Lake Watcher

The Newsletter of Lake Watch of Lake Martin
No. 53, January 2018

by Eric Reutebuch 

2017 Achievements:

• 25 sites monitored for water chemistry and bacteria in the Lake Martin Watershed
• 121 data records submitted to the AWW water quality database
• Provided bacteria monitoring data to the Swim Guide, www.theswimguide.org
• Educated hundreds of children and adults about lake and watershed stewardship

Lake Watch Annual Meeting, March 4, 2018

The Lake Watch Annual Meeting will be Sunday, March 4, 2018, 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm at the StillWaters Residential Association Centre inside StillWaters Resort (1816 StillWaters Drive, Dadeville, AL; map and directions below). Lunch will be at 1 pm, catered fried catfish fillets with fixins. We ask that you pre-register online so that we have a head count in order to accurately order food.

 Register for the meeting at www.lakewatch.org. Click the Events menu on the left side of the homepage, then click the Register button, be sure to add ‘guests’ if you are bringing a spouse or friend(s) with you. Or, if you prefer, send an e-mail to us at info@lakewatch.org to let us know that you plan to attend, and we’ll register you. Once you’ve registered, please pay at the door when you come to the meeting.

The Lake Watch Board askes that everyone donate a nominal fee of $10.00 per person to cover the cost of our lunch plus an unexpected rental charge for the building to preserve our membership dues and other donations for water quality and watershed stewardship purposes. We plan to have Dr. Bill Deutsch as our guest speaker to give us a sneak-peak of his new book Rivers of Alabama, with emphasis on the Tallapoosa River Basin.  Lake Watch president, Eric Reutebuch, will give an overview of results from our 2017 Lake Watch water quality monitoring throughout the lake.

Directions to StillWaters Residential Association Building: From Dadeville take Hwy 49 south, turn into StillWaters onto Moonbrook Drive, take Moonbrook Drive to StillWaters Drive, turn right on StillWaters Drive, the StillWaters Residential Association Building will be on your left (see red dot on map).

Special Thanks to People Working to Spread Watershed Stewardship

Judy Palfrey serves as Lake Watch water monitoring volunteer coordinator, ensuring that Lake Watch monitors have adequate supplies to do their water testing.

Judy is also a monitor, and tests at multiple sites. She also continues to work with Dadeville grade school and middle school children to teach them about watershed stewardship, water monitoring and “Living Streams” – analysis of the aquatic critters that signify that the water is healthy or, by their absence, indicate pollution. Lastly, she has educated the public at booths at several events using the Enviroscape to teach adults as well as children about nonpoint source pollution and its negative impacts on our waters. If you think you'd like to become a monitor or environmental educator, talk with Judy!

Dick and Mary Ann Bronson, Raymond and Zelma dePasquale, and George Zorn continue to support the Gifted Student teacher at Pelham Oaks Elementary School in the Birmingham area over the last 3 years.  Programs include ‘Living Streams’ for Gifted classes 3-4-5, taking the students on hikes in Oak Mountain State Park, and accompanying them on field trips to Wheeler Wildlife Refuge.  Dick also continues to take Gifted students at Radney Elementary on enviro-hikes on the nature trail behind the school, enhancing learning experiences for the children in the boundless ‘outdoor classroom.’

Dianna Porter has been working with students at Keebler Park in Dadeville. Thirty students from Dadeville High School learned about rainwater runoff and how to build a rain garden from Dr. Eve Brantly at AU.  After the class, students installed a rain garden at Keebler Park.  The park is in the process of becoming a park that can be used as an outdoor classroom. 

Lake Watch Leadership and Budget

Changes in our board in 2017 included the addition of Janne Debes to the board, replacing Laurel Goldsmith as Lake Watch treasurer and website manager – THANK YOU Janne for stepping up!

A big THANK YOU to all who’ve sent their annual dues in, especially to those who have donated at the Silver ($50; 5 donors), Gold ($100; 2 donors; and Platinum ($250; 1 donor). As you know, the greatest part of the Lake Watch budget is spent on the purchase of water testing supplies. In addition to water testing kits and supplies, membership funds are used to cover our costs to spread the word of watershed stewardship, water conservation, to advocate for clean water, and to encourage others to join in the effort. The website, newsletter, and teaching supplies are all part of those costs.

