Friends of the Muskoka Watershed

More Than Just Water, it is Life and Livelihood

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
I want to donate to FMW freshwater research
  • Our Programs
    • ASHMuskoka
    • Environment Care
    • Hauling Ash To Solve Ecological Osteoporosis
  • More Than Just Water
    • Newsletter Archive
  • Fresh Water News
  • Resources
  • Support FMW
  • Events
  • Contact Us
    • Our Board
    • FMW Staff
    • Volunteering

Water Canada: Declining Calcium Levels in Freshwater Lakes Have Negative Impacts on Some Species

September 6, 2019 by AVP

Recently, Water Canada, a magazine that is well respected for their content about Canada’s most important natural resource, published an article about the calcium decline issue in fresh water lakes around the world. They referenced an article posted in July of this year in Scientific Reports, a journal that publishes research from all areas of the natural and clinical sciences, entitled Widespread diminishing anthropogenic effects on calcium in freshwaters. This article had input from 29 scientists from around the world with inclusion from two local scientists, Drs. Jim Rusak and Andrew Paterson, who are employed by the MECP (Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks) in Dorset, Ontario. The study based its findings on 440,599 water samples from 43,184 inland water sites from 57 countries, which included data from some Muskoka lakes.

The Water Canada article, Declining Calcium Levels in Freshwater Lakes Have Negative Impacts on Some Species, highlights the fact that acid rain is the main cause of the global issue of calcium decline in lakes and that, as acid rain is improving there is less control of lake calcium levels by acid rain and more control by the natural historical regulator, carbonate chemistry.

Daphnia

Located in Muskoka, Friends of the Muskoka Watershed is creating Canada’s first N.I.W.A (non-industrial wood ash) recycling project that is engineered to reverse the calcium decline issue in the local forests and lakes. The ASHMuskoka project relies heavily on a strong relationship with the community (for supplying 100 tonnes of wood ash by the third year), local municipalities and the provincial government (for logistics, and support), and local experts in the field of acid rain, climate change and environmental issues.

Calcium decline is affecting half the lakes in Muskoka, so we look forward to working with our community to help resolve this problem using residential wood ash, turning a waste into a win

Dr. Norman Yan

Part of building strong relationships is creating a 13 member Advisory Committee, for ASHMuskoka, comprising of key community leaders, from education to lake association members to local members of government and also includes Dr. Rusak, one of the scientists that provided findings to the above study on calcium decline.

Part of the ASHMuskoka project involves helping other communities roll out their own wood ash recycling programs in communities that, like Muskoka, were impacted by acid rain and calcium decline.

Dr. Norman Yan, Chair of Friends of Muskoka Watershed, spearheaded the ASHMuskoka project, and noted that “Calcium decline is affecting half the lakes in Muskoka, so we look forward to working with our community to help resolve this problem using residential wood ash, turning a waste into a win”.

Filed Under: Featured, FMW News, Research, Watershed Health Tagged With: calcium

FMW News

Aces Waste Management

Thank you. We couldn’t have done it without you.

December 3, 2019 By PG

Here was the challenge. We needed to move approximately 2.5 tonnes of blended, raw wood ash from our storage site at the Rosewarne transfer station in Bracebridge to our three test sites in Muskoka – three volunteer sugar bushes – so that the ash could be spread on the designated test plots. This was equivalent […]

Recent Posts

  • Thank you. We couldn’t have done it without you. December 3, 2019
  • Have you seen our new building? November 19, 2019
  • Water Canada: Declining Calcium Levels in Freshwater Lakes Have Negative Impacts on Some Species September 6, 2019
  • Welcome to the Board, Neil Hutchinson February 21, 2019
  • Welcome to the Board, Brian McElwain February 19, 2019
Tweets by FriendsMuskokaW

Search our Site

Friends of the Muskoka Watershed

Our mailing address is:

PO Box 416
Bracebridge, ON P1L 1T7

Our office is located at:

126 Kimberley Ave., Bracebridge ON


(705) 640-0948

Looking for Muskoka-related water resources and data?

Check out the Muskoka WaterWeb:

MWWlogo

Newsletter

Want to find out what's new and exciting with Friends? Sign up for updates. Please note, we will never share your information with a 3rd party. We value your trust in us.

Copyright © 2019 · Friends of the Muskoka Watershed ·

Copyright © 2019 · Outreach Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in