Fundraiser set up for survey into water of Lake Windermere
The survey focuses on the key nutrients and bacteria in the water
Efforts to raise money for a survey of Lake Windermere have begun.
It comes after millions of litres of sewage was illegally pumped into the lake in February.
Launched in 2022 by the Freshwater Biological Association and Lancaster University, the Big Windermere Survey (BWS) has developed a community of volunteer citizen scientists to help monitor and understand water quality in Windermere and its surrounding catchment.
Excellent water quality is essential to support community health, wellbeing, recreation, and the sustainable economic growth of Windermere’s visitor-based economy.
Four times per year, hundreds of citizen scientists, concerned about the ecological health of Windermere, come together to collect water samples which are then analysed in professional, accredited laboratories to achieve precise and robust data so we can build a more complete picture of the pressures in the catchment.
Windermere is an internationally iconic freshwater lake in the heart of the Lake District National Park - vital for business, tourism, recreation, conservation, and wildlife. However, concerns have been raised about the health of the lake. In particular, there are concerns about algal blooms and bacterial pollution which are potentially harmful to animals and humans.
Role of the Big Windermere Survey
The survey focuses on the key nutrients and bacteria that lie behind these issues, contributing to the scientific understanding of water quality in the Leven catchment.
Data gathered drives evidence-based action to protect and restore the health of Windermere. The survey has already generated community-focused action and continues to support the development of future initiatives to improve lake conditions.
Data from the survey has already initiated local investigations and monitoring into higher phosphorus and bacterial concentrations from multiple wastewater sources and misconnections across the catchment.
Funding the Big Windermere Survey
To continue running the Big Windermere Survey, the organisations need to raise £30,000 by the beginning of July to fund our summer 2024 survey. To date, previous surveys have been funded by grants from organisations such as Westmorland and Furness Council, the National Trust, Lake District Foundation and the Environment Agency.