NH Lakes Lay Monitoring Program

The New Hampshire Lakes Lay Monitoring (LLMP) is dedicated to preservation and sound management of lakes through citizen-based monitoring and research. Through its integration of research, outreach and teaching, the LLMP provides valuable data on the lakes of New Hampshire, broad community service, local empowerment and a unique opportunity for hands-on learning and employment for students.  The LLMP is administered jointly through the Cooperative Extension and the Center for Freshwater Biology at the University of New Hampshire.

Introduced in 1978 as a class project on Lake Chocorua the LLMP has grown into a internationally recognized volunteer monitoring effort. More than 500 volunteers have been trained to monitor hundreds of lake, tributary and outlet sites each year. The objectives of the LLMP include:

• Monitoring water quality for long-term trend detection.
• Locating problem areas and potential “hot spots” that threaten water resources.
• Providing participants and their communities with unbiased data for informed watershed management decisions.
• Developing quality assured methods for citizen monitoring of all water resources
• Conducting participatory aquatic research that addresses the concerns of the monitors and their communities.

The LLMP generally partners with lake, community, watershed and homeowner associations, and/or towns and conservation commissions to set up a sampling program designed to address the local concerns. Training and loaner equipment is provided at no cost and laboratory analysis is provided at no cost or at highly discounted rates. Contact the NH LLMP Director or LLMP Coordinator for more information.