forWater Network's inaugural research report shares key findings & research insights

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Since the start in June 2017, the forWater Network has been contributing critical knowledge to  ensuring safe drinking water for all, in a future impacted by climate change. This unprecedented Network brings together two very distinct fields, drinking water treatment technology and forest management. Beyond bridging vastly different disciplines, the Network also spans research across Canada's 5 major ecozones. This synergy allows researchers to collaborate in unparalleled ways and explore research questions that are rarely asked.

This research truly captures source-to-tap impacts of forest management on drinking water treatability. The research conducted across disciplines and ecozones uncovers important insights into messy ecological datasets. 

For the first time, the most recent research findings from this innovative Network of researchers and industry partners are available in a report. Some key findings of interest include:

• Fine sediment tracing helps track contributions to algal blooms and impacts of roads on water quality
• Source water alkalinity as a critical component of drinking water assessment and anticipating water treatment for dissolved carbon
• Insights into sampling and diversity of potentially toxic cyanobacterial communities 
• The impact of storm flow on dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and natural organic matter dynamics in the pacific maritime ecozone
• How alternative forest management strategies show minimal impact on water quality 
• Identifying a framework for drinking water security for rural, remote, and marginalized communities in Canada
• The importance of understanding hydrology flows in boreal plains
• Each forested ecozone and its distinct chemical composition of dissolved organic matter
• Boreal shield research that shows scale-related changes in DOC and how hydro-chemical models of DOC can provide insight for water treatment

Read the full forWater Research Updates Report 2017-2020.