(Undated)– Boaters on several area lakes are asked to be on the lookout for some special buoys protecting some equipment.
The Iowa Department of Natural Resources says Iowa State University has begun installing water quality monitoring equipment in 16 Iowa lakes to collect data during the 2011 and 2012 ice-free seasons. They say the data that’s collected will help identify what factors lead to harmful algal blooms, a major water quality impairment for Iowa lakes.
The study is being conducted in cooperation with the DNR.
Special buoys have been put on the lakes marking the location of the equipment, which is below the water surface. Officials are asking the public to not disturb the buoys.
A number of lakes in our area are involved in the study and have the special buoys on them. They include Big Spirit Lake, Center Lake, Lower Gar and Silver Lake in Dickinson county and Five Island and Silver Lake in Palo Alto county.
