Our lake patrol has been back on the lake since May 4, 2010!

You can contact them with any questions about the health of Lake Memphremagog by calling or text messaging 819-620-3939 or by email to: patrouille@memphremagog.org

Have you seen any blue-green algae? Have you seen someone carrying out any environmentally dubious work? Doing work along the shoreline that is adding a big load of sediments to the lake? Perhaps you would like to purchase appropriate shrubs for the shoreline? You would like to meet our patrollers? Don’t hesitate to call them for these kinds of concerns.

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The picture shows our patrollers Alexis Martin, Ariane Foisy, Erich Smith-Peter and Catherine Roy.

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AND NOW SOME DETAILS ABOUT OUR PATROL!

Every year, MCI hires students who have the opportunity of working on your lake, Lake Memphremagog. Surrounded by vast tracts of wooded land, and with its many bays and tributaries and its rich biodiversity, Lake Memphremagog is one of the lakes most studied by biologists and many others. To help preserve this rich treasure, the summer nautical patrol has been covering Lake Memphremagog for more than 3 decades.

The Lake Memphremagog patrollers have several tasks to accomplish during the season. In terms of scientific research, they must conduct sampling for the MDDEP (Ministère du Développement Durable, de l’Environnement et des Parcs). This involves sampling for phosphate levels, the quantity of fecal coliform and, this year, the presence of dissolved oxygen in the lake. They also monitor the lake for the presence of blue-green algae (cyanobacteria) and track its evolution during the summer. An assessment of the eutrophication of the lake is carried out by counting the different species of algae and the covering of aquatic plants. They work closely with the inspectors in shoreline municipalities to deal with environmental problems in an appropriate way and at the same time to ensure better management of the shore and the water.

In addition to informing and making residents of the beautiful region of Lake Memphremagog aware of the environmental issues and problems, municipal by-laws, flora and fauna, and the different aspects of the organization M.C.I itself, the patrollers lead workshops in summer day camps and are present at the various summer festivals in villages in the MRC. When it rains, they go door-to-door throughout the summer to make MCI better known.

The patrollers participate in all the activities of Memphremagog Conservation Inc.: planting and distributing trees, conducting interviews with the media, offering talks on various environmental aspects and attending board meetings and the annual general meeting (AGM), etc.

All in all, the patrollers’ tasks are many and varied and they are always ready to take on new challenges!

HERE IS A BRIEF PRESENTATION OF OUR THREE PATROLLERS:

ALEXIS MARTIN, patroller. "I have an undergraduate degree in general biology, and am presently in my second session in the Master’s program in environmental science. With this training, I have learned different sampling techniques for water quality and how to characterize (describe the significant features) of aquatic ecosystems. I am now working for Memphremagog Conservation Inc. (MCI) as a nautical patroller and sampler. I plan to write my thesis on water management in Quebec. I have always been passionate about the complexity and beauty of aquatic ecosystems, and I think I can be of use to the organization and the lake.”

CATHERINE ROY, patroller. "I am a student in biotechnology at the Université de Sherbrooke, and I feel it is important to take care of our environment. Lake Memphremagog is magnificent and it must remain young and in good health if we wish to continue to use it, and this is why I feel a real passion to look after the lake and to help keep it healthy. I am certain that my summer with Memphremagog Conservation Inc. will be a wonderful experience and I will bring all my know-how and motivation to improve the environment of the lake.”

ERICH SMITH-PETER, coordinator for the patrol. “I am now in my third year of an undergraduate program in molecular biology and my second year at M.C.I. I am one of those who believes that the environment is not a material resource but rather something sacred that each one of us should care for because nature will always bring us much more than we can possibly imagine, and so generously that it is impossible not to feel the greatest respect. When I heard about M.C.I. and its vision, I immediately went to the resource people there and offered my services as a volunteer. Today, I am richly rewarded by working with the committee of volunteers who act and make decisions related to the most important present and future issues for our Earth. I am proud to be a part of Memphremagog Conservation Inc., an organization that, in my view, is ahead of the curve and made up of spectacular people.”