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.
Plastics in our Waterways webinar with Jake Wilson
The document links from our webinar, "Plastics in our Waterways". It lists 22 sources on the topic of plastics and their impact on the environment. The sources include articles, research papers, and reports from various organizations. The document provides a comprehensive overview of the issue of plastic pollution and its effects on the environment.
Precipitation Projections webinar by Alex Cadel
This is a handout from our webinar, "Precipitation Projections: Understanding the Latest Climate Data". Analyzing trends in precipitation variables can support decision-making. Climate data helps learn about typical precipitation patterns in local areas. Insights from climate data can help the water resources sector make informed decisions. Climate change adjusted IDF curves can provide insights into extreme rainfall.
Rain Smart Neighbourhoods webinar with Becca Robinson
This is a handout from our webinar, "Rain Smart Neighbourhoods: Beautify your landscape while protecting water quality and reducing flood risk". This document discusses the importance of creating Rain Smart Neighbourhoods. It highlights the benefits of infiltration galleries, trees, rain gardens, and permeable paving in reducing flood risk and improving water quality. The document also provides resources and guides for implementing these solutions. By making small changes around your yard, you can improve your landscape while adapting to climate change and boosting biodiversity.
Salt Pollution in Ontario: Exploring Challenges & Cross-Sector Solutions
This is the handout from our webinar, "Salt Pollution in Ontario: Exploring Challenges & Cross-Sector Solutions". Millions of tonnes of salt are applied every year to combat ice and snow in Ontario. Salt pollution harms plants and animals, infiltrates groundwater, and is corrosive to cars and infrastructure. Removing salt from the environment is difficult, and current guidelines are not adequately protecting ecosystems. Changing current practices requires investment in new equipment and maintenance plans.
Salting our Freshwater Ecosystems webinar with Lauren Lawson
This is a handout from our webinar, "Salting our freshwater ecosystems: Understanding consequences of road salt use in Canadian watersheds". The use of road salt in Canadian watersheds has various consequences, including increased saltiness of freshwater lakes, rivers, and wetlands, and changes in turnover dynamics in lakes. High chloride concentrations can affect fish growth and egg production, and multi-level effects can occur from increased stress on ecosystems. Animals are attracted to roadways, causing an increased risk of collisions, and birds consume small grains of salt, which can become toxic. Additionally, plants and vegetation can be damaged or have reduced growth, and there is a risk of drinking water contamination and change in the taste of water.
Saving our Turtles! webinar with David Seburn
This is a handout from our webinar, "Saving Our Turtles!". Canada is home to eight species of native freshwater turtles. These species are at risk due to various threats. To help, you can assist turtles crossing roads, build nest protectors, and join conservation groups. Additionally, if you find an injured turtle, contact the Ontario Turtle Conservation Centre or a licensed wildlife rehabilitation centre.
Stronger Together webinar by Ducks Unlimited Canada and Farms at Work
This is a handout from our webinar, "Stronger Together: Supporting Farm Stewardship Through Collaboration". The East Central Farm Stewardship Collaborative started in 2008 to facilitate the collaboration of conservation and farm organizations. The collaborative aims to increase on-farm projects through stacked funding and technical support. Key lessons learned include the importance of regional priorities, tangible action, and understanding partner perspectives. Effective collaboratives require clear goals, assigned coordinators, and a Memorandum of Understanding or Terms of Reference document.
Supporting Canadas freshwater this Rivers to Oceans Week
This blog post was written in celebration of Rivers to Oceans Week in 2021, an annual celebration that recognizes the connectivity of our watersheds and reminds us that taking care of our water is a shared responsibility. It also shares some of the impacts that our organization was able to create that year through our shoreline restoration projects.
Sustaining our Freshwater - A special World Water Day presentation
Protecting your community’s freshwater and shoreland areas is very important but it can be hard to know where to start. You may have trouble understanding technical documents, or figuring out the “best” first step when you have limited resources. The good news is you don’t have to figure this out alone. Join Watersheds Canada's staff for this interactive session as we share some of our free freshwater stewardship resources and how they can help you take action.