other CLAM volunteers to collect data on MWCD lakes twice per month during the six-month program period. The third part consists of training and coordination of interested volunteers to sample other non-MWCD lakes within the Muskingum Watershed. As part of this phase, high school classes, youth camps and fishing clubs will be targeted for CLAM training. The Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife will provide sampling kits and sample analysis as well as training volunteers on how to properly collect, preserve, package and ship water samples.
Grant Funding
Valuable baseline water quality data along with sediment loading data on selected tributaries will be collected. In addition, from an education and outreach perspective, the CLAM training and Lake Ecology Education Program will engage citizens to get involved in their watershed.
2010 grant application:
Total Project Cost: $155,180
Requested Grant: $93,685
Recommended Grant: $85,685
Due to the success of the initial year, the grant was approved 2011 and 2012. Over the three years of the project, total grants in the amount of $110,285 have been awarded.
Location Information
Testing will take place at Atwood, Charles Mill, Clendening, Leesville, Piedmont, Pleasant Hill, Seneca, Tappan and Wills Creek Reservoirs.
Activity Log
Project approved by the MWCD Board of Directors on April 23, 2010.
OLMS began training volunteers for CLAM Spring of 2010. Upon completion of training volunteers began water sampling and data collection at the reservoirs listed above. Data was collected throughout summer months and analyzed. A preliminary report on the program was presented at the Water Management Association of Ohio (WMAO) conference in Columbus in November 2010.
OLMS applied for funding through the PWM grant program to continue CLAM through 2011 and 2012.
OLMS became a division of the Water Management Association of Ohio in the fall of 2011.
This partnership has evolved to become part of the MWCD Conservation program, and as of 2012 is no longer funded by PWM grants. The portion of the project associated with the PWM grant has been completed.
Partners
