Mvc_watershed

Jeff Green | Sep 11, 2008

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Steve Smart (left) owner of Smart’s Marina in Cloyne, talks about Mazinaw Lake to Waste Management’s Jody Falls (centre) and Wayne French (right) during a Mississippi Valley Conservation (MVC) Watershed Watch sampling day on Mazinaw Lake this past August.

This past August, two long-time supporters of the Mississippi Valley Conservation (MVC) Watershed Watch program spent the day together with MVC staff on Mazinaw Lake.

For the past six years, Ottawa-based Waste Management (WM) has “adopted” a lake scheduled for testing through the MVC Watershed Watch program. This summer WM adopted Mazinaw Lake, the headwaters of the Mississippi watershed.

“Waste Management has had a long and successful history of supporting community initiatives. Since 2002, we have sponsored five lakes in the Watershed Watch Program: Mississippi, Mazinaw, Big Gull, Sharbot and Silver Lake. The successful sponsorship of this program allows MVC to test the clarity and quality of water in these lakes and provide lake stakeholders with detailed and accurate data for these most precious resources,” says Wayne French, WM Communications Coordinator.

“WM looks forward to continuing this program for many years to come,” French adds.

The money donated by WM supports the scheduled test dates plus an extra five sampling days on the lake ensuring comprehensive data collection for spring, summer and fall conditions.

“By continuing to sponsor Watershed Watch, Waste Management increases the monitoring schedule, thereby increasing our knowledge of the lake cycle and the data available for future analysis and planning,” says Susan Lee, MVC Environmental Monitoring Supervisor.

Smart’s Marina in Cloyne, generously provides MVC staff with a motor boat for sampling duties. Marina owner Steve Smart acted as tour guide during the late summer visit to Mazinaw Lake.

“The people at Smart’s Marina are strong supporters of MVC monitoring initiatives. The Smart family cares about their lake and its continued good health,” says Lee. “That’s good news for Mazinaw Lake and the entire watershed.”

This continued support of both community and large business is essential to sustaining this fundamental water quality monitoring program.