  Monica Emelko, Canada Research Chair in Water Science, Technology and Policy, and professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, has recently been named section editor for Climate Change for the new peer-reviewed, open access journal, PLOS Water. PLOS Water brings together research of the highest standards for water as a vital human resource for communities in every region of the world. Topics covered include:
"I am honoured to be named the section editor for Weather and Climate Change with PLOS Water. It has provided groundbreaking leadership and rigor in open access science that is delivered with integrity.” The broad scope of this new journal breaks down silos between disciplines and sectors to facilitate collaboration across the interconnected issues of water resources management and clean water supply. Focused on Open Science, PLOS Water supports giving access to everyone who plays a role in the global issue of water —including organizations, industry-leaders, local and Indigenous communities, and all members of the public—with unrestricted access to the quality-driven science in order to drive change. Professor Emelko responded to the section editor nomination, sharing “I am honoured to be named the section editor for Climate Change with PLOS Water. It has provided groundbreaking leadership and rigor in open access science that is delivered with integrity.” “Climate change is demonstrably threatening public health gains because it threatens the provision of safe drinking water not only because of drought, but also changes to drinking water source quality.” Emelko’s research focuses on drinking water treatment, public health protection, and climate change adaptation. She shares “the importance of hygiene and sanitation cannot be over-stated. Technological advancement in this domain reduced infectious diseases as a major cause of death by over 3000 per cent between 1900 and 2010.” Emelko continues “Climate change is demonstrably threatening these public health gains because it threatens the provision of safe drinking water not only because of drought, but also changes to drinking water source quality.”
For more information on PLOS Water please visit https://journals.plos.org/water/
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HQP and Network members can look forward to an engaging fall with a stellar line up of training webinars available throughout October and November.
For newer students, “ST3 Week” refers to the annual forWater source-to-tap training week, which would normally be an in-person series of learning/training events focused on topics relevant to forWater. In past years, this has occurred in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Alberta's Rocky Mountains, and the 2022 version is set for Vancouver Island. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic this year's series will be virtual allowing us the flexibility to cover topics that were underrepresented in the past. Tools to evaluate downstream propagation of contaminants with Mike Stone & Jason Leach
Rural, Remote and Marginalized Communities with
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 Sarah Dickson-Anderson, McMaster University
Thursday October 14 at 1pm EST, 2pm AST, 10am PST, 11am MST
Webinar description: RRM communities represent a unique set of challenges and needs when it comes to drinking water. Small population bases and remote locations can make it difficult to install, operate, and maintain drinking water systems. Indigenous communities in particular have been neglected and their needs unmet, with at least 40 First Nation communities still on long term drinking water advisories (i.e., longer than a year). |
Corinne Schuster-Wallace, University of Saskatchewan
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Drinking Water Treatability with
Monica Emelko, Antoine Rempp, & Annette Constabel
 Monica Emelko, Scientific Director & Theme 3 Lead, University of Waterloo
Wednesday October 20 at 1pm EDT, 2pm ADT, 10am PDT, 11am MDT
Webinar description: Fort McMurray and Victoria BC…. what could two such diverse utilities have in common? A focus on resiliency in drinking water resource and treatment management in a changing climate. |
Antoine Rempp, Director, Environmental Services at Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo
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Annette Constabel, Senior Manager Watershed Protection at Capital Regional District
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Resource Economics with Roy Brouwer
Roy Brouwer, Theme 4 Lead, University of Waterloo
Thursday October 28, 12pm EDT, 1pm ADT, 9am PDT, 10am MDT
Webinar description: Roy Brouwer explores the world of water resource economics, from the economics of global water management challenges, to water resource valuation and pricing and cost-benefit analysis.
Webinar description: Roy Brouwer explores the world of water resource economics, from the economics of global water management challenges, to water resource valuation and pricing and cost-benefit analysis.
