Welcome to the Watersheds Canada Resource Library!
Here you will find a comprehensive collection of free educational resources dedicated to helping rural shoreline property owners, families, municipalities, lake groups, and educators protect their lakes and restore natural habitat. Explore guides, best practices, case studies, lesson plans, and tools to become a freshwater protector. All resources are freely shareable so please include them in a newsletter, on social media, or printed for a community booth!
Funding support thanks to Peterborough K.M. Hunter Charitable Foundation, and S.M. Blair Family Foundation.
Love Your Lake 2013-2021 values survey report
Love Your Lake is a program that assesses the health of a lake's shoreline and encourages shoreline property owners to take voluntary stewardship actions. The program has reached 53,252 properties on 229 lakes since its inception in 2013. A values survey is used to identify what is important to property owners about their lake, and the results show that the most frequently identified issue facing Canadian lakes is Water Quality. The most frequently identified actions shoreline property owners believe would benefit their lake and lake community include Create or enforce stricter rules for new development, Undertake a lake management plan, and Provide education materials to property owners. The top concerns expressed about water quality were Algae/aquatic vegetation, Bacteria, and Chemical contamination and pollution.
Love Your Lake Blog Posts
The article discusses the decline of Common Loons in Canada, citing data from the Canadian Lakes Loon Survey. It highlights the impacts of several perceived threats to loon productivity, including shoreline development and boats, early spring temperatures, eagles and cormorants, acid rain, mercury, and climate change. The article suggests that a combination of these factors is affecting loon productivity and proposes ways to reverse the trend, such as creating or enhancing shoreline buffers, leaving overhanging vegetation, and being careful boaters.
Love Your Lake Testimonial - John McAllister
A healthy lake starts with healthy shorelines. That starts with, you and we’re here to help. Let us evaluate your shoreline or perform your own self-assessment. Either way, you’ll get helpful tips for improving the quality of your shoreline and your lake.
Love Your Lake Testimonial - Watersheds Canada
Join Al Best, President of Carson, Trout, Lepine and Greenan Lakes Association, as he talks about his experience with the Love Your Lake shoreline assessment program.
Love Your Lake – Microgrant impact report
The Love Your Lake microgrant program connects shoreline property owners with information to make smart land management choices. The program has assessed 44,274 properties on 187 lakes since its inception in 2013. The microgrant recipients implemented various projects, including shoreline restoration, native plant giveaways, and contests to promote shoreline health and biodiversity. The projects demonstrated the importance of naturalization and the benefits of community involvement in lake health.
Meet Susan Gottlieb - Watersheds Canada Donor Profile
Susan Gottlieb is a prominent and long time supporter of Watersheds Canada. She, along with her husband, is an advocate for the restoration and protection of wildlife habitat.
North Saskatchewan River Basin Councils Natural Edge testimonial through RBC Tech for Nature grant
The North Saskatchewan River Basin Council is a non-profit in central Saskatchewan that has been working on source water protection & land stewardship projects since 2008. They work with RM’s communities, First Nations, schools, and industry on environmental stewardship initiatives and programming, including delivering the Natural Edge shoreline renaturalization program. This year they were able to provide the program to shoreline property owners thanks to generous funding from RBC Tech for Nature.
Our favourite memories of 2019
2019 was a busy year for Watersheds Canada! This blog post provides an overview of what was accomplished this year, told from the point of view of our passionate team of staff members.
Out on the Lake: Reflecting on my Experience with the Love Your Lake Program
This personal reflection from one of our past interns centers on his experience with Love Your Lake, our shoreline assessment program delivered in partnership with the Canadian Wildlife Federation. It discusses the program's impact on lake communities and how collaboration towards an environmental goal inspires everyone involved.