HAMMOND - People were given the opportunity to learn about water quality in Lake Michigan on an educational boat tour Tuesday.
The tour was aboard the W.G. Jackson Research Vessel, which is part of the Robert B. Annis Water Resources Institute at Grand Valley State University in Muskegon, Michigan.
Research Scientist Dr. Janet Vail said the guests would learn about water and would have an opportunity to take part in the day's study.
"You're going to be able to experience just a lot of different ways of looking at water quality, lot's of different water quality parameters, we'll look at living things, we'll look at chemical tests, all sorts of things, so it's going to be like interactive and I know that everybody's going to appreciate a little bit of if you want to jump in and help type thing."
AWRI staff members explained Limnology and demonstrated how to take water samples from the surface of the lake and from its depths.
One objective was to examine and determine the lake color and clarity at various depths. Boat crew members also dredged a sample of silt from the lake bottom at 34 feet.
Michelle Caldwell, Lake Michigan Beaches Program Coordinator for the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) says the vessel has been coming to Northwest Indiana every year since 2010.
Caldwell says IDEM used funding from the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative grant to offer the educational tours.
