Shuswap River water quality monitoring

Mabel Lake is 35 km long and is a popular recreation and fishing destination. It drains into the Shuswap River. (BC Government photo)

The Lower Shuswap Stewardship Society (LSSS), in collaboration with local, provincial and federal governments, has developed a three-year comprehensive water quality monitoring project for the Shuswap River.

The Ministry of the Environment (MOE) assisted the Society in mapping out scheduling, sites and parameters for testing water quality in three locations on the river and will continue to be involved throughout the process. Funding has been provided through the Regional District of the North Okanagan (RDNO) from funds allocated to the Shuswap River watershed sustainability plan.

Beginning later this spring, trained volunteers will be sampling the waters of the river on a monthly basis at the river mouth at Mabel Lake, the Trinity bridge at Ashton Creek and the Enderby bridge. The samples will be taken on the same days at all the locations and they will be compared with BC water quality guidelines. As well, the samples will be compared from one site to the next, in order to identify potential sources of concern. If concerns are identified, more focused sampling may follow to identify the specific contributors to the water quality concerns.

Jean Clark, the society’s chairperson, stated, “This project will assist in developing some baseline data for the river and identify any areas of concern. Our group is committed to protecting water quality in the Shuswap River and this project is the first step toward gathering the scientific data to assist us in understanding the current status of water quality. We are pleased to receive financial support from RDNO and the ongoing support and direction from MOE staff.”

For more information on the project go to the Lower Shuswap Stewardship Society website: http://lowershuswap.org