Florida LAKEWATCH Summer Newsletter

We are immensely proud of the amazing work our staff and volunteers have accomplished over the past 37 years. With over 437,000 samples collected from 6,630 sites across 800 waterbodies, we have answered many important questions about our lakes and rivers. The resulting data have been used for countless research projects, within and outside of Florida, as far away as Denmark. And we did it all while working across several small buildings, with disconnected lab and office spaces; we had to make do with what we had.

In 2006, on the 20th anniversary of Florida LAKEWATCH, founder Dr. Daniel E. Canfield Jr. envisioned a new new facility, with state-of-the-art labs and office spaces. There, our staff could work together more effectively to accomplish our core mission: working with our dedicated Citizen Scientists to monitor Florida’s unique and valuable aquatic ecosystems and provide research-quality data , public education, and student training on aquatic ecosystem health and management.

Since that time, LAKEWATCH has held several fund-raising campaigns to help build this new functional space for the program (see “A Home for Florida LAKEWATCH,” Newsletter Vol 36). All donations to-date have been greatly appreciated and have helped sustain our momentum. And now, we are delighted to announce that the Florida Legislature has approved a $2 million dollar line item with funds for the construction of a new Florida LAKEWATCH building! We are very grateful for this significant funding, which recognizes the importance of the LAKEWATCH program to monitoring water quality across our state. While we are still in the early planning stages, these funds are a pivotal step forward in our building project and bring us one step closer to breaking ground! Think of all the program will accomplish over the next 37 years, when we finally achieve Dr. Canfield’s goal of building a new facility.

Photo feature: The likely future site of the new LAKEWATCH facility.

A lot has changed since we began this effort in 2006. Looking ahead, new facilities will help the LAKEWATCH program grow, building on our successful foundation collaborating with citizen scientists. Under our new director, Dr. Gretchen Lescord (see “Welcome Dr. Lescord” Newsletter Vol 100) , we will continue to do research of local importance with global implications. We will work hard to help the next generation of lake users understand and address the new challenges facing our aquatic resources. Doing so requires more space and more sophisticated facilities. This, coupled with the recent inflation, means that we need to raise more funds for our building project. And we need your help! Do you have any fundraising ideas that could help us push our long-held dream across the finish line? We are open to all kinds of grants, donations, or creative ideas you may have. Please feel free to contact Mark Hoyer (mvhoyer@ufl.edu) or Dr. Lescord (lescord.g@ufl.edu) with ideas, questions, or comments.

Photo feature: Outgoing director, Mark Hoyer, has been showing incoming director, Dr. Gretchen Lescord, how variable Florida lakes can be! Here they are on Cross Creek, on their way from Orange Lake to Lochloosa Lake this spring.

Want to hear more about the exciting transition period at LAKEWATCH? Check out the most recent episode of UF's Working in the Weeds podcast, which interviews Dr. Lescord and the outgoing director, Mark Hoyer, about the past and future of the program. You'll also hear LAKEWATCH volunteer, Mr. Tom Prevost, talk about his experience sampling Lake Sante Fe for 37 years! (Listen here)

Please stay tuned and we will keep everyone informed as this exciting project moves forward. Stay up to date on this and other LAKEWATCH news through our website, https://lakewatch.ifas.ufl.edu/.