___T_H_E-J.#o-IS_TR_1G-I-w_ UNICIPALITY OF MUSKOKA
PLANNING AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT 70 PINE STREET, BRACEBRIDGE, ONTARIO P1 L 1N3 Telephone (705) 645-2231 OR 1-800-461-4210 (705 area code) Fax (705) 646-2207 wwwmuskoka.on.ca
TO: Chair and Members Planning and Economic Development Committee
FROM: Judi Brouse Director of Watershed Programs
DATE: February 14, 2008
SUBJECT: Lake System Health Monitoring Program 2007 Year End Report and Data Report 2008 Monitoring Schedule
REPORT NO: PED-6-2008-1
RECOMMENDATION
None. Submitted for information only.
ORIGIN
Annual reporting on the Lake System Health Monitoring Program.
ANALYSIS
The District Municipality of Muskoka's Lake System Health Monitoring Program is comprised of recreational water quality monitoring, shoreline surveys, technical assistance to lake associations interested in undertaking a volunteer based monitoring program, and a shoreline site visit program. Table 1 identifies the lakes monitored in 2007.
The monitoring program is a field-based program that monitors 191 sites on 161 lakes on a rotational basis. The purpose of the monitoring program is to establish a long-term record of key water quality parameters so that trends in water quality and lake system health can be identified and appropriate management decisions can be made to protect lake water quality.
In partnership with the Dorset Environmental Science Centre (DESC), Secchi depth (a measure of clarity) and phosphorus concentrations are taken as part of the provincial Lake Partner Program. DESC also tests for other parameters, such as pH, conductivity, alkalinity, calcium, and nitrogen, so that a more complete understanding of lake chemistry can be achieved. While in the field, Water Quality Technicians also record dissolved oxygen and temperature profiles.
In 2007,81 sites were monitored on 66 lakes for chemical parameters. Details of the monitoring program are given in the 2007 Lake System Health Monitoring Program Year End Report and the data for each lake are available in the accompanying Data Report.
Managing Our Legac!1 Together Table 1: Lakes monitored during the 2007 Lake System Health Monitoring season.
Lake I Lake I AM Watershed Parameter Monitored Number I I Ada 15-1 ML Lake Joseph Chemical/Benthic Bass 240-1 ML Lake Joseph Chemical Bella 319-1 LOB Lake Vernon Benthic Ben 6903-1 GR Sparrow Lake Chemical Bigwind 413-1 BR Muskoka River Chemical/Benthic Bird 425-2 BR Muskoka River Shoreline Bonnie 532-1 BR Muskoka River Chemical Brooks 590-1 LOB Dwight Bay Chemical Bruce 604-2 ML Lake Joseph Chemical Buck 617-1 HTE Lake Vernon Benthic Butterfly 676-1 ML Lake Joseph Chemical Camp 713-3 LOB Lake Vernon Chemical Cardwell (Long) 747-1 ML Lake Rosseau Chemical Chub 7061-1 HTE Mary Lake Benthic Clark 6910-2 HTE Lake Vernon Chemical Clearwater 901-1 GR Sparrow Lake Shoreline Clearwater 6911-1 HTE Muskoka River Shoreline Cooper 976-2 LOB DwiQht Bay Chemical Dark 6913-1 ML Lake Muskoka Chemical/Shoreline Deer 1140-1 GR Lake Muskoka Chemical Devine 1173-1 HTE Muskoka River Chemical Dickie 1193-1 LOB Muskoka River Chemical Doe (Skin) 1216-1 GR Sparrow Lake Chemical Dotty 1237-1 LOB DwiQht Bay Chemical Echo 1326-2 LOB Muskoka River Chemical Fawn (Deer) 1440-1 BR Muskoka River Chemical Flatrock 7243-1 GB Musquash River Chemical Fox 1550-1 HTE Lake Vernon Chemical Gartersnake (Long) 1626-1 BR Sparrow Lake Chemical Gilleach 7042-1 BR Muskoka River Chemical Go Home 1667-7 GB Musquash River Shoreline Golden City 5750-1 HTE Lake Vernon Chemical Haggart 1818-1 GB/ML Moon River Chemical