GLOBE students at Harbor Beach High School have been recognized by the state environmental protection authorities and heralded by the media for their work monitoring a local creek.

During the summer of 1997, residents near Wanke Creek began to fear that the discharge of treated water upstream would affect lake water near their homes. The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality contacted GLOBE Teacher Linda Lenar. The students began making regular measurements of phosphates, conductivity, turbidity, pH level, temperature, dissolved oxygen, and biological oxygen demand. Based on the data the students have reported to date, the state has asked the GLOBE students to continue their monitoring and reporting activities.

"This is field work, not a classroom exercise," the Huron Daily Tribune noted in an editorial praising the students' work. "The project is rigorous. The accuracy of the test results is critical. Students are doing real work, learning from it, and we all benefit."

Harbor Beach High School has created a new course, the GLOBE Environmental Research Class. Students interested in participating in GLOBE and the water monitoring project have to apply to the class with a research project. Harbor Branch provides an outstanding example of the value of GLOBE student data.