Living Lakes Canada

06/08/2026

🌊 What’s showing up in lake water these days? More ni****ne pouches and small foam bits, says this new piece in Water Canada featuring results from the latest Plastic Cleanup. The report highlights a growing difference in the basin: while shorelines and stormwater systems trap larger, identifiable consumer waste, the open water acts as a catchment for highly degraded microplastics.

The cleanup is a joint project of Pollution Probe and the Council of the Great Lakes Region Foundation.

You can read more in Water Canada's full story on their website.

06/07/2026

How about a refreshing dose of good news and progress in the water world from the aptly-named news site Reasons to be Cheerful? They recently wrote about how allowing for messy flood plains during high flows helps ecosystems thrive during low flows. It’s an intriguing bit of science!

Look for the full story on their website.

06/06/2026

Drought ratchets up the pressure in the North Okanagan, and it’s a tough situation for all involved, particularly the fruit growers. The Regional District of North Okanagan has now had to ban non-essential water use, saying that if water use continues at a high rate, valuable creeks will be bone dry by August, according to CBC News.

Read more in CBC’s full story, “Water restrictions imposed for Vernon area, including 70% reduction for farmers”

06/05/2026

📢 This week, Alberta Ecotrust announced the recipients of its 2026 Environmental Impact Grants and we’re very happy to be on the list! The funds will expand our community-based groundwater monitoring program in southern Alberta, which we are running with two amazing partners — the Oldman Watershed Council (OWC) and the Piikani Nation Lands Department — to improve understanding of aquifer conditions and drought impacts.

Without the support of funders such as Alberta Ecotrust, projects such as the Oldman Watershed Groundwater Program would not exist. We are incredibly grateful for the support we've received and are passionate about continuing to improve groundwater knowledge and community resiliency in the Oldman watershed.

You can learn more about the other grant recipients and the 14 initiatives here ⬇️

Alberta Ecotrust Foundation is pleased to announce the recipients of its 2026 Environmental Impact Grant. A total of $679,000 has been awarded to support 14 local initiatives in the areas of nature-based solutions and conservation, Indigenous leadership and the circular economy, among others.

06/04/2026

We may not be using road salt now, but our winter use impacts our lakes and groundwater year round.

🧂 Ontario’s Lake Simcoe is 9X saltier now than it was in the 1970s! The increase is due to the 227 kg of road salt applied per person each year to roads in the watershed.

We can improve the situation by switching to alternatives, such as treated salt, liquid brine or sodium acetate.

Read more in Ground Water Canada's article on the issue.

06/03/2026

June is National Indigenous History Month, a time to recognize the rich history, heritage and diversity of First Nations, Inuit and Métis. Since 2021, Living Lakes Canada has made a special effort to integrate Indigenous knowledge into our shoreline surveys by piloting an Indigenous Knowledge and Values Framework.

This framework is now central to our Foreshore Integrated Management Planning projects. Shoreline surveys are planned and executed with Indigenous communities, resulting in a richer understanding of the full scope of ecological and cultural values found in the shorelines of the lakes we survey.

This is an example of how LLC strives to incorporate a Two-Eyed Seeing approach to all our programs.

🔜 Stay tuned to see examples of this approach in our forthcoming survey reports of François, Wood and Kalamalka Lakes — all to be released later this month.

06/02/2026

Imagine if this happened on your farm: “It’s like a farmer seeing that the grass where his cattle are grazing has suddenly become cacti.”

Scientists have noticed a massive change happening in three of Canada’s biggest northern lakes. The mix of organisms that make up the base of the food chain is shifting. It remains to be seen how this will impact fish populations.

The Globe and Mail has the full story. Read “Pushed by climate change, Canada’s northern great lakes show signs of a biological reset.”

06/01/2026

It’s so fun to see Georgia Peck featured here! Every month, the Kootenay Conservation Program puts a spotlight on the people who are making a significant contribution to conservation in the Kootenays.

We appreciate their inclusion of Georgia! There are some delightful details in this well-written piece, including how ornithologists in her family eventually led to her job as Lakes program manager.

“I grew up spending a lot of time on shorelines with my dad,” she laughs. “He was often looking up, and I was far more interested in what was down at our feet: the snakes, frogs and fish. I always had such a love for water.”

Read more about how Georgia’s work has contributed to knowledge of the health of Kootenay lakes ⬇️

Georgia Peck, Lakes Program Manager with Living Lakes Canada, is the third generation in her family to work in conservation. She always knew she would follow in the footsteps of her ornithologist grandpa and father, who dedicated his career to shorebird conservation. “I grew up spending a lot of t...

05/31/2026

Did you know your lawn care choices can support water security and wildfire resilience in your community? 🌱💧

Choosing clover lawns, tuning up your irrigation system, and selecting climate-appropriate plants are just a few ways Okanagan residents can commit to supporting water conservation through the Make Water Work campaign.

Launched by the Okanagan Basin Water Board, this campaign encourages residents to pledge to maintain one or more water-smart lawn care practices. Participants will also be entered for a chance to win prizes, and the community with the most pledges will earn the title of Make Water Work Champion Community.

Learn more and take the pledge here:

Share and challenge your friends & family to take the pledge.

05/29/2026

Reassess regulations for oilsands tailings ponds, consider establishing legal personhood for the St. Lawrence River, support the Lake Diefenbaker irrigation project — these are just a few of the 88 recommendations in an environment subcommittee report presented to the House of Commons yesterday that is meant to guide Canada’s future governance.

What do you think should change in the way we manage our water resources?