Healey 1923-1 BR Muskoka River Chemical Henshaw 1946-3 ML Lake Joseph Chemical Jessop (Jingo) 2154-2 HTE Lake Vernon Chemical Jevins 2155-1 GR Sparrow Lake Chemical Joseph - Cox Bay 2460-5 ML Lake Joseph Chemical/Shoreline Joseph - Joseph River 2460-8 ML Lake Joseph Chemical Joseph - Little Lake Joseph 2660-1 ML Lake Joseph Chemical Joseph - Main 2460-6 ML Lake Joseph Chemical Kahshe 2217-5 GR Sparrow Lake Benthic Lake of Bays - Dwight Bay 2469-2 LOB Lake of Bays Chemical Lake of Bays - Haystack Bay 2469-5 LOB Lake of Bays Chemical Lake of Bays - Rat Bay 2469-9 LOB Lake of Bays Chemical Lake of Bays - S. Muskoka River Bay 2469-11 LOB Lake of Bays Chemical Lake I Lake I AM Watershed Parameter Monitored Number I I Lake of Bays - South Portage Bay 2469-8 LOB Lake of Bays Chemical Lake of Bays - Ten Mile Bay 2469-10 LOB Lake of Bays Chemical Lake of Bays - Trading Bay 2469-6 LOB Lake of Bays Chemical Leech 2529-1 BR Muskoka River Benthic Leonard 2540-3 ML Lake Muskoka Chemical/Benthic Little Go Home Bay 7064-30 GB West Chemical Longline 6509-1 LOB Lake of Bays Chemical/Shoreline Mary 3032-3 HTE Mary Lake Chemical/Benthic McRey 7044-1 BR Muskoka River Chemical Menominee 3181-3 LOB Lake of Bays Chemical/Benthic Morrison 3331-1 GR Morrison Lake Chemical Muskoka - Muskoka Bay 2465-10 GR Lake Muskoka Shoreline/Benthic Myers (Butterfly) 3408-1 GB Moon River Chemical Nine Mile 3469-1 ML Musquash River Chemical North Muldrew 4074-1 GR Morrison Lake Benthic Nutt (Mud) 4109-1 ML Lake Rosseau Chemical Otter 6916-1 HTE Mary Lake Chemical
Oudaze 4202-1 HTE Lake Vernon Chemical I Oxbow 4213-2 LOB DwiQht Bay Chemical Paint (St. Mary) 5145-4 LOB TradinQ Bay Chemical Pel! 6683-1 LOB DwiQht Bay Chemical Peninsula 4309-4 LOB Mary Lake BenthiclTerrestrial Pine 4379-1 BR Muskoka River Chemical Prospect 4468-1 BR Sparrow Lake Chemical Ricketts 6921-1 ML Lake Joseph Chemical Ril 4627-2 LOB Muskoka River Benthic Rosseau - Brackenrig Bay 2476-12 ML Lake Rosseau Chemical/Shoreline/Benthic Rosseau - East Portage Bay 2476-11 ML Lake Rosseau Chemical Rosseau - Main 2476-13 ML Lake Rosseau Chemical Rosseau - Skeleton Bay 2476-10 ML Lake Rosseau Chemical Ryde (Buck) 4750-1 GR Sparrow Lake Chemical Silver 4951-2 GR Lake Muskoka Chemical Silver 4952-1 ML Lake Muskoka Chemical Silversands 4959-1 GB Moon River Chemical Six Mile - Cedar Nook Bay 4978-1 GB West Chemical/Benthic Six Mile - Main 4978-4 GB West Chemical/Benthic Six Mile - Provincial Park Bay 4978-5 GB West Chemical/Benthic Solitaire 5037-1 LOB Lake Vernon Chemical South Muldrew 5075-1 GR Morrison Lake Benthic Spence - North 5102-1 BR Muskoka River Chemical Spence - South 5102-2 BR Muskoka River Chemical Sunny 5244-1 GR Sparrow Lake Benthic Tasso 5303-5 LOB Lake Vernon Chemical Toronto 5416-1 GB Moon River Chemical Tucker 7235-1 HTE Mary Lake Chemical Turtle 5485-1 GR Morrison Lake Chemical Walker 5710-2 LOB Lake Vernon Benthic Lake I Lake I AM Watershed Parameter Monitored Number I I Waseosa 5741-1 HTE Lake Vernon Chemical/Benthic Webster 7074-1 GB Musquash River Chemical Weismuller 6927-1 BR Sparrow Lake Chemical Wood 5961-1 BR Muskoka River Chemical
In 2002, Muskoka enhanced its Lake System Health Program to include shoreline surveys. These surveys document all man-made structures, condition of the shoreline and general land use adjacent to the lake. This information is available to lake associations, Area Municipalities and other interested parties for planning purposes. In 2007, shoreline surveys were completed for nine Over Threshold lakes. To date, forty-two lakes have been surveyed.
In 2003, under direction from scientists at DESC and EMAN (Ecological Monitoring and Assessment Network), a Biological Monitoring Program was developed for lake associations interested in becoming more involved in lake monitoring and broader lake planning. The 2007 Biological Monitoring Program focused on EMAN's benthic and terrestrial plot protocols. Benthic sampling occurred at 22 sites on 20 lakes this summer and one terrestrial plot was established.
Under the Biological Monitoring Program, Muskoka continued to implement a modified Docktalk program initially developed by the Federation of Ontario Cottagers Associations (FOCA) in 2005. This modified program consisted of stewardship presentations and workshops given to lake associations and other community organizations, one-on-one site visits to interested shoreline property owners, and stewardship information packages for associations wishing to distribute them to their membership.
Data sheets for individual lakes that track change over time are available upon request or can be downloaded from the Muskoka Water Web site (www.muskokawaterweb.ca). Data sheets for lakes monitored in 2007 are available in the 2007 Lake System Health Monitoring Program Data Report.
2008 Monitoring Schedule
In 2008, 88 sites on 67 lakes will be sampled for chemical parameters (Table 2). The shoreline survey for 2008 will focus on Lake Joseph. It is anticipated that at least 25 lake associations will participate in the 2008 Biological Monitoring program, collecting benthic macroinvertebrate data, terrestrial monitoring data, or participating in the Docktalk program.
Table 2: Lakes to be monitored in 2008.
Township of Georgian Bay Town of Bracebridge Barron's Lake Bird Lake Baxter Lake Crosson Lake Go Home Lake Gullfeather Lake McCrae Lake Leech Lake McDonald Lake McKay Lake' North Bay Spring Lake South Bay Stoneleigh Lake Twelve Mile Bay - 2 sites Brandy Lake Axle Lake Cassidy Lake Bella Lake Clear Lake Buck Lake High Lake Township of Lake of Bays Township of Muskoka Lakes Chub Lake Lake Joseph - 7 sites Fifteen Mile Lake Little Long Lake Foote Lake Long Lake Grandview Lake Medora Lake Hardup Lake Mirror Lake Moot Lake Lake Muskoka - 5 sites Peninsula Lake - 2 sites Neilson Lake Porcupine Lake Roderick Lake Rebecca Lake Lake Rosseau - 5 sites Ril Lake Skeleton Lake Sixteen Mile Lake Stewart Lake South Nelson Lake Three Mile Lake - 2 sites Tackaberry Lake Young Lake Tooke Lake Walker Lake Clearwater Lake Cornall Lake Buck Lake Gull Lake Chub Lake Kahshe Lake - 2 sites Clearwater Lake Loon Lake Fairy Lake - 2 sites North Muldrew Lake Long's Lake Pigeon Lake Penfold Lake South Muldrew Lake Lake Vernon - 3 sites Sparrow Lake Three Mile Lake
Respectfully submitted, ~ Judi S. Brouse MA, MCIP, RPP Director of Watershed Programs
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