NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory and the University of Michigan's Cooperative Institute for Great Lakes Research have collected physical, chemical, and biological water quality data in western Lake Erie since 2012. The dataset includes weekly discrete sampling and real-time buoy measurements from May to October each year. Parameters cover wind speed, water temperature, nutrients like phosphorus and nitrate, algal pigments, and toxins such as microcystin.
Use Cases
- Model bloom toxicity by predicting particulate_microcystin levels from nutrients like total_phosphorus and nitrate + nitrite, and algal pigments like extracted_chlorophyll-a.
- Forecast bloom timing and intensity using time-series analysis of buoy parameters including chlorophyll-a, phycocyanin, water_temperature, and turbidity.
- Assess water clarity and light penetration by correlating secchi_depth with turbidity, CTD_beam_attenuation, and colored_dissolved_organic_material_absorbance.
- Analyze nutrient loading impacts by examining relationships between total_dissolved_phosphorus, soluble_reactive_phosphorus, ammonia, and algal biomass metrics.
- Study physical drivers of blooms by linking wind_speed and wave_height measurements to spatial distribution of suspended solids and dissolved_organic_carbon.
Strengths
- Multi-year temporal coverage from 2012 onward, capturing pre-, during, and post-bloom conditions annually.
- Combines high-frequency buoy data (e.g., chlorophyll-a, phycocyanin) with detailed weekly discrete sampling for over 30 parameters.
- Spatial coverage includes multiple stations and four moored buoys in the western basin of Lake Erie.
Limitations
- Data is seasonal, limited to the open water period from May to October each year.
- Specific sample sizes, row counts, and data completeness metrics for each parameter are not provided.
- Relies on established lab techniques (APHA standards) which may have detection limits for trace analytes.
Provenance
- Source
- NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory and Cooperative Institute for Great Lakes Research (CIGLR), University of Michigan.
- Collection Method
- Weekly discrete water sampling and analysis combined with real-time data from four moored instrument buoys.
- Time Range
- 2012 to present, with seasonal collection from May to October.
- Freshness
- null
- Geography
- Western basin of Lake Erie, United States.