Thanks to your participation, the Dip-In continues to demonstrate that volunteers can collect quality data over an entire continent.  We are attracting attention as a legitimate data gathering mechanism, not just an event in July.  The Dip-In is a network of volunteer networks, each supplying the data for local programs and, together with all the other Dip-In participants, gathering and providing continent-wide (and world-wide) information. 

Because of our limited funding this year, we will not be able to send reports and 2005 questionnaires to each program and volunteer.  We are again asking for your help to notify volunteers in your program of the Dip-In.  Please advertise the Dip-In in your own newsletters as well as use your e-mail list if this is available.  There is a Dip-In Announcement and a press release you can modify at our website (http://dipin.kent.edu/Press_release.htm).  A copy of a 2005 Dip-In questionnaire is also available (http://dipin.kent.edu/Questionnaire.htm).  The annual report for the 2004 Dip-In will be posted at our Dip-In website soon.  Preliminary findings can be found at  http://dipin.kent.edu/results.htm.

Despite funding cutbacks, we will continue to try to make the Dip-In more useful to you. 

·        Please think about long term participation.  We need at least 5 years or more of data on a given waterbody to calculate the transparency trends.

·        Last year we added an extra week to the Dip-In to accommodate more programs and individuals.  Data from any part of the year is always welcome and can be added at our website.

·        We accept data from all sorts of turbidity instruments, not only Secchi disks, as well as temperature and pH.  We welcome data taken with more than one type of turbidity instrument; we use this to correlate the instruments to produce a single value we can use for mapping.

·        We  encourage stream and estuary programs to participate as well.

·        All of the data, including 2004, are now available on our website.  You can retrieve it by program, by state, by county, or by waterbody.  If you find errors, please let us know; you know these sites better than we do.

·        If you want all of the information for your program or state, please don’t hesitate to ask.  It only takes us a few minutes to generate an Excel file or Access database with the information you need.

We hope that you will continue to participate this year.  

Please visit our Secchi Dip-In Website (http://dipin.kent.edu/volform.htm) to

1. Let us know if you will participate in this year’s Dip-In

2. Correct or add information after reviewing your contact information at the bottom of this page

3. Give us feedback about (1) your quality assurance procedures and, (2) if you did not respond last year, about other variables you measure.
   

Dip-In Program ID Number:  98
Program Name: MLSA Cooperative Lakes Monitoring Program
Organization (if different from the Volunteer Program):  Michigan Lake and Stream Associations
Coordinator or Contact Name:  Pearl Bonnell
Address: PO Box 303
Address:
City:       Long Lake
State:     MI
Country:  USA 
ZIP or Postal Code:  48743
Telephone Number:  989-257-3583
Fax Number:  989-257-2073
E-Mail Address: pbonnell@mlswa.org
Organization Home Page:  www.mlswa.org

For more details, Contact

Bob Carlson
2005 Secchi Dip-In
Biological Sciences, Kent State Univ, Kent, OH  44242
Phone 330.672.3992    FAX 330.672.3713     E-mail: Dipin@Kent.edu