The Muskoka Lakes Association (MLA), Canada’s oldest lake association, was founded in 1894 to represent the lakeshore residents in the Muskoka Region. It has operated “The MLA Water Quality Initiative”, (WQI) a monitoring program focused on Lakes Rosseau, Joseph and Muskoka and including many smaller surrounding lakes, since 2002. The MLA’s water quality efforts are concentrated on:
•Protecting and promoting water quality through their monitoring program and
• Promoting responsible land use
The MLA Environment Committee manages over a hundred volunteers to collect annual water quality data and retained Hutchinson Environmental Sciences Limited (HESL) in 2021 to analyze their data and to provide recommendations and program modification/development options. This Water Quality Report presents the most recent data collected in 2022 and compares it to data collected from 2002 to the present.
The MLA and their volunteers monitored 55 areas within 18 lakes and rivers for a total of 700 samples between May and September in 2022. Each sampling area represents a geographic location encompassing a group of WQI monitoring sites, usually focussed on a river, lake or embayment of interest to the MLA. Samples were collected for analysis of total phosphorus (TP) and bacteria (E. coli and total coliform), with water and air temperature and Secchi depths recorded at each site.
Water Course |
2017 Water Quality Report
2017 WQI Methodology Report
2016 Water Quality Report
2016 WQI Methodology Report
2014 MLA Water Quality Report FINAL.pdf
2013 Methodology Report.pdf
2013 MLA WQI Report.pdf
Results report
Methodology report
Revised Feb 2012 - Muskoka Sands (MSN) Area Summary - pgs 52-53
2011 MLA Water Quality Report
2010 MLA Program Delivery Methodology Document Complete Final (Feb 2).pdf
2010 MLA Water Quality Report Final.pdf
2009 WQI Summary Report
MLA 2009 Technical Report-FinalFeb.pdf
2009 COX BAY STREAM REPORT
2008 Final Technical Report
2008 Final Summary Report
2007 Water Quality Technical Report
2007 Water Quality Summary Report
2006 Annual Report
2006 Executive Summary
2005 Executive Water Quality Report
2005 Summary Water Quality Report
2005 Annual Water Quality Report
2004 Summary Report
2004 Annual Technical Report
2003 Full Report
2003 Executive Summary
2002 Full Report
2002 Executive Summary