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The Experimental Lakes Area Nora J. Casson et. al. Field Trip: The Experimental Lakes Area Field trip: The Experimental Lakes Area Nora J. Casson Department of Geography, University of Winnipeg Morgen Burke Department of Geography, University of North Dakota Adrienne Ducharme Department of Geography, University of Winnipeg Brian McGregor Department of Geography, University of Winnipeg Jamie Paterson Department of Geography, University of Winnipeg Joseph Piwowar Department of Geography, University of Regina Kimberly Thomson Department of Geography, University of Winnipeg Nathan Wilson Department of Geography, Lakehead University Gregory Vandeberg Department of Geography, University of North Dakota Introduction the productivity of plants and algae in lakes, but ultimately con- sume dissolved oxygen, leading to poor water quality and fish The Experimental Lakes Area (ELA) began as a Government death. In order to understand this problem, federal scientists of Canada research station in 1968 tasked with investigating in the late 1960s sought out a remote site where lakes could be the causes of and controls on nutrient pollution in lakes. It was purposefully manipulated to assess their responses to environ- established largely in response to growing public awareness of mental stressors. The ELA is located on the Precambrian shield nuisance algal blooms in lakes located close to cities. Through- of northwestern Ontario, 35 km southeast of Kenora, Ontario. out the 1960s, the algal blooms and fish kills in lakes such as It encompasses 58 lakes designated solely for research and Lake Erie became a major indicator of human influence on lake monitoring (Blanchfield et al. 2009). This remote setting was ecosystems (Schindler 2009). These changes are evidence of a chosen such that the lakes and their watersheds are distant from process called eutrophication, whereby excess nutrients boost human-induced environmental pressures, including air pollution This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Correspondence to: Nora J. Casson, Department of Geography, University of Winnipeg, 515 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg MB, R3B 2E9 Email: [email protected] Prairie Perspectives: Geographical Essays 2016, 18: 110–114 110 ISSN 1911-5814 Nora J. Casson et. al. Field Trip: The Experimental Lakes Area and impacts from industrial or urban development (Johnson and Vallentyne 1971). While there are several long-term research stations scattered across Canada, ELA is perhaps the best known for two reasons. First, its mandate to perform whole-ecosystem manipulation experiments to investigate the response of lakes and watersheds to stressors has produced striking results. These field test results have often stood in direct opposition to lab- based or smaller scale studies. Most notably, the experimental fertilization of Lake 227 in the 1970s demonstrated that algae in these systems are limited by phosphorus. This suggested that controlling phosphorus pollution to lakes would help them re- cover from eutrophication (Schindler 1974). These scientific results, accompanied by aerial photographs of emerald green, eutrophic lakes clearly altered by the addition of phosphorus, led to widespread policy changes that included banning phos- phates in detergents (Schindler 2006). Research conducted at the ELA still informs efforts to control algal blooms in water bodies Figure 2 across Canada today (Lake Winnipeg Stewardship Board 2006). The second reason that ELA is well-known is that in 2012, the federal government announced they intended to cut all fund- ing to the research station, prompting an outcry from scientists across North America (Orihel et al. 2013). A campaign to save the ELA was launched, consisting of petitions, newspaper ads and rallies putting the research station and its long track record of policy-relevant science in the public eye. Responsibility for the operations of ELA was transferred to the International Institute for Sustainable Development, and the station became known formally as IISD-ELA (Xenopolous and Frost 2015). This photo essay provides an overview of a tour of the IISD- ELA camp and surrounding area given by current staff to at- tendees of the 38th annual meeting of the Prairie Division of the Canadian Association of Geographers (PCAG). The meeting and field trip were held in Kenora, Ontario in September, 2015. Participants boarded a bus in Kenora and headed east on the TransCanada Highway, taking a southward turnoff to follow a long, bumpy road to the main IISD-ELA facilities. Figure 3 Figures 2 and 3 show scenes inside the lab facilities. Long-term Figure 1 monitoring of physical, chemical and biological parameters of The group gathers for a briefing by IISD-ELA staff at the dining hall several lakes and streams has been ongoing since the early 1970s. before heading out on the tour. Although the camp was empty on These records set the context for many of the manipulative experi- the Saturday we visited, it can accommodate more than 50 people ments which