Water Monitoring

Lake Watch gained 7 new AWW-certified water monitors in 2017, Joanne Walker, Janne Debes, Dianna Porter and Ed and Marge Sloan, Allen Sneed, Jr., and Veta Christy.  Lake Watch volunteer monitors have increased water testing throughout the lake to 25 sites (up from 18 sites last year) from Horseshoe Bend down to Martin Dam (see map at right – green makers are active sites, red dots are inactive sites).

Lake Watch benefitted from Alabama Water Watch’s Tiger

Day of Giving – through the efforts of Ed Sloan who submitted an application for monitoring supplies to the program. Ed received a free AWW water chemistry test kit, which he has been sharing with Eric Reutebuch and Ed Eisworth – thanks Ed S. for sharing, and thanks AWW for the kit!

Results in 2017 indicated that Martin remains clean and healthy, with good dissolved oxygen levels to maintain a healthy community of aquatic critters (as well as good levels of pH, alkalinity and hardness). Bacteriological testing indicated only 2 of 28 tests with elevated levels of E. coli., one in Little Sandy Creek and another in a small tributary that flows into Chattasofka Creek. All readings in Lake Martin were quite low and safe.

Key areas of the lake have gone silent, particularly the Kowaliga side of the lake, as long-time volunteers retire their test kits, so we are in need of new water monitors. If you think it’s a necessity to have an insurance policy for your car, think the same way about your lake – insure it through your involvement in lake stewardship by becoming a Lake Watch supporter, and consider becoming a water monitor. Visit the Alabama Water Watch website at www.alabamawaterwatch.org for information on water testing and registration for free workshops held throughout the year, or email Eric at reuteem@auburn.edu.

Closing Thoughts

YOU are what makes Lake Watch of Lake Martin work! We urge each of our Lake Watch members to spread the word on Lake Watch, to support our programs and to participate. Renew your membership! Help sign up new members to our team! Consider an additional donation to Lake Watch! Not everyone can get out and monitor water or teach in a classroom, but each member is essential to our success. Together, we can and will make a difference in the protection of our lake, in water conservation and clean water advocacy, and in the world we leave for our children. If every Lake Watch member encourages one or two friends to join in our efforts, it will go a long way toward ensuring the continuation of the good work we've accomplished over the past 25 years. Go visit your neighbor and sign him or her up. Or send your neighbor to our website, www.lakewatch.org to sign up. Better yet, bring them to our annual meeting on March 4^th where they can hear about our work first-hand!

 Dues Reminder

Take the plunge, if you haven’t already! 

Protect Lake Martin by supporting Lake Watch!

And ask a neighbor to do the same!

For the many faithful Lake Watch members who already sent in their dues for 2018, thank you!  And for those who haven’t yet, don't forget to send your check to:

P. O. Box 72 Alexander City, AL 35010

to keep your membership current. Membership levels are listed below:

Regular dues (annual):     Student  $10      Individual  $15         Family  $25

Lake Martin Steward:       Silver     $50     Gold  $100                 Platinum  $250

We also welcome donations.  Don't forget–a donation in someone's honor/memory is a lovely gift/tribute.

Lake Watcher

The Newsletter of Lake Watch of Lake Martin
No. 52, January 2017

by Eric Reutebuch and Matt Campbell

2016 ACHIEVEMENTS:

• 18 sites monitored for water chemistry and bacteria in the Lake Martin Watershed
• 115 data records submitted to the AWW water quality database
• Provided bacteria monitoring data to the Swim Guide, www.theswimguide.org
• Educated hundreds of children and adults about lake and watershed stewardship

Lake Watch Annual Meeting February 19, 2017     

The Lake Watch Annual Meeting will be Sunday, February 19, 2017, 1 pm to 3:30 pm at the StillWaters Residential Association Centre inside StillWaters Resort (1816 StillWaters Drive, Dadeville, AL; map and directions below). Lunch will be catered and we ask that you pre-register so that we have a head count in order to accurately order food.

Also, the Board has asked that everyone donate a nominal fee of $8.00 per person to cover the cost of our BBQ lunch so that our dues and donations are used for water quality and watershed stewardship purposes. To register, go to www.lakewatch.org. Click the Events menu on the left side of the homepage, then click the Register button. Click the Add guest button to add a person, if needed, then Confirm. Ignore the ‘Invoice not paid’ message - you can mail in your luncheon payment with your annual dues or pay at the meeting but please do take the time to register for the meeting. Or, if you prefer, send an e-mail to us at membership@lakewatch.org to let us know that you plan to attend. Mr. Jimmy Lanier, Founder of the Cherokee Ridge Alpine Trail Association (CRATA), our guest speaker, will inform us on the latest developments on new trails and an interpretive facility at Smith Mountain fire tower and how those interested can help make it all happen.  Lake Watch president, Eric Reutebuch, will give an overview of results from our Lake Watch water quality monitoring throughout the lake.

