David Schindler, the trailblazing researcher widely regarded for his tireless defence of Canada's freshwater systems from industrial harm, has died. Schindler rose to prominence in the 1970s and early '80s with landmark experiments that sounded the alarm on acid rain and led the federal government to ban high-phosphorus laundry detergents. His 2010 research into Alberta's oilsands pushed the government to establish independent oversight of the industry, after he showed it was contributing contaminants to the region's watershed.