News

Caroline Hill Smith, a graduate student currently enrolled in the Water Institute’s Collaborative Water Program (CWP) and supervised by Water Institute member Christopher Fletcher, professor from the Department of Geography and Environmental Management, contributed an op-ed  to the Hamilton Spectator recently entitled “The hidden cost of road salt.” The article brings awareness to the issue of the excessive use of road salt contaminating groundwater that is our drinking water supply. Caroline also spoke about the pervasive and growing problem with CityNews Kitchener on the Mike Farwell Show available here at 1:24:30.

Water Institute member Elizabeth English, a professor in the Faculty of Engineering, School of Architecture, was featured in the December 16^th issue of CBC's What on Earth newsletter, which highlights trends and solutions that are moving us to a more sustainable world.

Skiers and snowboarders spend a lot of time and money travelling to resorts. Experts say their flights are contributing to global warming and the reduction of snow seasons in many parts of North America.

A new paper, co-authored by Water Institute members Fereidoun Rezanezhad, Philippe Van Cappellen and Jonathan Price, along with Ecohydrology Research Group researchers Eunji Byun, Linden Fairbairn and Steph Slowinski, has been published in Nature’s Scientific Reports. The paper is entitled “Temperature, moisture and freeze-thaw controls on CO₂ production in soil incubations from northern peatlands” and assesses the impact of climate warming on carbon emissions from Canada’s peatland ecosystems, particularly in the non-growing season.

A University of Waterloo press release.

Protect or retreat: rising seas threaten Canada’s Atlantic and Pacific Coasts

As witnessed in recent weeks, rising seas, swollen atmospheric rivers and post-tropical storms are a threat to community infrastructure, housing and the safety of those living along Canada’s east and west coasts. In response, new guidance from the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation, University of Waterloo, presents practical solutions to limit the financial and social costs of these evolving risks.

To stay ahead of the COVID-19 variant Omicron, Mark Servos, Water Institute member, biology professor, and Canada Research Chair in Water Quality Protection and his research team have begun monitoring municipal wastewater for the mutation.

She was invited to speak about how boundary organizations – such as NGOs - can help academics engage more in the policy process.

The Faculty of Environment is pleased to host the 2021 TD Walter Bean Virtual Public Lecture featuring Dr. Amber Wutich, President’s Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Center for Global Health at Arizona State University.

In her talk "MAD Water: Mobile, Adaptive & Decentralized Infrastructure for the Climate Change Era", Dr. Wutich will explore one of the greatest threats facing humans in the coming century - water insecurity.

Research Associate Syed Ismail Hussain from the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, and Water Institute members Carol Ptacek, University Research Chair in Earth and Environmental Sciences, and David Blowes, Canada Research Chair in Groundwater Remediation, together with Agriculture Agrifood Canada (AAFC) Research Scientists Lori Phillips and