Large northward-flowing boreal rivers are an important hydroelectric resource, but effects of river regulation on downstream geomorphology and aquatic ecosystems are difficult to predict. Peace River, BC presents an ideal case study of river response to regulation, with continuous monitoring since dam construction in 1967. However, current understanding of system changes is based mainly on periodic ground-based measurements that may be less sensitive to characterize complexity at the scales at which the river responds.

The emerging emissions trading market provides the province of Alberta an opportunity to diversify its economy and drive climate change mitigation innovation. By improving the efficiency of earning carbon credits, more economic opportunities and carbon sequestration industrial applications are feasible. The City of Calgary Dewatered Biosolids Land Application - Willow Biomass and Marginal Land Reclamation Demonstration Project represents part of the first wave of large-scale biologically driven greenhouse gas management innovation.

Recreational fisheries in Canada are estimated to provide over $2.5 billion dollars to local economies each year. There is a growing concern that industrial activities, climate change, and other factors may negatively impact the productivity of these fisheries and the freshwater ecosystems that support them. However, direct estimates of fish productivity are extremely challenging to undertake, especially in remote locations like Canada’s north.

The rate of the current climate change strongly modifies the frequency, the duration and the intensity of extreme events, such as droughts, heat waves or extreme precipitation. Strong rates of greenhouse gases emissions can cause a destabilization of a component of the climate system (e.g. the sudden melt of the Arctic sea ice). Such a phenomenon is called an abrupt change. The aim of this internship is to create a catalogue of changes in the characteristics of climate events (mainly climate and weather extremes) due to an abrupt change.

Private car dependence represents a significant problem and a major obstacle towards a more sustainable future. A good combination of different modes of transportation can create an opportunity to overcome this issue. In this sense, integrating car sharing into Transit Oriented Development can be an ideal combination to promote a smart and sustainable development. This research will examine specific aspects of the relationship existing between car sharing and the public transit infrastructure.

After the NRTEE 2003 National Redevelopment Strategy for Canada, an in-depth review of the progress and status of the 14 recommendations offered will be completed through interviews of Canadian municipal and provincial governments and other stakeholders in the Brownfield Industry. Outcomes and recommendations will be formulated for consideration. This study will be presented at the CBN conference in June 2018 and the report will be made available to all participants and stakeholders through the CBN website and electronic avenues.

Several fish species produce species-specific sounds that can be identified in the wild using Passive Acoustic Monitoring (PAM) (i.e. dataloggers configured with underwater microphones). Our project will use existing and new PAM recordings to monitor the distribution of several fish species in the western Canadian Arctic, with particular focus on a keystone Arctic species, the Arctic cod (Boreogadus saida). Acoustic signal detection techniques will be implemented to identify fish sounds from large acoustic datasets.

The Peace River Break in northeastern British Columbia is an important ecological connection along the Rocky Mountains. The region has a long and rich history of use and occupancy by Indigenous Peoples. In addition to being known for high agricultural, recreation, and tourism values, there is also a lot of industrial economic activity, particularly, forestry, mining and energy. With multiple large-scale resource development projects proposed or underway, the Peace River Break is under significant stress and conservation opportunities are limited.

This work seeks to contribute to developing the “business case” through valuation of environmental and social impacts related to potential risks in the extractive sector taking into consideration both academic and practitioner settings. A solid review of methodologies will lead to important considerations to improve the current assessment and valuation tools. The latter aims to help practitioners better estimate environmental and social impacts, and thus implement more informed strategies that reduce both business and societal risks.