Winter 2010
The equipment bank was once again quite busy this fall. Borrowers included the Sierra Club, Clean Nova Scotia, Sackville Rivers Association, Eastern Shore Forest Watch, Cole Harbour Parks and Trails Association, CB Wetlands and Environmental Specialists, and the Saint Mary’s University Geography Department. The most popular item borrowed, as always, is the YSI 650 multi-probe. New instruments that were researched and purchased this summer were also borrowed to measure water quality parameters such as salinity or dissolved oxygen. These instruments included the Exstik 2 DO/pH/Conductivity kit, the PCS Testr 35, and the Oakton Eco Testr Salt. The new equipment catalogue that was created this summer can be found by clicking the ‘Equipment Bank’ tab on the right side of this page.
CBEMN participated in a water quality monitoring workshop in October that was put on by the Sierra Club at the St. Philip Neri Mission in Musquodoboit Harbour. The main presentation was made by Dane George of the Sierra Club on the topic of water quality, the role of watersheds and the hydrologic cycle, and all aspects of water quality monitoring. CBEMN made a presentation about who we are, what we do, and how to contact us so that we can assist community groups with water quality monitoring. Participants included members of the Eastern Shore Forest Watch, Clean Nova Scotia, and the Woodens River Watershed Association.
Other miscellaneous projects that have been or are in progress are the continued development of Dr. Conrad’s water testing kit and certification program (see Spring 2009 below for more information), and CBEMN presentations at the Dartmouth Area Watershed Network (DAWN) seminar and at the annual Atlantic Division of the Canadian Association of Geographers conference. CBEMN has also been working on an environmental assessment for the Fox Point Lake Homeowner’s Association on the Aspotogon Peninsula. The Association is facing water quality concerns owing to the construction and future operation of the Aspotogon Ridge golf course.