Directions to StillWaters Residential Association Building: From Dadeville take Hwy 49 south, turn into StillWaters onto Moonbrook Drive, take Moonbrook Drive to StillWaters Drive, turn right on StillWaters Drive, the StillWaters Residential Association Building will be on your left (see red dot on map).

Lake Watch 25^th Anniversary Celebration 

Last year marked Lake Watch of Lake Martin’s 25^th anniversary! Lake Watchers gathered at Camp ASCCA last October to reminisce and celebrate.  Dr. Bill Deutsch, former director of Alabama Water Watch, was our keynote speaker. He took us on a journey across the years highlighting his move to Alabama, the beginnings of AWW and Lake Watch of Lake Martin. It was a delight to have Bill tell us his story of the "water spirit" (AWW’s logo, the caddisfly or Hydropsyche – meaning, you guessed it, water-spirit), working locally and around the world through Global Water Watch, working with people dealing with water issues that have benefited from GWW’s community-based watershed stewardship approach.

The gathering of veterans and newbees were then treated to the story of the group’s formation, major challenges, and achievements by Lake Watch founder and long-time president, Dick Bronson. Dick’s unwavering commitment to Lake Martin and his leadership of Lake Watch in clean water advocacy has made a huge difference over the years in stopping pollution from entering the lake, and encouraging compliance by our towns, contractors and homeowners around the lake to ensure that the effluent and runoff that flows into the lake meets water quality standards. The volume of data that our Lake Watch monitors have gathered has been key in bringing problems of point source pollution and polluted run-off to the attention of those entities that can initiate action to get water problems resolved. In the APCo Lake Martin Dam relicensing, Lake Watch representatives were fully engaged throughout the process, participating in countless MIG (Martin Issue Group) meetings, advocating for maintenance of the lake’s excellent water quality, as well as for maintenance of more favorable lake levels in the fall and winter.

The crème de la crème – TAL! From two decades of water monitoring on the lake by Alabama Water Watch-trained monitors, Lake Watch knew that the lake was at the top of the list of clean lakes in the state. Dick wanted to keep it that way, and began lobbying ADEM for a special designation for the lake to protect its waters in perpetuity. Through meetings, discussions, letters, and sheer persistence, working with Director LeFleur at ADEM, Dick saw the fruits of his labors pay off at Children’s Harbor in December of 2010, when then-Governor Bob Riley signed into law a new designation to protect reservoirs of exceptional quality, Treasured Alabama Lake (TAL). Soon to follow, Lake Martin was designated as the first TAL in the state in early 2011 – a HUGE Victory for the lake and its residents! TAL protects Lake Martin through strict statute limitations on point and nonpoint pollution sources both now and in perpetuity.

The 25^th anniversary celebration ended with a proud ovation, and this message: “Thank you Dick and Mary Ann Bronson for being tireless stewards of Lake Martin. You continue to inspire us to do our part in preserving and protecting its waters, now and for generations to come.”

Special Thanks to People Working to Spread the Water-Stewardship Word

Judy Palfrey serves as Lake Watch water monitoring volunteer coordinator, ensuring that Lake Watch monitors have adequate supplies to do their work. Judy is also a monitor, and tests at multiple sites. She also continues to work with Dadeville grade school and middle school children to teach them about watershed stewardship, water monitoring and “Living Streams” – analysis of the aquatic “bugs” that signify that our water systems are healthy or, by their absence, disclose the ill-effects of pollution on them, and other aquatic creatures. If you think you'd like to become a monitor or environmental educator, talk with Judy!

Dick & Mary Ann Bronson and Raymond & Zelma dePasquale, together with Radney teacher - Laurie Barrett, continue to meet regularly with the Radney Elementary middle school children, giving of their time and seemingly unending energy toward enhancing learning experiences for the children in the boundless ‘outdoor classroom.’

