Maine Volunteer Lake Monitoring Program 2010 Maine Lakes Report Dear Friends of Maine Lakes, This 2010 report on the health of Maine’s lakes is presented on the 40th anniversary year of the Maine Volunteer Lake Monitoring Program! The VLMP is believed to be the longest standing citizen lake monitoring program in America, having been formed at about the time of the passage of the historic Federal Clean Water Act. Maine is well known for its clear, clean lakes, and for strong public support to protect them. The work of nearly 1,000 trained volun- teers, who consistently gather scientific information about lakes throughout Maine is a strong testimony to the level of public commitment to our lakes. The straightforward mission of the VLMP is to train and provide support to citizen volunteers to gather science-based lake data. The VLMP manages and disseminates this information to the gener- al public, to state and federal natural resource agencies, municipalities, lake and watershed associa- tions, educational institutions, water utilities and others, because it is our belief that knowledge and understanding of Maine lakes and ponds are ultimately the cornerstones of stewardship. In support of our mission, the VLMP has established and maintains a scientifically based lake monitoring and data management system through partnerships and collaborations between volunteers and Maine’s technical community. Our primary partners are the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the US Environmental Protection Agency. The Maine Lakes Report is an annual document produced to provide information about how Maine lakes and ponds function, how they are monitored, and assessed. It includes water qual- ity and invasive species screening summaries for several hundred lakes in the program. More detailed reports for individual lakes are also available upon request. The relatively small investment of public funding that supports the work of the VLMP is multi- plied in value several times through the invaluable, high quality work of VLMP volunteers. Studies conducted throughout the country have consistently shown that lake data gathered by properly trained volunteers are equivalent to that of professional lake scientists, at a fraction of the cost! The additional invaluable benefit of public education and stewardship that VLMP volunteers provide to communities throughout the state is one of Maine’s best examples of grassroots natural resource protection. The effectiveness and strength of the VLMP is in part due to collaborative partnerships with other entities, including agencies and organizations throughout Maine and the U.S. This col- laboration has formed a powerful resource for technical expertise, outreach, and access to a great deal of information concerning Maine lakes and their watersheds. Since the earliest days of the program, the VLMP has been at the forefront of gathering lake data in Maine and the U.S. During the past four decades, the total number of active volun- teers involved in water quality monitoring and in screening lakes and ponds for invasive aquat- ic species has increased steadily. This document is dedicated to the thousands of volunteers who, through their efforts, have significantly increased our understanding of Maine’s lakes during the past 40 years. Scott Williams, Executive Director 2010 Maine Lakes Report Acknowledgements VLMP Board of Directors Written by: Scott Williams Tamara Lee Pinard, President Roberta Hill Mary Jane Dillingham, Vice President Lew Wetzel, Treasurer Design & Layout: Jim Entwood Phoebe Hardesty, Secretary Database/Computer George Cross Technical Assistance: Linda Bacon Peter Fischer Jim Entwood Bill Monagle Christine Guerette Gerry Nelson Mary Nelson GIS Map Updates: Linda Bacon Kirsten Ness Peter Vaux Elizabeth Payne Clyde Walton Contributors & Reviewers: Linda Bacon Peter Vaux Jim Entwood Linda Bacon, DEP Liaison Roberta Hill Scott Williams VLMP Staff Scott Williams, Executive Director Roberta Hill, Program Director, VLMP Center for Invasive Aquatic Plants Cover—Moosehead Lake Jim Entwood, Program Coordinator Jonnie Maloney, Program Coordinator Christine Guerette, Program Assistant Jeff Mercer, 2010 Summer Intern Juliette Gorson, 2010 Summer Intern Maine DEP Technical Advisors Linda Bacon Roy Bouchard Paul Gregory Karen Hahnel John McPhedran Judy Potvin Photo by Ilse Pukinskis Maine VLMP 24 Maple Hill Rd Auburn, ME 04210 207-783-7733 [email protected] www.MaineVolunteerLakeMonitors.org Copyright © 2011 Maine Volunteer Lake Monitoring Program This report is printed on recycled paper Table of Contents Overview Volunteer Coordinators ......................... i Introduction .................................. 1 Appendix Program Purpose & Goals ...................... 