Illinois State University’s Laboratory for Environmental Analysis (LEA) will have an open house to celebrate its one-year anniversary at 1 p.m. Tuesday, February 6, in the Felmley Science Annex, room 441.
“The lab is a vital resource, providing Illinois State students and faculty with the means of conducting water quality and soil analysis that has greatly benefitted the Bloomington-Normal area, and advanced the science of studying our environment,” said Chair Dagmar Budikova of the Department of Geography, Geology and the Environment, which oversees the lab.
The open house will include an official ribbon-cutting, tours of the lab, and remarks from University President Larry Dietz.
For some time, Illinois State research teams comprised of faculty, graduate, and undergraduate students have collected, processed, and analyzed water and soil samples to monitor local water quality. These efforts were officially housed under the LEA last year.
“The goal is to maintain or improve clean drinking water for local communities,” said LEA Director Bill Perry, who noted LEA has worked with various partners such as the Environmental Protection Agency, Nutrient Research Education Council, The Nature Conservancy, Illinois Corn Growers Association, City of Bloomington, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and University of Illinois-Springfield. Current local projects include examining the effectiveness of cover crops and the monitoring of the water quality in streams entering Lakes Bloomington and Evergreen.
Those planning to attend are encouraged to RSVP to vheath@ilstu.edu or (309) 438-5994.