Lastly, we are excited about Mona Dominguez, Alabama Water Watch coordinator of the 4-H AWW Program, working with Debra Stewart on introducing AWW water testing and watershed stewardship to youth through the 4-H Club. This most promising and exciting program is bringing the water stewardship message to children in the counties around Lake Martin, and will include canoe and kayak outings on our rivers and streams.. Go to www.alabamawaterwatch.org and click ENVIRO ED to learn more.

Lake Watch Budget

As you know, the greatest part of the Lake Watch budget is spent on the purchase of water testing supplies. Special THANKS to Lake Martin HOBO for their contribution to Lake Watch for our water monitoring program. In addition to water testing kits and supplies, membership funds are used to cover our costs to spread the word of watershed stewardship, water conservation, to advocate for clean water, and to encourage others to join in the effort. The website, newsletter, and teaching supplies are all part of those costs.

Lake Watch Leadership

Our board will see some changes in the coming year. Laurel Goldsmith, our long time Treasurer, board member, website guru, and organizer extraordinaire, is moving. Special thanks to Laurel for a job well-done! And to Sonny for his steadfast support and assistance! Best wishes to you, Laurel and Sonny! The Nominating Committee is searching for replacements, specifically, treasurer and a website manager. If you can assist, contact Eric at reuteem@auburn.edu.

Water Monitoring

Lake Watch volunteer monitors continue water testing throughout the lake at 18 sites, from Horseshoe Bend down to The Ridge. Key areas of the lake have gone silent, particularly the Kowaliga side of the lake, as long-time volunteers retire their test kits, so we are in need of new water monitors. If you think it’s a necessity to have an insurance policy for your car, think the same way about your lake – insure it through your involvement in lake stewardship by becoming a Lake Watch supporter, and consider becoming a water monitor. Visit the Alabama Water Watch website at www.alabamawaterwatch.org for information on water testing and registration for free workshops held throughout the year, or email Eric at reuteem@auburn.edu.

Closing Thoughts

YOU are what makes Lake Watch of Lake Martin work! We urge each of our Lake Watch members to spread the word on Lake Watch, to support our programs and to participate. Renew your membership! Help sign up new members to our team! Consider an additional donation to Lake Watch! Not everyone can get out and monitor water or teach in a classroom, but each member is essential to our success. Together, we can and will make a difference in the protection of our lake, in water conservation and clean water advocacy, and in the world we leave for our children. If every Lake Watch member encourages one or two friends to join in our efforts, it will go a long way toward ensuring the continuation of the good work we've accomplished over the past 25 years. Go visit your neighbor and sign him or her up. Or send your neighbor to our website, www.lakewatch.org to sign up. Better yet, bring them to our annual meeting on Feb 19^th where they can hear about our work first-hand!

Dues Reminder

Take the plunge, if you haven’t already!

• Protect Lake Martin by supporting Lake Watch!
• And ask a neighbor to do the same!

 For the many faithful Lake Watch members who already sent in their dues for 2017, thank you!  And for those who haven’t yet, don't forget to send your check to:

 P. O. Box 72 Alexander City, AL 35010

 to keep your membership current. Membership levels are listed below:

 Regular dues (annual):     Student  $10      Individual  $15         Family  $25

 Lake Martin Steward:       Silver     $50     Gold  $100                 Platinum  $250

 We also welcome donations.  Don't forget–a donation in someone's honor/memory is a lovely gift/tribute.

Lake Watcher

The Newsletter of Lake Watch of Lake Martin                                     No. 51, January 2016

2015 Achievements:

• 22 sites monitored for water chemistry and bacteria in the Lake Martin Watershed
• 102 data records submitted to the AWW water quality database
• First set of bacteria monitoring data sent from Lake Watch to the Swim Guide, www.theswimguide.org
• Hundreds of children and adults educated on lake and watershed stewardship

Lake Watch Annual Meeting Set for February 21, 2016

The Lake Watch Annual Meeting will be Sunday, February 21, 2016, noon to 2:30 pm at the StillWaters Residential Association Centre inside StillWaters Resort (1816 StillWaters Drive, Dadeville, AL; map and directions below). The meal will be catered and we ask that you pre-register so that we have a good count in order to accurately order food.

 Also, the Board has asked that everyone donate a nominal fee of $7.50 per person to cover the cost of our catfish dinner so that our dues and donations are used for water quality and watershed stewardship purposes. To pre-register, go to www.lakewatch.org. Click the Events menu on the left side of the homepage, then click the Register button. You may send your luncheon payment with your dues or pay at the meeting but please do take the time to preregister for the meeting. Or, if you prefer, send an e-mail to us at membership@lakewatch.org to let us know that you plan to attend.

