Kit Arnquist, citizen water monitor

Meet Kit Arnquist, Longville resident, retired teacher, and one of the MPCA's Citizen Monitoring Program’s longtime volunteers. Arnquist, along with 1,500 other volunteers throughout Minnesota, take regular readings of water clarity at lakes or streams across the state. The information collected helps inform MPCA’s efforts to improve water quality.

Arnquist first heard about the volunteer program through an article in a volunteer publication. According to Arnquist, “I was interested in the opportunity because I wanted to do my part in protecting our lake. And 26 years later I still enjoy it.”

Volunteers like Arnquist measure water clarity in their lake or stream weekly throughout the summer months, using simple equipment provided by the MPCA. Water clarity, or transparency, is an important indicator of the health of a lake or stream. The MPCA uses water clarity data to track water quality trends and make decisions on watershed protection and restoration. For some lakes and streams, data collected by volunteers is the only data available, making this work very valuable.

“In much the same way that blood pressure can alert a doctor to changes in a patient’s health, a robust record of data on water clarity can help scientists track the health of a stream or lake,” said Laurie Sovell, who coordinates the Citizen Stream Monitoring Program for the MPCA.

When asked if she is ready to retire her monitoring equipement, Arnquist said, “as long as I can get in my canoe, I can monitor.”

The MPCA is currently recruiting volunteers for the Citizen Stream Monitoring Program and Citizen Lake Monitoring Program. To become a volunteer or learn more about the program, visit the MPCA’s citizen monitoring program page, or call 651-296-6300 (Twin Cities) or 800-657-3864 (Greater Minnesota).