The Institute for Watershed Studies (IWS) exists to support research on freshwater lakes, streams and wetlands. Affiliated with College of the Environment, IWS provides support to all Western faculty and students with an interest in watershed problems.

  • We provide training, supervision of student projects, and assistance with program development.
  • We sponsor educational seminars and guest lectures on a wide range of topics related to watershed studies.
  • In collaboration with local governmental and non-governmental organizations, IWS brings state-of-the-art equipment and knowledge to bear on a number of significant local and regional water quality issues.
  • IWS is committed to an integrated approach to watershed studies, and to this end, we bring together students and faculty from traditional science backgrounds with those from journalism, environmental education, policy, and computer science.
  • IWS maintains an online database of water quality data from over 50 lakes throughout Northwest Washington.
  • IWS maintains a high-quality image database of algae images for scientific study.

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Browse the Institute for Watershed Studies Collections:

Lake Whatcom

Other Research