Improving access to water quality data in the Great Lakes

Tuesday, April 20, 2021

The Water Institute together with the Gordon Foundation and the Lake Futures project recently released a report that documents outcomes of a “Data Needs in the Great Lakes” workshop held virtually on December 2-3, 2020. The report, informed by 39 water and data experts, explores the barriers and opportunities to improving data access, identifies data-related initiatives being undertaken by the biggest players in Ontario’s Great Lakes data, and discusses what is needed to improve information flow in the region.

This discussion is timely as The Gordon Foundation is currently developing a Great Lakes DataStream hub (slated to be released in the Fall of 2021). This open access platform for sharing water quality data has been operating elsewhere in Canada since 2016 and this report will inform its rollout and use in the Great Lakes.

Do you have data?

 Ahead of the fall release of Great Lakes DataStream, the Gordon Foundation is kicking off a Data Drive to help those with water quality data in the region – including academics, community-based water monitoring programs, watershed groups, Indigenous nations, researchers, and governments –  to publish their data on this open-access platform.  

The Data Drive will take place throughout spring and summer and includes a number of supports for data holders. This includes one-on-one sessions with a data specialist that can be booked here or virtual group information sessions (register here).

If you are interested in a copy of the report, you can download it here.