• Welcome Lake had fairly clear water with moderate nutrient concentrations and moderate algal growth.
• Welcome Lake continues to have contrasting trends. The trends of decreasing nitrogen and chlorophyll concentrations suggest the water quality has been improving. In contrast, phosphorus concentrations have been increasing, an indicator of declining water quality. Further analysis (and likely more data) is needed before making any management recommendations based on these trend results.
• Nitrogen-to-phosphorus (N:P) ratios were below 25 for much of the monitoring season. This indicates the potential for algal blooms to be dominated by cyanobacteria (which have the ability to produce toxins).
• An algal bloom was sampled for toxin testing in September. No algal toxins were detected in this sample.
This bathymetric map shows contour lines of equal depth, similar to a topographic map would for mountains and valleys. The red 'X' marks the location where water quality samples are taken.
This map shows the area of the watershed relative to the area of the lake. Generally speaking, the larger a watershed is relative to a lake, the greater the influence land use practices on lake water quality.
The average of these three TSI indicators during the growing season can be used
to place lakes in one of three broad categories:
<40 = oligotrophic (low productivity),
40 to 50 = mesotrophic (moderate productivity)
>50 = eutrophic (highly productive).
