Five Watershed Creek Monitoring

CLIENT
Lakeshore Water Institute + University of Wisconsin - Green Bay

LOCATION
Cleveland, Wisconsin

STATUS
Current Project

Established
January 2009

SIZE
N/A

CATEGORY
Research / Data / River

Consultant Team

*Russ Tooley — Water Quality Manager

Rebecca Abler — UW-Green Bay, Manitowoc Campus Biology Faculty

Richard Hein — UW-Green Bay, Manitowoc Campus Biology Faculty

Students — UW-Green Bay, Manitowoc Campus

*Sadly, Russ is no longer with us. We encourage you to honor his legacy by reading this tribute written by his wife, Mary.

A partnership between the Friends of Hika-Bay, Lakeshore Natural Resources Partnership and the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Manitowoc Campus formed the Lakeshore Water Institute, developed an active watershed monitoring internship program and host the annual Lakeshore Water Summit. 

The Lakeshore Water Institute is housed at UW-Green Bay, Manitowoc Campus and serves as a lakeshore region resource for education and engagement of students in water quality issues and for developing science-based water quality data for use at the local government level. Centerville Creek, Fischer Creek, Point Creek, Pine Creek and Calvin Creek are all sampled for water quality during the Summer months. Watersheds for the creek monitoring are shown on the map below with the dots representing sample collection areas.

Student intern collected data includes biological, physical, and chemical assessments of stream quality in five southeastern Manitowoc County creeks which empty into Lake Michigan. Samples have been collected and analyzed over the summer months on a weekly basis and after rain events for the last six years. This empirical data shows the high nutrient loads and pollutants in these waters. Testing included PH, temperature, turbidity, flow, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, ammonia, phosphorus and E.coli. Over 5,000 data points are developed each sampling season. These facts have allowed LNRP to inform legislators and other stakeholders of the condition of the County’s water impacting these tributaries and Lake Michigan. This knowledge-based research is crucial to provide a baseline of the waters condition and to monitor improvements or deterioration. It also provides community based learning through undergraduate research and learning.

Lakeshore Water Summit

Riparian landowners, local agencies and students are invited each year to the Lakeshore Water Summit event where the interns explain what they have learned from the sampling season, what they found in the creek water, why it might be there, interpret the analyses and demystify the science of groundwater. Some topics from previous Lakeshore Water Summit events include: the impact of storm events; how a manure spill was discovered and minimized; locating and eliminating a direct phosphorus source; provided evidence that the Centerville Creek Restoration Project has improved water quality; and viewing presentations developed for sharing with schools and agencies around the State.

Above is a replay of the 2024 Lakeshore Water Summit. Over the 2024 summer, seven UW-Green Bay interns analyzed the water in three southwestern creeks (Centerville Creek, the Little Manitowoc River, Pine Creek. This video presentation explains what they found.