Continuous Lake Water Quality Monitoring (CWQM)
For decades, volunteer lake stewards have been testing their lakes 2-3 times per year for Phosphorus, Clarity, and more recently Calcium and Chloride.
This information has been very valuable, but it leaves many unanswered questions.
Almost a decade ago some Conservation Authorities in other areas introduced continuous water quality monitoring CWQM
Monitors were put into the lake. They monitored water quality factors 24 hours a day at frequent intervals. The information was transmitted to laptops etc. This provided new and valuable information not available through the old methods – some examples included:
- The impact of severe rainfall events;
- Impact of tertiary bypasses in local sewage treatment plants;
- Real time temperature records;
- Other impacts such as:
- Beaver dam breaks
- Construction and road work around the lake.
When the CHA volunteers were 1st exposed to CWQM the costs were prohibitive.
There is also the issue of Mass Balance – monitoring the nutrient and pollutant levels of the water entering the lake vs the water leaving the lake. The benefit of the information is invaluable and allows a lake association to detect and them act on issues around the lake. More info on Mass Balance will be presented to CHA Members at the 2026 Lake Health meeting
Recent Developments
The Technology for CWQM has advanced rapidly and costs have dropped. As a result, the CHA has been spending time over the last 4 months in evaluating options. We have had discussion with the University of Toronto as well as several private companies that provide CWQM solutions.
One of these companies will be exhibiting at the 2026 Lake Health meeting.
