Environment Canada
The National Water Research Institute (NWRI) is a Directorate of Environment Canada's Environmental Conservation Service. The Institute is Canada's largest freshwater research facility with over 300 staff including aquatic ecologists, hydrologists, toxicologists, physical geographers, modellers, limnologists, environmental chemists, research technicians, and experts in linking water science to environmental policy.
NWRI has two main centres: the larger at the Canada Centre for Inland Waters on the shores of the Great Lakes in Burlington, Ontario; the other at the National Hydrology Research Centre, in the heart of the Canadian Prairies in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. NWRI is also building smaller, satellite research groups to the east and west, working with universities and research organizations to address regional aspects of water-related issues more directly.
With partners in the Canadian and international science communities, NWRI conducts a comprehensive program of ecosystem-based research and development in the aquatic sciences, generating and disseminating scientific knowledge needed to resolve environmental issues of regional, national or international significance to Canada, and to sustain our natural resources and freshwater ecosystems.
NWRI delivers its programs via a number of branches focussing on aquatic ecosystem impacts, protection and management research, science liaison, monitoring and research support. It also comprises the National Laboratory for Environmental Testing (NLET) and (since 1974) the program office for the United Nations' Global Environment Monitoring System (GEMS/Water), a multi-faceted water science program oriented towards understanding freshwater quality issues throughout the world.
As well as international project locations, the Institute has research sites across Canada from remote locations in the vast Mackenzie Delta in the Northwest Territories to the waterfront in the City of Toronto; from farmland in Saskatchewan and Ontario to isolated sub-Arctic lakes; from National Parks to sewage treatment plants.
The Aquatic Ecosystem Impacts Research Branch (AEIRB) conducts research to understand and predict the impacts of environmental stressors on the hydrology and ecology of aquatic ecosystems, emphasizing stresses related to climate and atmospheric change, land use, human activities, and cumulative environmental effects on aquatic biodiversity. A unique feature of the program is the integration of hydrological, chemical, ecological and modelling approaches within national and international research projects designed to support Environment Canada's goals for sustainability of water resources and aquatic ecosystems.
The Aquatic Ecosystem Management Research Branch (AEMRB) conducts research to manage and assess surface and ground water systems degraded by human activities. Key research activities include assessing aquatic ecosystem health in large ecosystems, developing indicators of ecosystem state and recovery, determining impacts of urban point and non-point sources of pollution on receiving environments, controlling urban water pollution, and generating remediation tools and technologies for contaminated groundwater and sediments.
The Aquatic Ecosystem Protection Research Branch (AEPRB) conducts research to protect aquatic ecosystems from the deleterious effects of toxic chemicals by developing knowledge and understanding of priority pollutants to support informed environmental decision making and sustainable management practices. Projects focus on determining the persistence, fate and exposure of toxic chemicals in aquatic environments; evaluating effects of priority substances on aquatic organisms; developing indicators and bioassays to detect, identify, and measure contaminant effects in aquatic ecosystems; and assessing the distribution and biological effects of atmospherically transported persistent organic pollutants and metals in aquatic ecosystems and food chains.
The Water Quality Monitoring Branch (WQMB) promotes monitoring as the foundation for understanding aquatic ecosystem health. The Branch's goal is to detect, monitor, and describe ecosystem change and environmental quality, and increase awareness and understanding of how human activities affect the Canadian environment. Working with Environment Canada offices and external partners across the country, WQMB strives to bring regional perspectives together into a cohesive, national picture of Canadian water quality. The Environmental Effects Monitoring (EEM) Office of the Water Quality Monitoring Branch focuses on the impacts of effluents in aquatic ecosystems, works with stakeholders to develop scientific technical guidance and regulatory requirements for conducting environmental effects monitoring programs, and provides information needed to assess the adequacy of pollution prevention measures and control technologies.
The Science Liaison Branch raises the profile of the National Water Research Institute by communicating NWRI research on current and emerging water quality and quantity issues in Canada to federal government departments, provincial and territorial governments, legislators and regulators, universities, and the private sector. The Branch's goal is to ensure that new scientific knowledge generated by NWRI's Canada-wide research programs is widely accessible and can be translated effectively into sound environmental policy and decision-making.
The National Laboratory for Environmental Testing (NLET) offers a broad range of standard and customized analytical services to support Environment Canada monitoring and research programs. In addition to its analytical services, NLET conducts and reports on inter-laboratory proficiency testing and performance evaluation studies; produces and markets a variety of certified reference materials, including natural and fortified water and sediment for both organic and inorganic constituents; and provides expert quality assurance advice to numerous laboratories within and outside Environment Canada. NLET is formally accredited to International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Guide 25 equivalency by the Standards Council of Canada.
The Research Support Branch (RSB) provides scientific research support in the areas of information management/information technology, engineering research and development, field instrumentation/calibration services, and expert technical/logistical support for ship- and shore-based field studies to NWRI research programs, as well as to other government agencies and external clients, both nationally and internationally. As a centralized support organization, RSB ensures that the most effective technologies and human resource capabilities are available to support present and future water research and monitoring projects.
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Leah Watson
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Manager
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Management Executive
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(306) 975-5779
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(306) 975-5143
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Alex Bielak
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(905) 336-4675
Freda Crisp
Title:
Executive Assistant
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(905) 336-4675
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(905) 336-6444
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Marie Solvason
Title:
Executive Assistant
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(905) 336-4675
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(905) 336-6444
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