KPAX News Staff
FLBS began a three-year campaign to raise a $1 million endowment in late 2011 to match a pledge for its Flathead Lake Research and Monitoring Program. Hundreds of families, foundations and businesses came through with gifts large and small.
“This incredible generosity will help protect the quality of Flathead Lake’s water for years to come,” said FLBS Director Jack Stanford. “Our team of faculty, staff and students gives a heartfelt thanks to the community and everyone who donated and made this possible.”
FLBS scientists specialize in ecological research and education with an emphasis on freshwater, particularly Flathead Lake and its watershed. FLBS research and monitoring provide a continuous record of lake conditions needed to understand and protect the lake and reveal threats before they become problems.
Actor John Lithgow owns a Flathead Lake home and actively supports the work of FLBS.
“At a time of deep concern for the Earth’s fragile environment, the Flathead Lake Biological Station continues to do a magnificent job monitoring the Flathead’s complex water system,” Lithgow said in a news release. “All of us who treasure this beautiful lake owe the station a great and ongoing debt of gratitude.”
The research program depends almost entirely upon grants and gifts, so now staffers are already movng ahead on the next set of priorities for community support.
Money is now being sought for an environmental sensor network around Flathead Lake, which provides real-time weather and water data to Flathead Lake residents and recreationists as well as the development and application of an environmental DNA test for aquatic invasive species.