November series
Demystifying Forest Planning Process in Alberta with
Kirk Hawthorn & Mike Wagner
 Kirk Hawthorn, Ministry of Agriculture and Forests, Government of Alberta
Wednesday November 3, 12pm EDT, 1pm ADT, 9am PDT, 10am MDT
Webinar description: The process by which forestry companies plan and are granted approval to conduct forestry on Alberta’s public lands remains a mystery to much of the general public. Decisions are considered from the microsite (i.e. tree species) to the provincial level (e.g. forest biome) and involve rigorous consultation with many stakeholders. Alberta forestry law and policies require forestry disposition holders to develop and submit for a review a series of plans, strategic and operational in nature, prior to granting approval to operate. Each plan is reviewed for compliance with legislation and higher order land use plans (ie South Saskatchewan Regional Plan) by AAF professionals to ensure principles of Sustainable Forest Management are followed. |
Mike Wagner, Ministry of Agriculture and Forests, Government of Alberta
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Vital aspects of streamflow measurement: 18 years of experience from the Montane Cordillera with
Chris Williams & Erin Cherlet
 Chris Williams, HQP Coordinator, University of Alberta
Wednesday November 10th at 1pm EST, 2pm AST, 10am PST, 10am MST
Webinar Description: Streamflow data are vital for many purposes including water supply forecasting, infrastructure design, assessing in-stream ecological requirements, and the characterization of water quality data. Streamflow (or discharge) can be labour-intensive and time-consuming to measure. While new instruments and techniques are being developed, there are no inexpensive ways of acquiring accurate continuous streamflow data. Chris Williams and Erin Cherlet will share insights into past and present techniques used to measure streamflow, link streamflow information to water quality in the context of forWater, and describe some of the unique challenges of acquiring hydrometric data in Rocky Mountain watersheds within the Montane Cordillera research platform. Additionally, techniques will be described for the development of rating curves and annual streamflow hydrographs. Chris is a Research Hydrologist who has been working with the Southern Rockies Watershed Project (SRWP) since 2006. Erin is SRWP’s primary Field Supervisor, and started in 2017. |
Erin Cherlet, Field Researcher, University of Alberta
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Improving research impact
with Knowledge Mobilization with
Elanor Waslander and Katrina Hitchman
 Elanor Waslander, Knowledge Mobilization Manager, University of Waterloo
Tuesday November 16 at 1pm EST, 2pm AST, 10am PST, 11am MST
Webinar description: Knowledge mobilization (KMb) is the process of improving research impact by bridging the gap between knowledge and action or end-user. This workshop will give both researchers and practitioners a background on KMb frameworks, strategies and tools for engaging in KMb, as well as a rough outline of a KMb plan for your specific research or project. Prep: Please prepare two sentences that describe your research/project and the knowledge you would like to mobilize. |
Katrina Hitchman, Director of Program Development, Canadian Water Network
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Managing sediment-associated phosphorus to prevent cyanobacterial blooms in drinking water reservoirs
Join forWater Network member, Nik Knezic, as he explores the dynamic topic of sediment-associated phosphorus on
Tuesday September 21 at 12pm EST.
Contact Elanor for access.
Webinar Details
To ensure the uninterrupted supply of adequate amounts of drinking water, many utilities rely on reservoirs for raw (i.e., untreated) water storage prior to treatment. Reservoirs are not typically managed for influxes of fine sediment and associated nutrients, which are more frequent in many areas because of climate change-exacerbated landscape disturbances such as wildfires and extreme precipitation.
Fine sediment is the primary vector of phosphorus transport in aquatic systems, which notably is the limiting nutrient for primary productivity in freshwater. Algae, especially cyanobacteria, blooms are one of the biggest threats to water quality and the provision of safe drinking water globally. Here, a series of lab- and field-scale analyses were conducted to (i) describe phosphorus release from fine sediment in a raw water reservoir, (ii) characterize its availability for biological uptake, (iii) evaluate phosphorus inactivation by application of common coagulants (FeCl3, alum, PACl), and (iv) evaluate the combination of strategically-timed reservoir dredging and coagulant application on phosphorus inactivation and turbidity reduction.