 Lance LeFleur, the Director of the Alabama Department of Environmental Management, is this year's guest speaker. Mr. LeFleur was the owner of a Mobile recycling business when he was appointed as Director, ADEM in April 2010...just in time to be selected by Governor Riley as point-man for Alabama in response to the BP oil spill in the Gulf.  It was a hectic time in his career, and a time he likely would have preferred to miss.  It was several weeks before he could get to the agency in Montgomery and meet his staff. Since that time, he has been a breath of fresh air compared to several past directors.  It was largely through his willingness to hear pleas from Lake Watch that we were successful in attaining Treasured Alabama Lake (TAL) designation for Lake Martin. Director LeFleur has been asked to speak briefly on specific TAL rules that help protect our lake.  He also will likely address the adverse impact on recent funding cuts made by the Alabama Legislature and his response to those cuts.

Directions to the StillWaters Residential Association Building: From Hwy 49, south of the Hwy 49- CR 34 intersection, turn into StillWaters onto Moonbrook Drive,

-          Take Moonbrook Drive to StillWaters Drive,

-          Turn right on StillWaters Drive, the StillWaters Residential Association Building will be on your left (see red dot on map):

Our board will see some changes in the coming year.  President Kathryn Braund is completing her three-year term and Eric Reutebuch has been nominated as her replacement.  Secretary Zelma DePasquale is also retiring from the board and Diana Porter has accepted a nomination for that position.  The Nominating Committee has presented three nominations for board vacancies: Zelma DePasquale, Dick Bronson, and Judy Palfrey.

Our Year in Review

Kathryn Braund, Lake Watch President

Lake Watch members have been busy over the past year. Under the direction of our Volunteer Monitor Coordinator, Judy Palfrey, our certified water quality monitors test sites from Horseshoe Bend down to above the Martin dam and report results to Alabama Water Watch's database (see map on page 5).

We have lost some of our most dedicated and experienced monitors this year to retirement but fortunately, we have new volunteers to help fill the gaps.  But, as always, we are eager for new volunteers to continue the work that is the very core of our mission.  In addition to monthly testing, our volunteers have worked on educational projects for local children, including the Living Streams program.  Lake Watch is a member of the Middle Tallapoosa River Basin Clean Water Partnership and we have worked with the Lake Martin Home and Boat Owners Association on a variety of local issues. In addition, Lake Watch members prepare items relating to lake quality for Lake Magazine.

One important issue of concern over the past year was the discovery of "brown frothy material" in Sandy Creek near the Hwy 49 bridge and in StillWaters.  Bacteriological testing did not reveal the presence of E. coli, but our volunteers continue to be vigilant and respond to bacteriological threats to our lake and associated streams. 

 In December, we received the welcome news that FERC issued Alabama Power a new 30-year license to operate Martin Dam, approving the company’s proposal to raise the winter water level by three feet and, if there is sufficient water available, to extend the summer water level into the fall. Alabama Power also plans several recreational enhancements around the lake as part of the new license. Implementation of the new license takes effect on January 20, 2016, after a 30-day review period.

 As we continue to monitor the local watershed and speak out on issues that would impact water quality, we continue to seek your support through your dues and your help with our organization. We are always eager for active volunteers. If you are interested in helping with meetings, the newsletter, our website or our Face Book page, or other activities or wish to become a volunteer water monitor, please contact us at info@lakewatch.org.  

 Be sure to check out our website at www.lakewatch.org. Our site allows members to renew their dues, make donations, update their contact information, as well as access information about our organization, including a list of our Lake Watch water test sites, research reports (focused on Lake Martin), information on how to volunteer, news and events relating to our mission, and handy links and maps. You can also keep up with us on Facebook. Be sure and “like” our page and keep up with news of members and articles of interest. Feel free to post your lake photos and items of interest on our page.

 So, Who’s Watching the Water?

Eric Reutebuch and Ann Campbell

 Water chemistry monitors test and report important variables that indicate the health of the lake and its incoming tributary streams and Tallapoosa River, including pH, dissolved oxygen, alkalinity, hardness and turbidity. Bacteriological monitors test for E.coli which indicates fecal contamination in water, and at certain levels, waters that are unsafe for swimming. Alabama Water Watch at Auburn University receives Lake Watch data from individual volunteers and maintains permanent computer records for each site.

