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.
The Eastern Red-Backed Salamander and Our Shared Shoreline Responsibility
This blog post, a celebration of World Wildlife Day, shines a spotlight on a small but incredibly valuable species: the Eastern Red-Backed Salamander. Read on to find out how this amazing amphibian can teach us much about the value of shoreline habitats and the crucial role that we can play in conserving these unique ecosystems.
The Future of Our Shores Report
The document is a survey conducted by the Daniel & Susan Gottlieb Foundation to understand the attitudes and practices of stakeholders regarding shoreland stewardship. The survey aims to identify the barriers and challenges faced by stakeholders in implementing shoreland stewardship practices. The results of the survey provide insights into the level of awareness, knowledge, and engagement of stakeholders in shoreland stewardship. The survey also highlights the importance of education, knowledge, and understanding of shoreland stewardship practices among stakeholders. The document provides a comprehensive overview of the survey results, including the responses of various stakeholders, such as property owners, contractors, and government officials.
The Ghost of Phosphorus Past webinar with Lamisa Malik
This is a handout from our webinar, "The Ghost of Phosphorus Past: How decades of phosphorus use is shaping today’s water quality in North America". Eutrophication has been a complex problem in Lake Erie since the 1960s. Algal blooms in Lake Erie have increased significantly despite conservation efforts. Legacy phosphorus is stored in the soil and may take several decades to travel before increasing stream-phosphorus concentration. Different strategies may be required to mitigate the problem in the US and Canadian watersheds of the Lake Erie basin.
The Haunting Truth of Ghost Gear and Shoreline Garbage
“Ghost gear” describes any fishing gear that has been abandoned, lost or discarded in oceans, lakes, and rivers, including lead tackle, fishing lines, nets, traps, and rope. Left behind, these items can have devastating large-scale effects on aquatic ecosystems through habitat disturbance and direct harm to the welfare and conservation of wildlife via entanglement and ingestion. Read this blog post to learn more about this issue and how anglers can work together to reduce the prevalence of it.
The Importance of Collaboration for Charities & Non-Profits
Watersheds Canada relies on collaboration for all of our work. We have found that through strategic partnerships that are mutually beneficial, we can accomplish many additional outcomes that would not otherwise be possible. This blog post explores the concept of collaboration in the environmental field in great detail, and provides key considerations that should be in place for a collaboration to be successful.
The Importance of Dark-Sky Reserves for Wildlife and Ecosystems
Light pollution is excessive or misdirected artificial light. It is stealing our starry nights, posing substantial threats to wildlife and our own well-being, and wasting energy and money. This has spurred a global push for ‘Dark-Sky Reserves’ — sanctuaries free from light pollution. Read this blog post to find out why these areas are so crucial for both nature and people!
The Importance of Wetland Plants for Dragonflies and Damselflies webinar with Dr. Mary Ann Perron
This is a handout from our webinar, "The Importance of Wetland Plants for Dragonflies and Damselflies". Odonata, including dragonflies and damselflies, are ancient insects with a biphasic lifecycle. They spend part of their life in the water as aquatic nymphs and part of their life in the terrestrial environment as adults. Dragonflies and damselflies make good bioindicators due to their widespread presence in freshwater habitats and their ability to live in various environmental conditions. Wetland plants are essential for Odonata, providing shelter, opportunities for thermoregulation, and a vertical substrate for emergence.
The King of Nature
Executive director Robert Pye shares his thoughts and personal anecdotes on our shared appreciation for birds, present in many facets of our life. This blog post was written for a past opportunity to win a hand-carved Belted Kingfisher, done by Canadian artist Mike Reader.
The Many Health Benefits of Nature
More and more, doctors are prescribing time outside as a means to alleviate a host of afflictions. Being outside can bring so many benefits to us, including providing us with vitamin D (which many people are deficient in). reducing stress and blood pressure, improving mental health problems such as depression and anxiety, and much more. Learn more about the powerful healing effects of being in nature in this blog post!