2 A Distribution of Water Quality Data Program Structure & Operation ................. 2 for Maine Lakes.............................. 30 Water Quality B Water Quality Data for VLMP Lakes ............. 33 How are the Water Quality Data Used? .......... 4 C Range of Average Secchi Disk Volunteer Training, Quality Assurance & Transparency for VLMP Lakes . 45 Quality Control ............................... 5 D Sample Individual Lake Report How do Volunteers & Explanation of Report Format ................ 53 Monitor Water Quality? ........................ 6 E Invasive Aquatic Plant Measuring Lake Water Quality Screening Survey Activity ..................... 58 With a Secchi Disk............................. 6 F Certified Volunteer Monitors ................... 67 Monitoring Dissolved Oxygen & Lake Water Temperature Data.................. 9 Life Long Volunteers .......................... 85 Monitoring Total Phosphorus Concentrations in Lakes ...................... 10 Glossary........................................ 89 Advanced Lake Monitoring ................... 11 2010 VLMP Supporters ............................ 92 2010 Water Quality Monitoring Season in Review ............................ 12 Invasive Aquatic Species Purpose & Goals ............................. 15 Invasive Plant Patrol Training, Quality Assurance & Quality Control ............ 17 Invasive Aquatic Plant Screening Surveys........ 19 How the Data are Used?...................... 20 Center for Invasive Aquatic Plants: Year in Review ........................ 21 Known Locations of Invasive Aquatic Plants ..... 25 2011 Program Updates ........................... 26 Support for this report has been provided by US Environmental Protection Maine Department of Agency through Section 319 of Environmental Protection the Federal Clean Water Act Roy A. Hunt Foundation Boater Participation in the Maine Lake & River Protection Sticker Program Nearly 1,000 volunteer lake monitors throughout Maine who have provided their time, expertise, and financial support. 2010 Volunteer Coordinators Water Quality Regional Invasive Plant Volunteer Coordinators Patrol Coordinators Regional Coordinators (RC) Invasive Plant Patrol Coordinators help organize volunteers and train- RC’s organize training workshops, respond to ing workshops in their region. Additional duties may include providing requests from volunteers and manage the collec- regional technical support, coordinating Invasive Aquatic Plant screening tion of data. survey activity, and managing data collection. Region Coordinator(s) Data Coordinators (DC) Aroostook County DC’s enter water quality data collected on vol- Portage Lake Association Phil Ouellette, Dwight Sewell unteer data forms into the VLMP’s LakeData Island Falls Lake Association Norm Harte database program. Hancock County Region Regional and Data Coordinators commit a minimum Hancock SWCD and of 25 hours per year to the program. If you are interest- Hancock County Lakes Alliance Megan Facciolo ed in volunteering for a Coordinator position, please Kennebec County contact the VLMP office. 30 Mile River Watershed Association Lidie Whittier Robbins Belgrade Regional Conservation Alliance Corinne Dawson Friends of the Cobbossee Watershed Ken Smith Region Coordinator Midcoast Region Androscoggin Dan Guerette, RC Acadia National Park Bill Gawley Alan Anderson, DC Citizens’ Association of Liberty Lakes Kerry Black, Linda Breslin Damariscotta Lake Watershed Association Julia McLeod Aroostook VLMP Staff Lincolnville Lakes and Ponds Committee Ken Bailey Cumberland Charles Turner, RC Pemaquid Watershed Association Donna Minnis Franklin Elizabeth Payne, RC Penobscot County Region Lew Wetzel, DC Baxter State Park Jean Hoekwater Hancock Richard Offinger, DC University of Maine Cooperative Extension Laura Wilson Kennebec Sue & Bruce Fenn, RC Penobscot Nation Jan Paul Knox Dave Preston, RC & DC Rangeley Lakes Region Lincoln Ed Knapp, RC Rangeley Lakes Heritage Trust Rebecca Kurtz Steve O’Bryan, DC Southwestern Maine Region Oxford Art Bubar, RC Lakes Environmental Association Colin Holme Joe Potts, DC Lakes Coalition Cheryl Welch Penobscot VLMP Staff, RC Lovell Invasive Plant Prevention Committee David Hodsdon, DC and Kezar Lake Watershed Association Gerry Nelson Piscataquis VLMP Staff, RC Pleasant Lake and Parker Pond Assoc. Pixie Williams Richard Offinger, DC Portland Water District Nate Whalen Sagadahoc Ed Knapp, RC Raymond Waterways Protective Association Noralee Raymond Steve O’Bryan, DC Saco River Recreation Council Michelle Broye Somerset Elizabeth Payne, RC York County Lew Wetzel, DC Acton Wakefield Watershed Alliance Linda Shier Waldo VLMP Staff, RC & DC York County SWCD Melissa Brandt Washington Elizabeth Payne, RC Richard Offinger, DC York George Bouchard, RC Acadia National