Olsztyn. The water drone will examine the quality of water in Masurian lakes

In the upcoming tourist season, the quality of water in Masurian lakes will be studied by a water drone. The device will be used, among others, to detect cyanobacteria and detect sewage discharges from yachts. The water drone is also intended to serve ecological education.

The water drone will buy the Foundation for the Protection of the Great Masurian Lakes, which is based in Giżycko. “The contract is already signed, the drone is to reach us in April,” said a member of the board of the Foundation Małgorzata Kulas -Szyrmer. She added that the device for PLN 140,000 is created for the foundation in a Polish company, in Gdańsk. Mobile buoy and water quality meters were purchased for the drone.

“Water drones are already appearing on the waters, but there is no such device in Masuria,” added Kulas -Szyrmer.

They will examine water and educate

The water drone is a remote -controlled device that floats on the surface of the water and takes its samples for testing. The analysis is performed on an ongoing basis, thanks to IT software, the drone supports the tested parameters on an ongoing basis.

Kulas-Szyrmer said that the device was bought primarily for educational purposes to show children what chemicals are in the water in which they bathe. 23 Local governments associated in the Foundation for the Protection of the Great Masurian Lakes will be able to use the device as soon as there is a suspicion that something bad is happening to the water.

“The drone will be able to detect the bloom of cyanobacteria or drainage of sewage to the lake, e.g. by yachts or farms. It will also detect agricultural pollution,” said Kulas -Szyrmer and emphasized that thanks to the purchase of a water quality test device it would be possible to repeat to compare the results.

The drone and its measuring devices are constructed in such a way that the Foundation will be able to expand the range of water quality parameters examined.

The water level in Masurian lakes depends on many factors, including The size of the lake, whether it is connected to other tanks and how intensively it is used by people.

To improve the water level in the lakes on the Grand Lakes Trail Masurian Local Governments are working on building a sewage collection system from yachts. Currently, there are few places where you can give away, there is not much paid.

Agricultural pollution also has a significant impact on the water level.