Saugeen Conservation partners with NWMO to collect Water Resource information

 

Saugeen Valley Conservation Authority (SVCA) and the Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) are partnering to collect water quality, water levels, and flow data to track conditions in the watershed. This information also helps SVCA to add to its own watershed information. Data will be collected seasonally in the Teeswater River and Beatty Saugeen River subwatersheds, beginning this summer.

“Water is critical to all aspects of our lives and is at the heart of the work we do at Saugeen Conservation”, says Jennifer Stephens, General Manager/Secretary-Treasurer of SVCA, “as an organization of dedicated and professional staff who work to conserve our local watershed and its natural resources, SVCA is best placed to assist with this assessment.”

The partnership with the NWMO will allow SVCA to further characterize portions of the Saugeen Valley watershed to understand baseline conditions and make informed management decisions based on local science and up-to-date information. Further, as part of the NWMO’s broader environmental baseline monitoring program to determine baseline conditions around the potential repository site in South Bruce, this initiative will engage respected experts in the fields of hydrology and water quality to peer review the results obtained.

“SVCA already monitors the health and quality of our local waterways and groundwater aquifers”, said Maureen Couture, SVCA Chair, “having additional knowledge, informed by science, will allow SVCA to continue to conserve our watershed’s surface and groundwater resources”.

Both SVCA and the NWMO intend to work closely with the community to ensure thorough oversight of our environmental monitoring efforts. “A key pillar of the co- designed program is the need for trustworthy and transparent data collection”, said Joanne Jacyk, Section Manager of Environmental Assessment at the NWMO. “We are excited to partner with SVCA to conduct these studies, as the information we gather will help us protect people and the environment, including precious water resources.”

Interested residents can contact the NWMO South Bruce Learn More Centre at 519.392.6966 or email sbenvironment@nwmo.ca to learn more about this partnership and the environmental baseline monitoring program.