Survey of the  Nation's Lakes:
              A Fact Sheet  for Communities
The U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA), states, and tribes are
conducting a nationwide survey this
summer of the condition of the nation's
lakes. The survey will help citizens and
governments measure the health of our
waters, take actions to prevent
pollution, and evaluate the
effectiveness of protection and
restoration efforts.

Designed to estimate  the percentage of
lakes that are in good, fair, or poor
condition, the survey will  serve as a
scientific report card on  America's
lakes. It will examine ecological, water
quality, and recreational indicators, and
assess how widespread key stressors
(such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and
acidification) are across the country.

The survey is a collaborative effort
that involves dozens of state
environmental and natural resource
agencies, federal agencies, universities
and other organizations.  In most
states, state water quality staff will
conduct the water quality sampling and
habitat assessments.

How were the lakes selected?

A total of 909 lakes - representing five
size classes and distributed relatively
evenly across the lower 48 states - are
included in the survey. A pilot project
is also underway in Alaska.  EPA
selected the lakes from the nation's
natural and man-made freshwater lakes,
ponds and reservoirs. Lakes must be at
least one meter deep and over ten acres
in size. The survey does not include the
Great Lakes or the Great Salt Lake.
Lakes were selected randomly using a
statistical survey design to represent
the population of lakes in their
ecological region - the geographic area
in which climate, ecological features,
and plant and animal  communities are
similar.
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Distribution of lakes in the survey

What about my lake?

If your lake is being sampled for this
survey, it was selected randomly from
the population of lakes in your part of
the country. Your lake was not selected
because it exhibits any particular
problem or water quality condition, or
because it was recommended for
sampling by an agency or organization.

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When the final report on the Survey of
the Nation's Lakes is written, data from
your lake will contribute to the regional
and national picture of lake condition.

If your lake is not being sampled for
this survey, it was not omitted for any
particular reason, but rather because it
was not randomly selected or did not fit
into the target population of lakes (e.g.,
those greater than ten acres in area
and at least one meter deep).

Many volunteer monitoring groups and
lake associations have years of sampling
data for their lakes, data vital to local
lake management activities.  This survey
will provide a regional and national - and
in some cases, statewide  - assessment
of lake condition.  It will  also allow
those with sampling data on their lake
to compare the condition of their lake
to the range of lakes in their region or
state.

What will researchers measure?

Field crews will be taking many
measurements at  each selected lake.
They will be using consistent
procedures at all sites so that results
can be compared across the country.
They will be measuring such things as:

   •   Temperature, dissolved oxygen,
       nutrients, chlorophyll a, water
       clarity, turbidity, and color
   •   Condition of the habitat along
       the shoreline
   •   Zooplankton and phytoplankton —
       microscopic animals and plants  in
       the water that are an important
       part of the food chain
   •   Aquatic macroinvertebrates —
       small animals such as insects and
       snails that are a source of food
       for fish and birds
   •   Bacteria —  indicators of fecal
       contamination from animals or
       humans.

They will also be taking sediment cores
from the bottom of the lake.

What happens next?

Sampling will be  conducted  during the
summer of 2007. EPA  intends to issue a
report on the findings  in  2009.
Between the time lakes are sampled and
the national report is published, samples
will be analyzed in the  lab, the data will
be entered into a database and
analyzed, and a draft report will be
written and  reviewed.  The  public will
have the opportunity to review and
comment on the  draft report.

Where can  I find out more?

For more information visit:
www.epa.qov/owow/lakes/lakessurvey,
or email us with questions at
lakessurvey©epa.qov
   U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
    1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW (4503T)
         Washington, DC 20460
          EPA 841-F-07-005
           May 2007

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