August 15, 2009, 9:30am — 3:30pm
At the Sands on Golden Lake,
13163 Hwy 60 Golden Lake, tel. 613 625-2525
RSVP Amanda Brown, Workshop Co-ordinator, 613-732-9870, or info
Background
The Bonnechere River Watershed Project recently received funding from the Ontario Trillium Foundation to organize a Riverwatch program for the watershed http://www.bonnechereriver.ca/category/riverwatch/. Part of the program will see the creation of a series of workshops over the next year with local residents and businesses to co-develop alternative futures for the watershed.
Workshop outcomes will describe and illustrate the preferences and priorities of the participants in ways that will contribute to a shared vision of the watershed’s future. This vision will be communicated to government agencies and elected officials to assist in development options and opportunities.
The final scenarios will be presented in 2010 to the community and invited officials. Read more…
Since our beginning in 1998 the BRWP has had many accomplishments within the Bonnechere River Watershed. Over the past 11 years we have provided education to landowners and students, offered incentives to become better envrionmental stewards and run a variety of programs that focus on the health and integrity of the Bonnechere Watershed.
Within this website you will find information about who we are, what the BRWP stands for, what we have done in the past and where we are going
This website was made possible by the Ontario Trillium Foundation
in the future. Be sure to check out our section on our newest program Riverwatch!
As the BRWP is a volunteer based organization we are always looking for new volunteers. Our ‘About Us’ section will tell you a lot about what the organization is all about. If you are interested in volunteering with us in any way please contact us!
Large Megaloptera larva
It is no secret that our subjects of study are not considered to be appealing by most. I will admit that if you told me even a few years ago that my future job would be to handle and count all sorts of creepy crawlies that I found in a river, I would never have believed it. However if you can get past the initial heebie-jeebies that usually accompany the thought of bugs, it can open up an entirely new and fascinating world for you that you likely didn’t even realize existed Read more…
Jessica (left) and Virginia (right) preparing to sample Turners Creek.
Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Jessica. I am the lead Stream Assessment Surveyor in the Riverwatch team. I am relatively new to this area, but so far I’m thoroughly enjoying the natural beauty of the Ottawa Valley, as well as meeting its friendly and interesting people. The other half of our stream sampling duo is Virginia. She is a summer student and her role is to provide support through the stream sampling season. Virginia is a dedicated and extremely valuable member of this team, and like most sidekicks she ends up doing most of the work and getting me out of all sorts of sticky situations. I would be completely lost in the field without her.
You may find us out and about throughout Renfrew County, climbing down steep banks, trudging though scrub and tall vegetation, or sitting on the side of the road counting benthic macroinvertebrates. It is not uncommon that we find ourselves in situations where we need to rely on the kindness of strangers. The cooperation and understanding of landowners is crucial to the success of our sampling efforts in the Bonnechere River Watershed.
If you happen to see us on a field day (in Virginia’s bright yellow SUV with our logo on the side), feel free to stop and say hi, check out what we’re doing, and ask any questions you may have. If we don’t have the information you’re looking for on hand, give us your contact information and we will be happy to find out the answers and get back to you!
So stay tuned to this Blog! As they unfold I will be sharing updates on the stream assessment journey as we explore the various reaches of our watershed. Interesting findings, tales of natural beauty, and strange or humourous occurrences will be reported on a regular basis.
Sincerely, The Riverwatch Team
Saturday May 30th
10am-3pm
The Bonnechere River Watershed Project (BRWP) is offering this workshop as part of their “Riverwatch” program (launched at the BRWP AGM on May 6th) which will focus on the ecological health of the Bonnechere River and its tributaries.
This hands on workshop will take participants through the steps to complete a Stream Assessment to determine the health of Streams/Creeks surrounding them. Using the Citizens’ Environment Watch (CEW) Protocol we will be looking at Benthic Macro Invertebrates (Insects living at the bottom of waterways) and determining how their presence and their numbers lets us understand the health of the water they live in. You can view some of the insects that we will be looking at here.
From 10am until noon we will be learning about the assessments, how to choose streams, insect identification and how to complete the protocol. We will break for lunch at noon which will be provided. After lunch we will be travelling to a local stream and as a group complete an entire assessment from beginning to end.
If you are interested in attending or learning more about this workshop please email Amanda at info. Participants are encouraged to bring their own rubber boots (hip or chest waiters are better) and hand lens’ or magnifying glasses limited quantities of these will be available.
On April 5th local residents took part in a consultation workshop geared toward finding out what information people are interested in having regarding the Bonnechere River. The consultant Daniel Buckles and his team used varying methods to help the group work together to determine what is important to them. This is the Consultation Report that was completed using the information gathered from this workshop.
BRWP launches Riverwatch program with funding from Ontario Trillium Foundation
Late in 2007, the Bonnechere River Watershed Project (BRWP) received $21,000 from the Ontario Trillium Fund (OTF) for a pilot project to develop a website that would focus on issues and information of greatest interest to residents (www.mybonnechere.ca). Based on a workshop held in Renfrew in early 2008, it became evident that water levels, flows and quality, and the health of wildlife populations were of most concern. The report of the BRWP workshop was included in an international symposium held at Carleton in the fall of 2008.
Read more…
May 6th at the Eganville Legion from 7pm-9pm
9th Annual General Meeting of the BRWP
With Keven Callan:
From cool camp gadgets to skinny dipping etiquette to cooking s’mores to making the perfect bush martini, Kevin will share his philosophical views on why we like to go camping and how to make it more enjoyable and stay out longer. Callan is definitely as entertaining as he is informative and this is a show you definitely don’t want to miss.
Definitely.
Read more…
The Third Annual Earthday Fundraising Walk/Run will be taking place on April 18th at Stewart Park in Renfrew. The walk will be running rain or shine and will start at 10am. In addition to the Walk there will be activties for the entire family at the end of the walk. Refreshments will be provided!
Pledge Forms
The 2009 tree planting season starts early. To ensure that tree orders can be filled Ferguson Forest Center likes to have are orders in the fall. The BRWP runs a 50/50 cost incentive program for qualified participants. Information on our program can be found at /category/programs/tree-planting/. Over the past couple years the BRWP has help many Bonnechere River Land owners plant thousands of trees! Our main goal is to “Green Up the Bonnechere” and keep it green for generations to come! If you are interested in applying to take part in this program please contact us.
You will notice in the side bar to the left that there is a new section with called Related Links. Val one of our Watershed residents has posted a couple pictures on the Rural Ramble website of the shores of the Bonnechere take a moment to check out these beautiful pictures! Thanks Val!
If any of you are Facebook users, the BRWP has a facebook group ‘Bonnechere River Watershed Project’. Everyone is welcome to join, add pictures, share stories, dicsuss issues or connect with others who are live in or are interested in the watershed. I’m still working on the site more info will be added.
-Amanda