Join forWater Network member, Nik Knezic, as he explores the dynamic topic of sediment-associated phosphorus on
Tuesday September 21 at 12pm EST.
Contact Elanor for access.
Webinar Details
To ensure the uninterrupted supply of adequate amounts of drinking water, many utilities rely on reservoirs for raw (i.e., untreated) water storage prior to treatment. Reservoirs are not typically managed for influxes of fine sediment and associated nutrients, which are more frequent in many areas because of climate change-exacerbated landscape disturbances such as wildfires and extreme precipitation.
Fine sediment is the primary vector of phosphorus transport in aquatic systems, which notably is the limiting nutrient for primary productivity in freshwater. Algae, especially cyanobacteria, blooms are one of the biggest threats to water quality and the provision of safe drinking water globally. Here, a series of lab- and field-scale analyses were conducted to (i) describe phosphorus release from fine sediment in a raw water reservoir, (ii) characterize its availability for biological uptake, (iii) evaluate phosphorus inactivation by application of common coagulants (FeCl3, alum, PACl), and (iv) evaluate the combination of strategically-timed reservoir dredging and coagulant application on phosphorus inactivation and turbidity reduction.
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Nik's bio
Nik joined the WaterSTP group in January 2019 under the supervision of Dr. Monica Emelko after spending two years working in the water chemistry field with General Electric’s Water division. He had previously completed a BASc in the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Waterloo in 2017. In August 2021 he received his MASc in Civil Engineering. Nik’s current doctoral research focuses on investigating climate change adaptation strategies for protecting source water reservoir quality.
Nik joined the WaterSTP group in January 2019 under the supervision of Dr. Monica Emelko after spending two years working in the water chemistry field with General Electric’s Water division. He had previously completed a BASc in the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Waterloo in 2017. In August 2021 he received his MASc in Civil Engineering. Nik’s current doctoral research focuses on investigating climate change adaptation strategies for protecting source water reservoir quality.
The Environmental Virology and Ecology Research Group (i.e., ENVERG; https://uwaterloo.ca/environmental-virology-ecology-research-group/) led by Dr. Nissimov is recruiting a domestic or international PhD student to investigate the interactions between harmful algal bloom-forming species and their viruses.
Project Scope: Aquatic viruses are now viewed as major drivers of biogeochemical cycles and as crucial components that shape microbial food webs. Our main understanding of these viruses derives predominantly from their study in marine habitats. To that end, it is widely accepted that they can control the abundance of dominant microbial communities, decide the faith of algal blooms, and affect the diversity of microorganisms in coastal and oceanic environments. Nevertheless, despite the ecological and societal importance of freshwater environments, our understanding of the role of viruses in freshwater habitats is at its infancy. The PhD student will work in a collaborative and cross-disciplinary environment to identify and isolate from Canadian lakes novel microalgal/cyanobacterial hosts and their viruses, investigate their diversity and co-occurrence in situ, and conduct infection-dynamics experiments in the laboratory. Collectively, these will begin to unravel the ecological significance of virus infection of harmful algal blooms in lakes.
For application details, download the PDF.
Project Scope: Aquatic viruses are now viewed as major drivers of biogeochemical cycles and as crucial components that shape microbial food webs. Our main understanding of these viruses derives predominantly from their study in marine habitats. To that end, it is widely accepted that they can control the abundance of dominant microbial communities, decide the faith of algal blooms, and affect the diversity of microorganisms in coastal and oceanic environments. Nevertheless, despite the ecological and societal importance of freshwater environments, our understanding of the role of viruses in freshwater habitats is at its infancy. The PhD student will work in a collaborative and cross-disciplinary environment to identify and isolate from Canadian lakes novel microalgal/cyanobacterial hosts and their viruses, investigate their diversity and co-occurrence in situ, and conduct infection-dynamics experiments in the laboratory. Collectively, these will begin to unravel the ecological significance of virus infection of harmful algal blooms in lakes.
For application details, download the PDF.
forWater Network
The Network provides insights into new scientific research for safe, secure drinking water---globally---which starts with resilient forests
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