Volunteer Bruce S. measuring stream EC and Temperature on Oct 2, 2020, upper Johnson’s Brook (Sandy Lake watershed)
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At a get-together of volunteers in the Halifax LakeWatchers program earlier this year, a participant asked what observations could be made by volunteers outside of the prescribed limnological sampling.
I suggested that a lot can be learned from measurements of electrical conductivity & temperature using inexpensive “pocket meters”; I commented that I always carry one in the field and routinely measure surface water EC (electrical conductivity) and temperature any time I cross a stream or walk by a lake. In the ensuing discussion, there was general agreement that such measurements can indeed by very informative.
As a followup, I have revised/updated a page on “EC Notes” on this website which describes, with reference to scientific literature, the ins and outs of such measurements, their interpretation etc. and added pages describing my use of a particular pocket meter, and summarizing circa a dozen sets of observations in the Williams Lake and Sandy Lake (Bedford) watersheds in the Halifax region.
View
– EC (salt) Notes
and the subpages:
– Examples of “EC Monitoring”
– On our use of a Pocket Water Tester
and the related page:
– Lake Stratification & EC/salt content
In regard to using EC levels as a measure of “pollution” in the Halifax NS region, view item 6. (EC AS A MEASURE OF POLLUTION IN THE HALIFAX AREA) on the EC Notes page.
As discussed on the Examples Page:
Volunteer Charles B. conducting measurements on Governor’s Brook (Williams Lake Watershed) Nov 30, 2022
…Various of these sets of observations I have conducted using a pocket meter could be described as “casual”, “formal” and in-between (semi-formal) in nature, formal being a set of observations that one would expect to be accepted as “scientific”. All of them are likely to be considered “citizen science” and will be rejected by some agencies regardless of their scientific rigour.
I am a retired academic scientist. My goal with these observations was not to produce scientific papers but simply to learn as much as I could about factors affecting water quality with the limited resources at hand, the pocket meter being one of them. All of the data and interpretations and methods are posted on this website so that other parties who might be interested in this topic can make their own assessment of the credibility of the observations and critique the interpretations/make their own interpretations.
[On the Examples Page] I am presenting the sets of observations and conclusions in the order in which they were made to illustrate how use of a simple, inexpensive conductivity meter can be very informative to volunteer organizations involved in water quality monitoring/advocacy, how they can supplement the limnological observations conducted under the LakeWatchers program or similar protocols.
– david p
June 24, 2026