Grant: Alliance Grants

The pandemic triggered shifts in human activity that are expected to have long-term consequences on the environment. This is particularly true for freshwater ecosystems in Canada given that there has been an exodus from cities to more rural environments with a desire to build waterfront dwellings or "update" cottages to be full time residences. There have also been dramatic increases in recreational boating. Such activities are good for short-term economic growth but management agencies struggle with providing guidance and regulatory decisions that ensure long-term ecosystem health and sustainability. The goal of this partnership is to generate useable knowledge that will ensure that pandemic-related pressures on freshwater ecosystems are adequately managed and mitigated to ensure the ecosystem services provided by our aquatic systems are maintained for long-term benefit. This project will address specific challenges faced by resource managers, stewardship organizations, developers and waterfront communities related to 1. The increased use of different strategies to control aquatic plant growth in front of waterfront properties. 2. The rapid demand for waterfront property changes such as shoreline development and the transition of natural habitats to manicured or ornamental habitats. 3. Increased watercraft use on our large rivers and lakes adjacent to shorelines. The Kawartha Region Conservation Authority, the Rideau Valley Conservation Authority and Parks Canada (Ontario Waterways group) all submitted challenges that were inherently interconnected with a focus on shoreline development and recreational use of waterbodies in eastern Ontario. We have therefore partnered with all of those organizations and expanded the team to include the Love Your Lakes program of the Canadian Wildlife Federation to ensure broad sharing of our findings. This research will inform management decisions concerning the challenge of this unprecedented acceleration of shoreline development and freshwater ecosystem use. The focal area for this research will be in the Trent-Severn and Rideau waterways which each have millions of people within several hours drive but the work done here will be more germane to freshwater ecosystem management in Canada.