Lake Partner Program

The Lake Partner Program is a province-wide, volunteer-based, water-quality monitoring program.  The Six Mile Lake Cottagers Association has been an active participant in this program for over 13 years.

Two water samples are collected in late May each year. These samples are sent to the Lake Environmental Science Center laboratory in Dorset, Ontario where they are tested for phosphorous content.

From early May until mid October, water clarity readings and lake temperature readings are taken every 2 to 3 weeks.

The clarity readings are taken using a Secchi disc which is a black and white metal disc about 8 inches in diameter.  It is lowered into the water at the same location on the lake each time (in our case, just west of Cedar Nook) and the depth in metres that it is no longer visible is recorded.

These clarity and temperature readings are sent to Dorset at the end of October each year.

In the spring of the following year, a report is published showing all the data recorded for all the target lakes and locations in Ontario.  You can see the province wide report at the Lake Partner web site.

The 20 years of water quality data presented at the 2010 Annual General Meeting is available below.

 20 Year Water Quality Report.pdf

Released in 2011, the inland lake 5 year water quality report card is available below.

 5 Year Water Quality Report.pdf

Interpreting Secchi Disc Results

Secchi Reading in metres	Lake Nutrient Status
Over 5 metres	Oligotrophic, there are few nutrients in the water.
3.0-4.9 metres	Mesotrophic, the water is moderately enriched.
Less than 2.9 metres	Eutrophic, the water is enriched with high levels of nutrients

Six Mile Lake has been averaging slightly over 5.0 metres.  The last few years have brought the average up somewhat.  This is probably a result of our Zebra mussel invasion.

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Water Quality Data

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