- Community-based water monitoring (CBWM) can be crucial in addressing freshwater data deficiencies, but it is significantly under-utilized as a monitoring resource in Canada. Local CBWM groups know their waters and the issues better than anyone else, but they often lack the necessary techniques and resources to be as effective as they could be.
- Benthic invertebrates — the tiny bugs that live at the bottom of riverbeds — are also key in determining the state of our rivers. These flies, beetles, aquatic worms, snails and other creatures can tell us a lot about the health of a freshwater system. Traditional benthic invertebrate monitoring is quite expensive, time consuming and limited to a particular time of year when the individuals are large enough to be observable by taxonomist.
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Working with community-based water monitoring groups to improve freshwater health across Canada.
