by Bob Grylls
Westmeath
WESTMEATH — The Riverview Seniors Social Club held its second Speakers Series event on Thursday, June 16. This Series is available due to grant funding from New Horizons.
Darcy McMullen organized the Ottawa River Forum with the Ottawa Riverkeeper panel of Meredith Brown and Meagan Murphy and shared the stage with the local Riverwatcher team of Evelyn St. Amour and John Meadows. Vince Gervais, a member of the Zone 12 fisheries council spoke on the Ottawa River and Lake Timiskaming zone.
Ms. Brown is familiar with this part of the river. She is responsible for the protection and restoration of the Ottawa River. She serves as a voice for its ecosystem, always speaking up on the watershed’s behalf. Ms. Brown has made use of her biology and environmental engineering degrees while working for 12 years to establish monitoring, assessment, enforcement, and long-term planning for the river.
When trying to get the ear of politicians in Ottawa Ms. Brown says to them, “You all drink water from the Ottawa River.”
“The Ottawa River is the economic engine of our region”, she reminded the audience.
There are 50 volunteer Riverwatcher groups which the Riverkeeper supports with training, expertise, and valuable resources, including promotional materials.
It does have its threats though; pulp and paper mills, waste water being dumped after overflows, hydro dams, climate change, mining and fluctuating water levels. Pollutants from household chemicals are being found in fish as well as micro plastics (beads) more and more. Even fish hut’s left on the river when the ice melts is an issue. The question is: Who is responsible to enforce this!
The Riverkeeper is the one alliance that is trying to get all the players together. There is progress, especially after a recent summit in Gatineau with an agreement of the players to a declaration of responsibility. The group is also working on a Watershed Council for the river.
Ms. Murphy, who holds a PhD degree, had related experience in Portland, Maine. With Riverkeeper now, she is a co-ordinator, but generally prefers the schooling to others of the team’s progress.
She said, “We rely on concerned citizens to keep us grounded.”
The Ottawa River is one of the most regulated rivers in Canada, she added.
Mr. Gervais covered fisheries in the zone 12, which has a large and diverse fishery, valuable recreational and tourism industries and is one of 20 fish management zones in the province.
The council provides advice during the development of fisheries objectives and strategies. It represents a broad range of views including the angling, research, and conservation groups. It shares ideas and expertise with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry to implement management strategies as well communicate with the anglers and residents. The MNR is the lead.
The Ottawa River is a great natural resource for fishing all season, Mr. Gervais said, adding, it has 85 species in either cold or warm water. Most plentiful are catfish and walleye, most caught is bass, most preferred is pickerel; rare are clams and mussels.
Evelyn St. Amour spoke both of her heritage and her involvement with the Muskrat Watershed Council. Ms. St. Amours ancestors lived on Rapids Road in Westmeath since 1850. They rented four cottages for 40 years, cut ice-blocks from the Ottawa River for those who needed ice and had a commercial operation of sturgeon.
Her Riverwatcher experience made her a natural to help in the Muskrat Lake situation, serving two years as secretary and another as chair. As she pointed out, “The Muskrat River drains into the Ottawa River at Pembroke.”
The Ottawa Riverkeeper is dedicated to protecting the health of the Ottawa River and its tributaries. To achieve this, they carry out a range of activities; from water quality testing, to court challenges, to education and outreach.
If those present at this forum did not recognize the importance of maintaining and having respect for the Ottawa River, they do now.
