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. Funding support thanks to Peterborough K.M. Hunter Charitable Foundation, and S.M. Blair Family Foundation.
Journey of a Seed lesson plan
This lesson plan, adapted from Project WILD, helps students understand how seeds are carried by wildlife and people, and the importance of seed dispersal in native plant growth. Students participate in an activity where they wear a sock and walk through a grassy area to collect items, including seeds, and then tally and draw what they find. The activity aims to illustrate the relationship between plants, people, and wildlife in ensuring healthy ecosystems and future plant growth. The extension activity involves creating a bar or scatterplot graph to compare results.
Know, and love, your lake!
Canada is a country known for its lakes. These vast, complex ecosystems provide countless opportunities for recreation and leisure, but our understanding of them and how they work is sometimes limited. This blog post sheds some light on why lakes are so important, what makes one healthy/unhealthy, and describes how you can better care for your lake.
Lake Protection Workbook
This workbook is a self-assessment tool for shoreline property owners to evaluate their practices and identify areas for improvement to protect their lake. It covers various topics such as lawns and gardens, recreation, shorelines, wetlands, wildlife, docks and boathouses, sewage systems, and light pollution. The workbook provides information, recommendations, and space for recording improvements to help property owners become better lake stewards. By completing the workbook, property owners can learn about ways to improve their lakeshore practices, reduce their environmental impact, and contribute to the overall health of their lake.
Lake Trout Spawning Bed Restoration - Paugh Lake, Ontario
Paugh Lake, located in the township of Madawaska Valley, Ontario, is known for its cold-water fishery. Wave action and ice movement and push had altered the rock formations on the spawning bed, making it less productive for the fish to spawn on. The Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry has been monitoring the lake trout spawning in recent years on Paugh Lake and noticed a decline. Action was required to protect the lake trout population, and was taken thanks to the dedicated efforts of the Paugh Lake Property Owner’s Association, and funding from the Government of Canada’s Environmental Damages Fund, Honda Canada Foundation, and Ontario Wildlife Foundation. Sleds, ATVs, and a compact tractor transported seventeen tonnes of smaller gravel-sized stone across the plowed ice road to the spawning bed. Once the rock was unloaded, it was time for volunteers to spread out the rock in a thin layer using rakes and shovels. With the spring ice melt, the rocks will fall into place overtop the spawning bed and ensure the lake trout have areas to lay their eggs that will receive enough oxygenation. The spawning bed will be monitored in future years to document the spawning activities that take place.
Lakeside Living: Changing the Paradigm
Living next to a lake is a dream shared by many people. Many have visions of relaxing by the water with their friends and family, enjoying the peace and quiet that rural living provides. However, its important that anyone moving from an urban area doesn't bring their city land care practices with them, as lakeside living comes with a responsibility to protect all that makes it special. Learn about how you can adapt to lake living for nature's sake in this blog post!
Land-Use Planning on Your Property – Barbara King: Watersheds Canada Presentation
The presentation discusses the importance of land use planning on properties near lakes. It highlights the impact of human activities on water quality and the natural environment. The presentation also covers topics such as shoreline landscaping, rain gardens, and the role of aquatic plants in lake ecosystems. The goal is to educate property owners on how to protect and preserve the quality of their lakes.
Landscaping for Wildlife by Love Your Lake
Creating a safe habitat for plants and animals on your shoreline can open up various activities for you and your family. A rich wildlife profile can be an indicator of overall land health. Adding certain features to your shoreline properties can attract the right initial species, leading to a thriving ecosystem. Gardening with wildlife in mind can result in less pollution and increased pest control services. If you want to learn more, visit the Canadian Wildlife Federation website.
Launching a new online Freshwater Stewardship Community
This blog post announces the launch of our Freshwater Stewardship Community, a centralized place for waterfront associations, individuals, academics, students, and other organizations to connect and work together to protect local freshwater and enhance shoreline resilience. It also provides some information about the value of fostering community relationships and connecting with nature.
Let Us Prioritize Freshwater this Ontario Election Season!
This blog post was written prior to the 2022 Ontario provincial election. It emphasizes the importance of this particular election for freshwater health, inspiring voters to get informed and take to the polls to make their voices heard to influence freshwater health. It also provides the top 5 questions we think property owners should ask their municipal candidates to get a sense of how they value freshwater stewardship.