 Here’s an overview of the nuts and bolts of expenses to keep our monitoring program operating:

 Water Chemistry Monitoring:

Primary supplier is LaMotte.  Current method is to order chemicals on a quarterly basis as needed to save on shipping costs, but monitors often request special orders.   

• Full kit including case, glassware, thermometer and reagents ~  $290.00 
• Secchi disk & line with weight from Ben Meadows: $50
• Full set of water chemistry reagents ~  $97
• Remote sampler made by a local manufacturer for AWW:  $75

 Bacteriological Monitoring:

Primary supplier is Micrology Labs.

Estimated cost to equip an active bacterial monitor for the season (May – Sept), five months, for one site is approximately $50 plus tax and shipping.   In accordance with the guidelines set out by ADEM, Lake Watch of Lake Martin, along with other water monitoring groups in the state, takes a sabbatical on bacterial monitoring beginning in October and returning to our regular monthly monitoring routine in May. The Coliscan Easygel growth medium must be kept frozen until sampling time. The bacterial testing requires that the monitor use an incubator to grow bacteria in sample petri dishes and report bacteria count results to AWW. An incubator can be easily made by the monitor with an inexpensive ice chest/cooler, night light and thermometer. 

 *Note: all these costs are at current year prices which tend to go up a bit each year. 

 Bottom Line:

Although current monitors are adding water quality data from the Lake Martin Watershed to the AWW database, as our veterans retire their kits, WE NEED NEW MONITORS to join our Lake Watch team. If you want to get in on the fun of monitoring our Treasured Lake and its tributaries, go to the Alabama Water Watch website www.alabamawaterwatch.org and sign up for a workshop for water chemistry monitoring or bacteriological monitoring or steam biomonitoring, or better yet, all three!    Once you’re certified, go to the Lake Watch website at www.lakewatch.org and contact our volunteer monitor coordinator to make arrangements to select a site (or sites) of your preference and Lake Watch will order supplies for you.  Then once your site information is submitted to AWW, you’ll be set up for data input into the AWW website, and you’ll be ready to go! I guarantee that you’ll get that warm, fuzzy feeling inside – knowing that you are doing your part in protecting our Treasured Lake for all to enjoy!

Lake Watch sites monitored in 2015 – WOW, great job monitors!:

(click here to access the list)

Lake Watch water quality monitoring sites from Horseshoe Bend down to Martin Dam. Green dots = active sites (site number = last two digits of AWW site code), red dots = inactive sites.

The Frenches

Dick Bronson, Lake Watch Board member, LW founder and former long-time President

 I first “met” the French’s when they sent me a membership check nearly 20 years ago.  The funny part was, they sent it from their home in Missouri, and it took me a few years to actually meet them when they retired and came to the lake. They built their house in the Windover area of the lake, continued their membership, and began attending every Lake Watch meeting and training session possible.  They took the Alabama Water Watch training in chemical testing in May 1999 and adopted a test site near the old Kowaliga Bridge in an area of the lake that needed data on water quality.

 They’ve been loyal water quality monitors since that time, having submitted more than 270 monthly test reports (= 22 ½ years of monitoring!) to the AWW website.  In addition to their dedication to keeping track of water quality in the southern part of the lake, they were always available to help with environmental education projects with local school children, including Living Streams programs at Camp ASCCA.  It was there that Diana’s school teacher experience came to the fore, and David’s former law enforcement experience didn’t hurt either when trying to keep kids focused on their tasks.  But mostly it was their infectious love of life that was evident to anyone who saw them at work with young people.

 As with all of us, Father Time began catching up with Diana and David…the aches & pains increased, and they decided to hang up their “monitor spurs” and let someone else continue their good works.  They will still be around…just not quite as active.  And their legacy is already written…THEY DID GOOD!

Environmental Education in the Lake Martin Watershed, and Beyond

Judy Palfrey, Lake Watch Water Monitoring Coordinator and Dick Bronson, Lake Watch Board member, Lake Watch founder and former long-time President

Water quality and learning about macroinvertebrates (aquatic insects, snails, crayfish and clams) were taught to Dadeville Elementary after-school science club children by Judy Palfrey and her daughter, Heather Williams. Using Judy's bug box, the children were taught about the bugs and given clay to make their own. At the end of the term, the diorama was finished and placed in the entrance of the school. Alexander City Outlook came out and wrote an article about the event.

