Research and Education

Volunteers are needed for a variety of on-going research and education projects related to our lakes. These projects generally have been initiated with grant funds and require training. Training sessions are scheduled when it is determined a sufficient number of volunteers are interested.

1. Citizen Lake Monitoring. Citizen monitors collect data on lake clarity by lowering a Secchi disk into the water from a boat. A GPS system is desirable. Training takes about three hours. All necessary equipment is provided. Monitors choose their own sites from those available throughout the Winnebago Pool. They generally take weekly readings at times of their own choosing from late spring through fall. They enter their data into a DNR computerized database, which collects information from over 1000 Wisconsin lakes. More than 100 citizens on the Winnebago Pool have been trained since the program was initiated here in 2005. Currently volunteers are most needed on the northern and eastern sections of Lake Winnebago, although unassigned sites can be found throughout the system.
2. Stream Monitoring. Citizen monitors collect data on rivers and streams feeding into the Winnebago Pool lakes. Stream monitoring is more sophisticated than lake monitoring. Training takes about six hours. All equipment is provided. Monitors generally work in pairs or teams on unassigned streams of their own choosing.
3. Aquatic Invasive Species Monitoring. New this year is a program to recruit volunteers to monitor aquatic invasive species in the Winnebago Pool. A background in biology or other science is desirable. Several training sessions will be scheduled at various locations in early summer 2007.
4. Clean Boats, Clean Waters watercraft inspection program. Volunteers work alone or in pairs at busy boat landings to educate boaters about how they can prevent the spread of aquatic invasive species. They check boats to remove attached vegetation, collect data on various boater characteristics, and hand out educational material. Training sessions are scheduled for late spring and summer 2007 and generally take from 2-4 hours. Volunteers choose when and where they want to work from among a list of boat landings and hours designated as busiest. Last year UW Oshkosh interns tested the Clean Boats, Clean Waters program, inspecting over 1600 boats and making more than 2000 contacts. Fifteen UW Oshkosh interns were hired for the 2007 season to work with volunteers.

For more information please contact us.