US EPA compiles data from Burton Wetlands as part of nationwide study
Scientists at Geauga Park District were thrilled that Lake Kelso, protected by Burton Wetlands Nature Preserve in Burton Township, was selected for inclusion in the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s scientific study of the health of America’s lakes.
The entire Geauga County community should be thrilled to learn to what extent.
“Lake Kelso was actually chosen as one of the finest examples of a ‘least-disturbed’ natural lake in Ohio, or a reference lake,” said Park Biologist Paul Pira. “The US EPA will now use Lake Kelso to give the US Congress a scientific report card. It’s pretty neat to think that Geauga Park District is helping set the quality standard for healthy waters in the United States.”
For its participations in the study, last week Geauga Park District’s Natural Resource Management Department assisted a crew of four aquatic biologists from the US EPA’s Region 3 office in Wheeling, West Virginia, to sample for a multitude of water quality measurements including insects, plankton, zooplankton, water chemistry, shoreline habitat assessments, and lake depth/bottom sampling.
Crystal Lake in Summit County, another natural glacial lake, will serve as Ohio’s only other “least-disturbed” lake in the study. Data compiled during these work days will then be used as a standard for the cleanest of Ohio lakes, and to estimate the percentage of more than 900 lakes nationwide in good, fair, or poor condition.
A complete report is expected in 2014, followed by a follow-up study in five years’ time.
Burton Wetlands Nature Preserve is located at 15681 Old Rider Road in Burton Township, and online. The park is open to the public, with a deck overlooking the scenic Lake Kelso, daily from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Photos from the US EPA’s field day are available upon request. Park Biologist Paul Pira is also available at 440-279-0812 or ppira@geaugaparkdistrict.org to further discuss the work or host a media visit to the site for additional photos. For more information about the national survey, visit HERE.
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