research

What a circular water system could mean for Alberta

What a circular water system could mean for Alberta

A University of Alberta researcher is receiving $1.4 million over seven years to support the creation of a circular water system. "Eventually we're going to have to be very careful with our water," Mohamed Gamal El-Din told CBC's Radio Active, after being named Canada Research Chair in sustainable and resilient wastewater treatment for reuse. He is one of 12 scholars at the U of A receiving the academic honour to advance their work for a greener future.

Disrupting the myth of water abundance in Ontario

Disrupting the myth of water abundance in Ontario

Ontario may seem to be a water secure region, but new research out of the University of Waterloo challenges the myth of water abundance in the Great Lakes watershed. Using a first-of-its-kind risk analysis, researchers connected water quality, quantity, regulations and public concern to obtain a more comprehensive picture of water security at the local level. The novel approach revealed that at least half of the studied watersheds had a moderate to high potential for risk.

Moncton's water supply has cyanobacteria. Here's what the city is doing about it Social Sharing

Moncton's water supply has cyanobacteria. Here's what the city is doing about it Social Sharing

It's part of the city's monitoring for cyanobacteria, or blue-green algae, in the water supply for the province's largest metro area. The photosynthetic bacteria can be found in many waterways and isn't necessarily harmful, but some types can produce toxins harmful to humans and animals. The discovery of cyanobacteria in the reservoir six years ago triggered a multimillion-dollar research and upgrade effort that's ongoing.

Sask. agriculture group questions value of new water management data platform

Sask. agriculture group questions value of new water management data platform

Data for water management across sectors is now open for public use through a platform by the Water Security Agency of Saskatchewan, but at least one group is skeptical of how useful it will be for their businesses. The Saskatchewan government earlier this week announced the launch of what it calls a GeoHub portal for access to data for better water management. The portal combines geographic information systems to provide greater access to information, primarily when making decisions around agricultural operations, planning, or research in the province.

Nova Scotia Health researching cancer risks in hundreds of communities

Nova Scotia Health researching cancer risks in hundreds of communities

For example, some people may not be able to afford tests needed to identify cancer-causing factors like radon exposure or arsenic in well water. Others may not be able to pay for measures needed to reduce or eliminate those risks after they've been identified, Rigby said.

Northern Sask. Grade 11 student earns national recognition for research on blue-green algae in lakes

Northern Sask. Grade 11 student earns national recognition for research on blue-green algae in lakes

It was widely believed that cyanobacteria wasn't in lakes far north in Saskatchewan because the water was too cold, but a Grade 11 student at the Clearwater River Dene School is disproving those theories. Ava Haynes' research on cyanobacteria — also known as blue-green algae — in lakes near her home community in northwestern Saskatchewan earned her a Bronze Excellence Award at the Canada-Wide Science Fair in Edmonton last month.

An Indigenous approach to understanding water

An Indigenous approach to understanding water

“siwɬkʷ (WATER) IS SACRED AND IS LIFE FOR ALL PEOPLE. We know from our histories and our knowledge that water is one of the most important resources available to humans and animals.” But for Dawn Machin and Sarah Alexis, both from snƛ̓x̌ʷx̌ʷtan (Six-Mile Creek area in the North Arm of Okanagan Lake), there’s a disconnect between what water represents to humanity and how it’s perceived.

German President's visit to UBC highlights clean energy and climate change solutions

German President's visit to UBC highlights clean energy and climate change solutions

The German President and delegation members also spoke with researchers working on challenges relating to clean energy, digital manufacturing, quantum materials and smart energy storage. Some of the highlighted projects include: A research group led by Dr. David Wilkinson, Canada Research Chair in clean energy and electrochemical technologies, is developing advanced electrochemical methods to produce clean energy and clean water with minimal carbon emissions 

USask-led research: Majority of world’s protected ecosystems vulnerable to groundwater degradation

USask-led research: Majority of world’s protected ecosystems vulnerable to groundwater degradation

According to analysis published recently in the journal Nature Sustainability and led by the University of Saskatchewan (USask), most of the world’s protected areas—areas like nature preserves and national parks where human activity is restricted—have ecosystems that rely on groundwater. Of these protected areas, 85 per cent depend on groundwater from beyond protection boundaries, leaving ecosystems at risk from exterior contamination and overuse.

How solar-powered technology could enhance rainwater harvesting in Mexico

How solar-powered technology could enhance rainwater harvesting in Mexico

Research from a U of T Engineering team could help support household access to safe drinking water in low and middle-income communities by adopting solar-powered ultraviolet (UV) LED illumination to treat water in Mexico’s rainwater harvesting systems. The team includes Mistelle Haughton (CivMin MASc candidate), Karlye Wong (CivMin PhD candidate) and Professor Ron Hofmann (CivMin). Together, they are among a handful of researchers focusing on the benefits of UV LEDs for water harvesting systems.

Goulais River water levels begin to fall: Hydrometric data

Goulais River water levels begin to fall: Hydrometric data

Residents in Goulais have taken to social media to share photos of this week’s significant flooding that has taken place in the area. Warmer weekend temperatures and some rainfall to start the work week has melted much of the remaining snow, leaving some roadways in the Goulais area inaccessible. According to the Government of Canada’s hydrometric data research, the latest water level measurements taken from Goulais River near Kirby’s Corner appear to have peaked today and those numbers are slowly beginning to fall.

