The program currently focuses on benthic biomonitoring in lakes; the use of small, spineless organisms that live on the bottom of lakes to determine the quality of the ecosystems they inhabit. As coordinator, Brendan nurtured the program from a small pilot project in 2019 to a fully operational, long-term monitoring program involving 14 research projects for community organizations led by university and college students on over 20 lakes in the Haliburton region.
In 2021, the program expanded to include terrestrial monitoring for the stewards of conservation lands such as the Haliburton Highlands Land Trust. Brendan has managed the growth and expansion of the initiative despite the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, which required him to adapt safe field-research protocols and supervise their application.
Balancing the wants and needs of the community with the realities of running a long-term environmental monitoring program with an excess of 20 active stakeholders is no small task and Brendan serves as a key member of the WWEW Steering Committee to ensure successful coordination of the program into the future.
Brendan’s efforts have helped fill Haliburton County‘s publicly available environmental data gap. The data that is now being collected will be openly shared with and used by local decision-makers to develop sustainable policies and track their impacts.
Brendan also contributes his time and knowledge to help advance the use of community-based water monitoring in communities across Canada as part of Our Living Waters Federal Strategy Team. Locally, he has shared his passion for community-based biomonitoring through public and media presentations, radio shows, newspaper articles and virtual presentations. He is currently planning to train the public to assist in the data collection process, ensuring these contributions last into the foreseeable future.