What to Expect when Participating in this Research
The goal of this survey is to better understand the state of lakes and lake stewardship in the Poconos region. The survey will ask questions about (1) the structure and function of your lake association or group, (2) the lake characteristics and trends of the lake(s) stewarded by the group, (3) the current state of monitoring at lake(s), and (4) the person or people responding to the survey on behalf of the group.
Data Collection and Data Security
The data collected about lakes and lake associations will be used to create a database about Poconos lakes, lake associations, and monitoring for the Poconos Lake Ecological Observatory Network (PLEON) at the Lacawac Sanctuary and Field Station. The data will also be analyzed to characterize the state of lakes and lake stewardship in the Poconos region and to plan and implement PLEON research, education, and training activities. Data about Poconos lakes and stewardship will be used in reports and publications. At the end of the survey, we request some information about you, the respondent. This information will be totaled to summarize the overall population that participated in the survey. Information about individual respondents will not be stored with the lake data.
If you have questions about how the data will be used or stored, you can contact us:
Benjamin Harris, bh9249@bard.edu
Robyn Smyth, rsmyth@bard.edu
Beth Norman, beth.norman@lacawac.org, (570) 689-9494
Benefits and Risks of Participating in this Research
The benefits of responding to this survey include improving the understanding of the state and stewardship of lakes in the Poconos region and informing PLEON’s science and education activities. The risks of participating in this survey are minimal.
Acknowledgements
I understand the purpose of this research, what participating entails, and that my participation is entirely voluntary. If I wish to end the survey or skip any questions, I may do so at any time without giving explanation.
If I have questions about my rights as a research participant, I can contact the Chair of Bard College’s Institutional Review Board at irb@bard.edu.
By clicking Next and proceeding with this survey, I am:
Certifying that I am over 18 years of age and giving consent to allow the researchers to use the data collected in this survey as described above.