A program that has been monitoring water quality in Missouri’s lakes for almost 50 years is ending next year after losing federal funding.

The Statewide Lake Assessment Program is run by the University of Missouri and tests water from 65 lakes each year, including Lake of the Ozarks, Table Rock Lake and Mark Twain Lake, to understand trends in things like farm runoff and harmful algae blooms..

The program was funded by the Environmental Protection Agency through Missouri’s Department of Natural Resources. The state agency provided the money to the University of Missouri, totaling about $330,000 each year. It will end in March 2027, with final data collected next summer.

University of Missouri Associate Professor Rebecca North leads the assessment program, which has been operating since

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