Whitefish part of statewide climate monitoring network

A weather station on Whitefish Lake is part of a statewide soil and climate network of monitoring stations.

Whitefish Lake Institute is hosting the station at Lazy Bay on the lake in partnership with the Montana Climate Office’s Montana Mesonet network designed to support resource management decision-making. The network integrates existing networks with new remote sites to develop a statewide soil-climate network.

“We felt it was a good idea to become a partner in collecting climatic data statewide,” Mike Koopal, executive director of the Whitefish Lake Institute, said.

The station was installed on the lake this summer. The institute had previously been collecting its own weather data, but the new station allows it to continue that work, while also being part of the statewide network.

“WLI is pleased to participate in the Montana Climate Office’s first statewide soil-climate network,” said Lori Curtis, Science and Education Director. “The Mesonet weather station provides unfettered access to our data and all network participants’ data in real-time through multiple access points across the globe.”

Participants in the network are extended a significant cost reduction on science grade stations and the state climate office in turn ensures that data collected are quality controlled and accessible in real time.

The Montana Climate Office at the University of Montana is an independent body that provides scientifically-based climate information and services.

Weather includes the daily factors of temperature, humidity, precipitation and wind. While climate looks at weather over long periods of time.

There are 57 Mesonet stations in the state after three years of installation. In addition to the station on Whitefish Lake, there are two others in the Flathead Valley.

Kevin Hyde, the Montana Mesonet Coordinator, said the focus of collecting the data is to provide monitoring of drought information that relates to planning.

“We’re looking to provide information across the state, especially in areas of the state that have historically been ignored,” he said. “This is information that can be used in all sectors of Montana — economically and by the public sector, and for planning and emergency response.”

Hyde noted that even the day-to-day data is being used by ranchers and farmers as they make decisions about livestock and crops based upon precipitation and temperature patterns. Initial efforts focused on stations in agricultural and rangeland areas of the state, but the goal is to expand farther by partnering to locate stations on state, federal and private land.

“When I talk to people in the state many agree that climate change is happening and they don’t want to argue about the why. What they want to know and discuss is how to adapt and survive,” he said.

Data from the network has already been used to advise the Governor’s Drought and Water Advisory Committee, Hyde noted.

WLI has conducted monitoring and field data collection on Whitefish Lake and its tributaries since 2007, accruing data to report the baseline scientific understanding of the lake and water quality. Koopal says the institute focuses on primarily the Whitefish climate station data as it relates to the lake and the institute’s study areas, but knows that the larger network creates data available to a broader spectrum of scientists.

In terms of Whitefish Lake, the climate station data helps to assist in study of the lake and tracking trends over time.

“We’re interested in monitoring the local climate because it is a key player in the chemical, biological and physical dynamics of Whitefish Lake,” he said.

In terms of climate data, he notes that atmospheric deposition of nitrogen and phosphorous drive algal growth.

“On any given year, we can expect around 15 percent of the lake’s nitrogen and phosphorus budget to fall from the sky in wet or dry form,” he said. “This can increase during more severe forest fire years, which is another variable affected, in part, by climate change.”

Increases in algal production can decrease water quality, decrease dissolved oxygen levels impacting aquatic species and potentially alter the food web of the lake.

“I worry most about warming lake temperatures and skewed nutrient levels driving the potential of blue-green algae blooms,” Koopal said. “Blue-green algae can affect human health and create unsightly and smelly conditions.”

The stations measure three areas with almost real-time reporting. They measure atmosphere, which includes rainfall, solar intensity, wind, temperature, relative humidity, barometric pressure and lighting strikes. Soil measurements include water content, temperature and electrical conductivity. Vegetation is also measured for relative greenness to monitor the health of vegetation.

All stations are solar powered and allow users to check the data from virtually anywhere. Data is transmitted to the Montana Climate Office and is delivered in multiple formats maps and graphs that dynamically report the latest content. This includes the ability to break down data by state, county, watershed or ownership unit.

A National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration grant provided funding to the Mesonet program to assist in improving and refining drought monitoring in the state and nationwide, Hyde noted.

For more information on the Mesonet network, visit http://climate.umt.edu/mesonet/default.php.