SANDPOINT — Local residents love their lake, and now they can take a more active role in protecting it than ever before.

The Lake Pend Oreille Waterkeeper is launching the second season of a citizen’s science program designed to keep a watchful eye on local water quality. According to Lake Pend Oreille Waterkeeper program director Kelsey Brasseur, the program will provide an avenue for residents to become more involved than ever in improving ecological health throughout the region.

“It’s really important for people to feel empowered about the quality of local waters and to know they can go swimming safely,” Brasseur said.

The system for testing water quality is simple enough to learn. Lake Pend Oreille Water Keeper provides a kit with everything an individual needs to conduct 12 different biological, chemical and physical tests, all of which have an impact on overall water quality. For instance, tests can detect E. Coli and total coliform bacteria.

“The more data we collect, the more knowledge we will have about the health of our local water resources,” said Shannon Williamson, Lake Pend Oreille Waterkeeper executive director.

 These tests are spread out over 15 monitoring sites between June and October on Lake Pend Oreille and the Pend Oreille River from Bayview to Priest River.

According to Brasseur, the more popular locations for the public, like Sand Creek and City Beach, are tested once a week.

The  water quality monitoring project does more than ease local minds, Brasseur added. The data collected through monitoring can be used in studies or to help inform state decisions over matters of environmental protection and conservation.

To help that effort, Brasseur and Williamson are working on a quality assurance project plan for the monitoring program. A guiding document that explains the methods and objectives of a project, QAPPs go a long way to legitimize the data, Brasseur said.

Even further down the road, the water monitoring project can contribute toward building a baseline data set, which can go a long way toward identifying trends and providing more educated analysis.

A baseline data set can take many years to build. However, Brasseur said the monitoring program is off to a great start.

The water quality monitoring program is excellent for any volunteer interested in science and conservation, from students to adults. Interested individuals can get involved by stopping by the Lake Pend Oreille Waterkeeper office, 109b First Ave., Sandpoint, or by visiting www.lakependoreillewaterkeeper.org and clicking the “Get Involved” tab.

“It’s a lot of fun to get out on the lake and take these samples,” Brasseur said. “It definitely beats going around and picketing.”  

Info: 597-7188