How the World's Freshwater Laboratory is Responding to COVID-19

The IISD Experimental Lakes Area has suspended non-essential activities and shifted staff to remote work due to COVID-19, while successfully completing winter sampling to maintain a 52-year freshwater dataset. The facility anticipates disruptions to its summer research season due to travel bans from partner universities.

• The IISD Experimental Lakes Area (IISD-ELA) has implemented safety measures in response to COVID-19, including shifting nearly all staff to remote work and suspending all non-essential activities, such as public visits and educational programs, until the end of May.
• Despite the pandemic, the IISD-ELA successfully completed winter-sampling of its lakes to preserve a 52-year unbroken dataset covering fish populations, lake chemistry, ice depth, and temperature.
• The summer research season is threatened by travel bans implemented by partner organizations, such as universities, which prevent staff and students from visiting the site.

APA

International Institute for Sustainable Development (2020). How the World's Freshwater Laboratory is Responding to COVID-19. https://www.iisd.org/articles/statement/how-worlds-freshwater-laboratory-responding-covid-19

Chicago

International Institute for Sustainable Development. How the World's Freshwater Laboratory is Responding to COVID-19. 2020. https://www.iisd.org/articles/statement/how-worlds-freshwater-laboratory-responding-covid-19.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=International Institute for Sustainable Development |title=How the World's Freshwater Laboratory is Responding to COVID-19 |date=2 April 2020 |url=https://www.iisd.org/articles/statement/how-worlds-freshwater-laboratory-responding-covid-19 |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{internationalinstituteforsustainabledevelopment2020how, author = {{International Institute for Sustainable Development}}, title = {{How the World's Freshwater Laboratory is Responding to COVID-19}}, publisher = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2020}, month = apr, url = {https://www.iisd.org/articles/statement/how-worlds-freshwater-laboratory-responding-covid-19}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }