Cold, clear water will have a higher percentage of dissolved oxygen and be able to better support a wide variety of aquatic life. A profile of a lake s dissolved oxygen content is created by measuring temperature and oxygen at several intervals from the surface of the water to the bottom of the lake. Water can appear clear and clean but may not provide a healthy, balanced environment for aquatic life. Biomonitoring studies aquatic creatures such as fish and insects to determine their diversity and quantity. Volunteer lake monitors are one of a lake's most important allies.
Volunteers offer their time and energy working with biologists to regularly monitor lake conditions.
Approximately 225 lakes are currently monitored by 950 volunteers statewide. Two state-wide programs are dedicated to training volunteers interested in protecting lakes in New Hampshire. Since 1985, the NH LLMP has been expanded with the addition of Jeff Schloss as coordinator. With site-specific data collected every week at many lake sites during the summer, the research program enables both seasonal and interannual trend analysis of water quality. Hundreds of volunteers have been actively collecting data for more than twenty years.