The Osoyoos Lake Water Quality Society is going through some big changes on its board. Birgit Arnstein (from left) has stepped in as president and former mayor Stu Wells, a long-time member has stepped onto the board as boat manager. Brian Faltinson steps down as president and will focus on managing the boat crew, data and website. Long-time member Denis Potter is vice president. Alicia Osland, front, has stepped down from the board after 20 years as a key player in the society. She remains a member. (Richard McGuire photo)
A volunteer group monitoring water quality in Osoyoos Lake has seen a turnover of its board membership and is trying to attract new blood.
The Osoyoos Lake Water Quality Society (OLWQS) takes weekly readings of temperatures, dissolved oxygen, turbidity and acidity at several locations in the lake between June and October.
Alicia Osland, who has been a cornerstone of the group for the past 20 years, has stepped down as secretary-treasurer and decided it’s time to move on. She remains a society member, but said she will focus on other commitments, such as to the Osoyoos Desert Centre.
Birgit Arnstein had no sooner joined when she was asked to fill the one remaining board vacancy – as OLWQS president.
Former Osoyoos mayor Stu Wells has long been an OLWQS member, but this year he has joined the board. He missed the annual general meeting for medical reasons, and when he returned, he found he had a new title – boat manager.
Brian Faltinson, who just completed a one-year term as president, will continue on the board doing tasks that fit his skills – managing the boat crew and data and maintaining the website.
Denis Potter, who has been with the society for even longer than Osland, is vice president.
Osland said she first became involved in the society, which started in 1991, because she was interested in the environment and the lake.
“It’s a beautiful lake,” she said. “People don’t know enough about the makeup of the lake and what makes it tick.”
When the society was first formed, a study of the lake at University of British Columbia found that it was “a cocktail of nitrates and phosphates,” Osland said.
The society was formed by concerned citizens and over the years it has worked with all three levels of government, she added.
The weekly readings that members take from a boat are reported to the Ministry of Environment, where the data is compiled with statistics from elsewhere in the province.
The original society was spearheaded by Lionel Dallas, who ran it for many years, but retired a few years ago, Osland said.
She credits the group with raising awareness of the challenges the lake is facing.
“It’s been a wonderful team to work with,” said Osland. “These people are passionate about the lake and we have a common purpose in improving the quality of the lake.”
Arnstein said she volunteered for the board because she is very interested in keeping the lake as pristine as possible and because protecting water is a global issue she cares about.
When she stepped forward to serve on the board, she was not expecting to be chosen as president.
“I was shanghaied,” she joked, adding that it’s a cause she believes in strongly so she accepted.
Arnstein said she wants to see membership in the OLWQS increase and more volunteers become involved. She also wants to raise the group’s profile through a public awareness campaign.
“I’m hoping that when people see us out on the lake that they will think of us and support us by becoming volunteers or donating,” she said.
Arnstein is also active with the Osoyoos Desert Centre and the Osoyoos Festival Society.
Faltinson in the past has referred to the weekly boat trips to measure the water as “the best volunteer job in town.” He’s hoping more people will step forward to volunteer as boat crew or for shore-based projects.
“We can find a place where you’re comfortable that suits your talents,” he said. “I think boat volunteering is the biggest payback for a volunteer in the society. Executive positions are not quite as much fun, but we still have a good time with the directors.”
Wells said he has always been passionate about water and has been a member of OLWQS “forever.”
The former mayor said he grew up in Osoyoos and on the lake.
“I had a bit of a Tom Sawyer upbringing, and yes, it’s all about loving the lakes,” he said.
Wells has also served in the past as chair of the Okanagan Basin Water Board and this October he will be chairing a water forum in Osoyoos.
Since stepping down as mayor last fall, Wells said he has tried to take a year off and has turned down other requests to join organizations.
“This one here was too important,” he said. “The opportunity to be on the board superseded the year off.”
Potter said he was initially attracted in 1995 to become involved by the opportunity to get out on the lake and do water sampling. He then got involved on the board and now rarely gets out on the water.
“It would be nice to get people coming out on the boat,” he said. “They would enjoy it. It’s a beautiful way to spend a morning out on the lake and good company with the people aboard. Just a lot of fun.”
For more information about OLWQS, visit www.osoyooslake.ca.
RICHARD McGUIRE
Osoyoos Times
