Grant: Collaborative Research and Development Grants

There is a growing interest for fishing and game activities among the Canadian population and recreational tourism has increased significantly in the past decades. Land conservation to maintain these activities and ensure the presence of pristine locations for future generations is also on the rise. Our partners in this project, Kenauk Nature (recreational tourism), the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC; land conservation), and the Ouranos Consortium (regional climatology and adaptation to climate change) face a significant lack of knowledge about the resilience of natural hydrosystems and ecosystems to human and climate induced stresses. The goal of this project is to conceptualize the dynamic of lake hydrosystems and ecosystems, and to enable a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms to quantify the resilience of lake hydrodynamics and wetland biodiversity. The project will focus on Lake Papineau in the Outaouais region (Quebec, Canada) where our partners Kenauk Nature and the Nature Conservancy of Canada are involved. The project aims at 1) quantifying lake hydrodynamics and estimate the long-term effects of land use and climate changes, 2) assessing the drivers and stressors controlling the richness and composition of plant and animal communities in wetlands, and 3) make recommendations to prevent negative impacts of stressors to protect the Lake Papineau hydrosystem and ecosystem. The project will provide Kenauk Nature and NCC with new conceptual knowledge on lake dynamics to support a more adapted use and conservation of the Lake Papineau dynamics and provide a solid basis on which to build long-term management plans. The project will provide Ouranos with a better understanding of how climate change will impact water resources and how conservation can increase hydrosystem and ecosystem resilience. The project will also produce recommendations for Kenauk Nature and NCC to implement long-term management plans and Ouranos with new knowledge to promote adaptation measures to climate change. This project will contribute to position Canada as a leader in land conservation while developing the full recreational value of its unique protected areas for future generations.