Welcome

The forWater Network is committed to advancing water and forest management science to ensure water security and water provider resilience in Canada for a changing climate. Our research and publications report on critical strides made in understanding forest-water-treatability interactions, particularly through forest management, downstream water quality impacts, and advanced water treatment approaches.

Collaborative research has enabled actionable insights that advance climate change adaptation and drinking water treatment resilience while supporting sustainable forestry practices across diverse ecosystems, driving both ecological and community resilience.

The forWater Network's Impact Report highlights three key areas of focus. The first--Water Quality and Disturbance—shares a state-of-the-science summary on how fires alter water supplies, treatment, and distribution, outlining novel methods for safeguarding drinking water after such events.

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This is followed by a feature on a key collaboration between the City of Calgary, West Fraser Cochrane (formerly Spray Lake Sawmills), and forWater researchers from which the first drinking water-focused VOITs (Values, Objectives, Indicators, and Targets) were developed and serve as a blueprint for future resilient urban water systems. Research by Orlova and Olefeldt identifies geomorphological features and their effects on water quality, informing conservation efforts nationwide. This leads into a pan-Canadian study on organic carbon diversity explores its role in disinfection byproduct (DBP) formation, which is essential for advancing water treatment practices. This section continues with a study in the Turkey Lakes Watershed that ties together the impacts of climate, land management, and treatment to provide holistic insights into ecosystem-specific water management responses. And finally, the section concludes with insights into forWater’s tailored training for young professionals and chronicles how one student gained vital experience transitioning from academia to applied ecohydrology in the municipal water context.
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The next section—Resilience and Climate Change Risk Reduction—provides a deep dive into understanding the tools forWater has provided in addressing climate change impacts to water quality and quantity. This section offers practical approaches for water utilities facing wildfire risks, including insights into decision-making to guide proactive resilience and planning. In addition, strategies for resilience for small systems are discussed, applying nature-based solutions. 

Another piece speaks to the benefits young professionals gained from the immersive, interdisciplinary training that emphasizes collaboration and real-world applications. Building resilience with effective forest management practices is highlighted, like Best Management Practices (BMPs), that minimize water quality impacts from logging. The section concludes with basin morphology insights from Halifax Water, which characterize sediment and phosphorus movement after wildfire and reveal that certain landscape attributes can help to reduce water supply risks.

The final section—Monitoring and Management—provides the rationale for what watershed characterization data water utilities should collect and how to maximize their value so they can prepare management plans for climate change resilience now and in the future. Further exploration delves into the impacts of forest harvesting on water quality and treatability within watersheds, including the Comox Lake area. Another summary jumps to Atlantic Canada, assessing both forest management and climate change effects on carbon loads in their source-water supplies. This is followed by an article highlighting the challenges posed by seasonal and diurnal changes in water quality, which influence treatment strategies and costs. This section also explores insights from the continuing legacies of Fort McMurray’s wildfire experiences, where complex management challenges remain. The forWater Network’s work is accelerating the development of critical guidance, supporting risk identification, and informing decision-making in these high-stakes, dynamic environments.