Lakehead University will be presenting information about an environmental initiative proposed to begin this summer during a meeting from 7 to 9 p.m. on April 3rd at the Lake Helen Community Resource Centre (community hall), at Lake Helen, Ontario. The general public is welcome to attend and the meeting is free of charge.
- Click here for the meeting agenda.
- Click here to view the meeting location at Lake Helen, near Nipigon.
At the meeting, Dr. Rob Stewart of Lakehead University’s Department of Geography and Environmental Science will outline plans to engage North Shore residents in “citizen science.” Active learning is fundamental to the project, which aims to collect data for area streams including water temperature, water quality, flow rates, substrate material and barriers to fish passage. The long-term objective of the project is to use collected data to identify streams which could benefit from rehabilitation efforts. Some area streams have been damaged by development and construction, impairing movement of fish to productive habitat and spawning areas. Training for community volunteers from the Lake Helen, Red Rock, Nipigon area will be provided by the university. The project is intended to stress the importance of watersheds, which transcend political boundaries. A presentation will also be provided about environmental initiatives of the Red Rock Indian Band.
The meeting is being hosted by the Nipigon Bay Remedial Action Plan and will conclude with a discussion about future direction for the program’s Public Advisory Committee. This volunteer group has assisted with remedial, or environmental restoration efforts, on Nipigon Bay and the lower Nipigon River for many years. Efforts have ranged from pulling garbage out of Nipigon’s Clearwater Creek through to a project aimed at improving fish passage at Kama Creek, near Kama Point on Lake Superior.
Anyone with an interest in the environment is encouraged to join Public Advisory Committee members as they learn, discuss future direction and hear about projects with potential to engage Nipigon area residents. A similar citizen science project is planned for the watershed around Terrace Bay. Proponents have expressed interest in establishing a network of watershed environmental efforts along Superior’s North Shore.