UBC research seeks treatment solution to ‘forever chemicals’ from water

UBC research seeks treatment solution to ‘forever chemicals’ from water

UBC researchers have developed a treatment to remove hazardous ‘forever chemicals’ from our environment. Professor Madjid Mohseni has been at the forefront of the research effort, working with his colleagues in Quebec where polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS, have been detected in that province’s water sources. “In B.C. unfortunately, the data is lacking so we hope to start gathering that information to determine how widespread the problem is…we are at stage now to take what we have developed from the lab testing and test it out in field studies,” Mohseni said.

Newfoundland and Labrador releases new drinking water safety plan

Newfoundland and Labrador releases new drinking water safety plan

The Newfoundland and Labrador government has released a new plan aimed at improving drinking water safety in the province. The provincial government said from 2017-2022, there have been an average of 191 boil water advisories, which affected 146 communities and about 44,000 people. In comparison, there were 350 boil water advisories throughout the province in 2001.

World Water Day marked with funding announcement for research and protection of our most precious natural resource: fresh water

World Water Day marked with funding announcement for research and protection of our most precious natural resource: fresh water

We are taking advantage of World Water Day to support our ambitious climate change actions that keep our air and our fresh water clean. Already, the Government of Canada has committed to create a Canadian Water Agency to protect this natural resource, which provides us with clean drinking water, transportation, energy, and economic opportunities, as well as recreation. Parliamentary Secretary Terry Duguid is also attending the United Nations Water 2023 Conference in New York this week as Canada's representative to discuss the mid-term review of the goals of the International Decade for Action on Water for Sustainable Development, 2018–2028.  

US to limit PFAS 'forever chemicals' in drinking water

US to limit PFAS 'forever chemicals' in drinking water

The US government has proposed its first-ever restrictions on six harmful chemicals found in drinking water. Research has suggested over 200 million Americans likely drink water contaminated with PFAS chemicals, which have been linked to a host of health issues, including cancer. But up until now, the pollutants have only been regulated by some US states. The US on Tuesday issued a rule that would require communities to test and treat water for six of the chemicals.

Women well represented among Brock’s Canada Research Chairs

Women well represented among Brock’s Canada Research Chairs

“I love teaching, but it’s great to have extra space and time in my position to focus on research,” says Julia Baird, Tier 2 CRC in Human Dimensions of Water Resources and Water Resilience. “Because of the dedicated funding, I was able to jump into projects immediately,” she says. “I hired a post-doctoral researcher a few months after I started. We ran with some really exciting ideas and now we’re doing something much bigger.” That groundwork enabled Baird to study how a person’s psychological traits — including empathy and the extent to which they believe they can influence outcomes — will affect the person’s attitudes towards water sustainability measures. She and her team have partnered with the Niagara Parks Commission, the Town of Lincoln and World Wildlife Fund Canada on the project.

U.S.-based startup with plans to store carbon in deep oceans skips Canada for Iceland

U.S.-based startup with plans to store carbon in deep oceans skips Canada for Iceland

A U.S. company hoping to revitalize fisheries while pulling carbon dioxide out of the air and water wanted to develop its technology in Canada, but gave up after getting a reception from Canadian authorities as chilly as the North Atlantic. Instead, Running Tide is operating in Iceland, deploying a fleet of sensors in the ocean this year in collaboration with Icelandic shipping company Eimskip.

How to bring Black and Indigenous voices into the climate discussion

How to bring Black and Indigenous voices into the climate discussion

Q: Black and Indigenous people are often the ones most affected by climate change, and yet they're not necessarily at the table in negotiations for solutions. How do we change that? A: We live in the most multicultural country in the world, we have the entire world within our borders. So that gives us access to a plethora of knowledge. But the issue that we tend to have is, when we invite people to the table to have discussions, it's in a very Western framework. We have a one-hour meeting where we're going to discuss X, Y, Z. But a lot of cultures don't work that way. There are a lot of Indigenous cultures that need to meet and spend weeks building relationships and having meals together without talking about business, and then slowly bring up business here and there.

Fracking Wastewater Causes Lasting Harm to Key Freshwater Species

Fracking Wastewater Causes Lasting Harm to Key Freshwater Species

Extracting fossil fuels from underground reservoirs requires so much water a Chevron scientist once referred to its operations in California’s Kern River Oilfield “as a water company that skims oil.” Fracking operations use roughly 1.5 million to 16 million gallons per well to release oil and gas from shale, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. All that water returns to the surface as wastewater called flowback and produced water, or FPW, contaminated by a complex jumble of hazardous substances in fluids injected to enhance production, salts, metals and other harmful elements once sequestered deep underground, along with their toxic breakdown products.

Great Lakes water levels are in flux. New research looks at how and if that could cause local earthquakes

Great Lakes water levels are in flux. New research looks at how and if that could cause local earthquakes

Earlier this month, parts of southern Ontario felt an earthquake that struck close to the nearby city of Buffalo, N.Y.  "I woke up to it … I felt what I guess you would consider a small jolt and continuous shaking … about 15 to 20 seconds," St. Catharines, Ont., resident Stephen Murdoch told CBC Hamilton the morning of Feb. 6. Earthquakes Canada monitored the magnitude 4.3 quake and said there were no reports of damage. In another part of the world the same day, an unrelated, devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit Turkey and Syria. The death toll has surpassed 40,000.