As well as learning about the bugs, an Enviroscape (provided by Tallapoosa County Extension Service) was used to teach about pollution. Also, Judy worked with the Montgomery Clean City Commission at the Montgomery Zoo. Using the Enviroscape, pollution from point & nonpoint sources was discussed. Students from all over Alabama came to the booth.

Judy and one of City of Montgomery's employees taught at Genetta Park (a reconstructed wetland) to Carver High School students using the Enviroscape. Cynthia discussed trash issues while Judy taught about watershed and point/nonpoint source pollution. Judy and Heather also taught water chemistry using AWW kits to a Dadeville 8^th grade Physical Science class. Pollution from different sources was discussed as well as watersheds and macroinvertebrates.

 Lake Watch volunteers continue to help with a variety of other Environmental Education projects with schools in the local area, including:

• Water quality testing using the LaMotte chemical test kit
• Field trips to Wind Creek State Park where instruction was given on chemical, bacterial and biological water testing

• Field trips to wastewater and drinking water treatment plants (Alexander City)
• Field trip to Martin Dam
• Nature hikes on the trails behind Radney       Elementary School (Alexander City) 

• Preparatory work on  a stream restoration project for Barrett Creek (Radney School)
• Visit and presentation to Radney School Gifted Classes by ADEM Director Lance LeFleur, followed by a hike on the school’s nature trail.

Exciting changes for Alabama Water Watch

Eric Reutebuch, Lake Watch Board of Directors member and AWW Director

 Hundreds of citizen monitors volunteer hundreds of hours each year in stewardship of streams, rivers, lakes, bays and bayous statewide. Volunteers trained and certified in water quality monitoring (water chemistry, bacteriological, and/or stream biomonitoring) have tested over 2,300 sites on 800⁺ waterbodies over the past 23 years, submitting over 82,000 water data records to the AWW database, as well working to resolve countless water pollution problems, and education of thousands of youth and adults in aquatic ecology, water quality and watershed stewardship.

2015 turned out to be another year of significant transition for AWW. Our beloved AU Water Resources Center Director, Dr. Sam Fowler, retired after 39 years of service and leadership in the Alabama Cooperative Extension System and then at the AU Water Resources Center. We were very fortunate that Dr. Puneet Srivastava was chosen to replace Dr. Fowler as the Center’s Director. Dr. Srivastava has a long list of impressive credentials and achievements over the past decade in water resources research. We look forward to working with him for many years to come!

 Another MAJOR transition was a total rebuild of the AWW water quality database and online data tools (graphs and maps, see map below). Sergio Ruiz-Córdova, our resident database guru, working with AWW programmer-extraordinaire, Jim Johnson, put in many long hours to build the new faster, better AWW database! For the first time, we can now visualize and query AWW data by watershed, making it easier to interpret and utilize AWW water data.

110 workshops were conducted in 2015, thanks in large part to our dedicated citizen trainers, and our super-workshop-coordinator, Rita Grub. With over 400 new water watchers on the ground, we will get even closer to realizing our vision of having a monitor on every stream, river, lake, bay and bayou in the state.

 Though we are greatly appreciative of ongoing support from the Alabama Cooperative Extension System and the Alabama Agriculture Experiment Station at Auburn University, the long-term viability of AWW still depends on the support of Alabamians…through monitoring, joining the AWW Association, donating, and voicing support of AWW.  If you haven’t already – come join us on our journey! For details on the different ways that you can get involved, visit the AWW website (www.alabamawaterwatch.org).

 I want to thank all of you for all that you do in support of the AWW Program, and preserving our treasured Alabama waters for all to enjoy!

Dues Reminder

 Take the plunge, if you haven’t already!

 Support Lake Watch! And ask a neighbor to do the same!

 For the many faithful Lake Watch members who already sent in their dues for 2016, thank you!  And for those who haven’t yet, don't forget to send a check to: P. O. Box 72 Alexander City, AL 35010 to keep you current. Membership levels are listed below:

 Regular dues (annual):     Student  $10      Individual  $15         Family  $25

 Lake Martin Steward:       Silver     $50     Gold  $100                 Platinum  $250

 We also welcome donations.  Don't forget–a donation in someone's honor/memory is a lovely gift/tribute.

    P. O.  Box 72

   Alexander City, AL 35010