are carried out by researchers. They are also valuable at a time. Much of the activity and interactions between research- for detecting the effects of drivers like climate change, which act ers, students and staff is focused around meals, eaten communally over years or decades. (Photo credit: Figure 2, N. Casson, 2015; in this building. (Photo credit: N. Casson, 2015) Figure 3, A. Ducharme, 2015 ) Prairie Perspectives: Geographical Essays 2016, 18: 110–114 111 ISSN 1911-5814 Nora J. Casson et. al. Field Trip: The Experimental Lakes Area Figure 4 Figure 7 Figure 5 Figure 8 Figure 6 Figures 7 and 8 show views of the landscape at ELA. The boreal Figures 4, 5 and 6 show views of the meteorological station located forest at this site is mostly dominated by jack pine (Pinus banksiana) near the camp. The equipment here is operated by both IISD- and black spruce (Picea mariana), with thin and discontinuous soils ELA and Environment Canada and used to measure parameters (<1m in depth), underlain by granite-dominated Precambrian including precipitation, temperature, windspeed and chemical Shield geology (Schindler et al. 1996). (Photo credit: Figure 7, G. deposition. As one of only a few stations in the region measuring Vandeberg, 2015; Figure 8, N. Wilson, 2015) airborne pollutants such as mercury, sulphur and nitrogen deposi- tion, the data from this station provide an important measure of these chemicals which can be carried thousands of kilometres from their sources. (Photo credit: Figure 4, K. Thomson, 2015; Figure 5, N. Casson, 2015; Figure 6, J. Piwowar, 2015) Prairie Perspectives: Geographical Essays 2016, 18: 110–114 112 ISSN 1911-5814 Nora J. Casson et. al. Field Trip: The Experimental Lakes Area Figure 9 Figure 10 Lake 240 located near the camp. This lake was originally consid- A flume capturing the outflow of Lake 239 into Lake 240. The ered for eutrophication experiments, but it was decided to leave it inflows and outflows of several lakes are gauged and water level is for recreation and study by researchers, students and staff staying at measured continuously by dataloggers. Water chemistry samples the camp (Schindler 2009). (Photo credit: M. Burke, 2015) are taken weekly. These records are more than 40 years long and allow researchers to calculate water and chemical budgets for the lakes. (Photo credit: B. McGregor, 2015) Figure 11 Figure 13 Plates 11, 12 and 13 show field trip participants deploying a seine net. This vertical net with floats on the top and weights on the bot- tom is spooled out from a boat in a semicircle and dragged onto shore. (Photo credit: Figure 11, B. McGregor, 2015; Figure 12, J. Paterson, 2015; Figure 13, B. McGregor, 2015) Figure 12 Prairie Perspectives: Geographical Essays 2016, 18: 110–114 113 ISSN 1911-5814 Nora J. Casson et. al. Field Trip: The Experimental Lakes Area Conclusion Lake Winnipeg Stewardship Board. 2006. Reducing nutrient loading to Lake Winnipeg and its watershed: Our collective responsibility and This field trip provided students and geographers a glimpse into commitment to action: Report to the Minister of Water Steward- how field research is carried out at one of the most important ship. Gimli, MB: Lake Winnipeg Stewardship Board. long-term ecological research sites in Canada. For some, the Orihel, D. M., H. Swanson, and J. Venkiteswaran. 2013. Scientists, sunny afternoon trip inspired ideas of future research questions on saving science. Limnology and Oceanography Bulletin 22(3): around ecosystem processes or ways in which science informs 76–78. national and international environmental policy. The partici- Schindler, D. W. 1974. Eutrophication and recovery in experimental pants are grateful to the IISD-ELA staff and scientists, who fa- lakes: Implications for lake management. Science 184(4139): 897– cilitated the visit, led the tour and participated in lively discus- 899. sions. ——. 2006. Recent advances in the understanding and management of eutrophication. Limnology and Oceanography 51(1): 356–363. —–. 2009. A personal history of the Experimental Lakes Project. Cana- References dian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 66(11): 1837–1847. Schindler, D. W., S. E. Bayley, B. R. Parker, K. G. Beaty, D. R. Crui- Blanchfield, P. J., M. J. Paterson, J. A. Shearer, and D. W. Schindler. kshank, E. J. Fee, E. U. Schindler, and M. P. Stainton. 1996. The 2009. Johnson and Vallentyne’s legacy: 40 years of aquatic re- effects of climatic warming on the properties of boreal lakes and search at the Experimental Lakes Area. Canadian Journal of Fish- streams at the Experimental Lakes Area, northwestern Ontario. eries and Aquatic Sciences 66(11): 1831–1836. Limnology and Oceanography 41(5): 1004–1017. Johnson, W. E., and J. R. Vallentyne. 1971. Rationale, background, and Xenopoulos, M. A., and P. C. Frost. 2015. The dawn of a new era for the development of experimental lake studies in northwestern Ontario. Experimental Lakes Area. Limnology and Oceanography Bulletin Journal of the Fisheries Board of Canada 28(2): 123–128.
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