Speaker

John Gerretsen (Ontario Minister of the Environment)

Biography

John Gerretsen, Minister of the Environment for Ontario, was first elected in 1995 to represent Kingston and The Islands. He was re-elected in 1999, 2003 and 2007.

Minister Gerretsen’s top priority since his appointment as Minister of the Environment has been to guide the implementation of the government’s climate change action plan.

In his current role, Minister Gerretsen introduced legislation to ban the use and sale of cosmetic pesticides province wide. The Act was subsequently passed in June 2008 and came into effect on Earth Day (April 22) 2009. In addition, Mr. Gerretsen introduced landmark legislation to protect Lake Simcoe. The Lake Simcoe Protection Act, which passed unanimously in the legislature, and the protection plan are setting a new standard for watershed protection in Ontario. Minister Gerretsen also announced Ontario’s Toxics Reduction Strategy and introduced the Toxics Reduction Act, which was passed in June 2009, to improve quality of life and to help develop a greener economy.

In 2009, he served as President of the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment. During Minister Gerretsen’s term as President, the Council developed a Canada-wide Action Plan for Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), a sustainable packaging strategy and a Canada-wide strategic vision for water that featured a water efficiency labeling program.

As Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, he brought forward the award-winning Greenbelt Plan. Mr. Gerretsen was also responsible for new, stronger planning legislation and bringing the Ontario Building Code to the most energy efficient standards in Canada.

Speaker

Sameer Dhalla (Toronto and Region Conservation)

Biography

Sameer is a Manager of Water Resources at the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority. He has over 11 years of experience in both the private and public sector and has worked on many projects from watershed planning to floodplain management. At the TRCA, Sameer manages a team of engineers and scientists in reviewing development applications, implementing water resources projects and developing water management guidelines and policies. Today Sameer is going provide an overview of Stormwater Management and Low Impact Development.

Presentation Title

Stormwater and Low Impact Development 101

Summary

The current practice of stormwater management is achieving significant benefits towards the protection of property and public safety and minimizing the contaminant levels reaching rivers and streams. This presentation will provide an overview of current stormwater practices and will address the need for change.

Speaker

Christine Zimmer (Credit Valley Conservation Authority)

Biography

Christine Zimmer is the Senior Water Resources Engineer for the Credit Valley Conservation Authority (CVC) in May 2005. Her responsibilities include project management of various Credit Valley Conservation Authority project initiatives such as Watershed Management Strategy, Credit River Water Management Guidelines, CVC Stormwater Criteria Document, and CVC/TRCA Low Impact Development Manual.

Prior to starting at the CVC, Christine obtained a Masters degree in Water Resources Engineering from the University of Guelph. Christine was part of a research team funded by the Ministry of Environment and International Joint Commission to study the impact of various residential layout scenarios on the hydrologic regime and sediment load. Residential layout scenarios included traditional layouts built in the 1970 without storm water management facilities, traditional layouts with storm water management facilities designed to MOE standards, high density development and low impact development. Low Impact Development involves lot level stormwater management designed to mimic the natural hydrologic flow regime.

Prior to obtaining her masters degree from the University of Guelph, Christine worked at Trojan Technologies, a UV manufacturer, as the Regional Sales Manager/Project Manager for North America West. Her duties included working with the US EPA, provincial ministries and municipalities on the design of UV for disinfection of wastewater and CSO.

Presentation Title

A Watershed Perspective – CVC Credit Water Management Strategy

Summary

This presentation will outline the various components of the Credit River Water Management Implementation Program with particular focus on how Watershed Working Groups have strived to attain municipal buy in, encourage public engagement and industry acceptance for adoption of LID for new and existing urban areas.

Speaker

Dave Maunder (Aquafor Beech Limited)

Biography

Dave Maunder is the manager of the Water Resources and Environmental Divisions of Aquafor Beech Limited. In this capacity he has participated in several Watershed /Subwatershed studies, Stormwater Master Plans, Environmental Assessments and Environmental Restoration projects. Dave participated as Project Manager for the MOE 2003 Stormwater Management Planning and Design Manual and worked with the TRCA and CVC to develop their Low Impact Development manuals.

Presentation Title

LID Guidelines, Examples and Economics

Summary

The presentation will include a brief overview of the technical aspects of the TRCA and CVC LID Manual, Canadian LID examples and the economics of LID versus conventional stormwater management.

Speaker

Dave F. Ashfield (The Municipal Infrastructure Group)

Biography

Dave is a partner at The Municipal Infrastructure Group with over 25 years of experience in water resource management, municipal engineering, and land development. He has managed multi-disciplinary teams to complete numerous Master Environmental Servicing Plans, Master Drainage Plans, and Subwatershed Planning studies throughout Southern Ontario. His expertise is characterized by his record of successfully resolving conflicting mandates, typically through the application of non-traditional and innovative solutions, and the provision of advisory services to ensure effective collaboration.

Presentation Title

LID Pilot Project – Lessons Learned

Summary

“LID Pilot Project, Lessons Learned” – the presentation will provide an overview of a recent pilot project that evaluated and selected several LID measures for application within a proposed greenfield residential development. A key feature of the project was the simulated performance of the proposed measures within the context of local, regional, and provincial stormwater management criteria and objectives, typically satisfied through more traditional approaches.

Speaker

Alice Grgicak-Mannion (University of Windsor)

Biography

Alice was born in Windsor, Ontario. She obtained a BES (Bachelor of Environmental Studies - Geography) from the University of Waterloo in 1996. Her first job was working on contract for the Essex Region Conservation Authority. Alice then moved on to work at the University of Windsor as a part-time Geography Technician, while teaching GIS courses at St. Clair College. Upon the move to the Department of Earth Sciences, Alice was given the opportunity to develop a new GIS facility for the university. She has also gone on to establish many community and research partnerships, some which have garnered national acclaim (iCity- Historic Sites of Walkerville and the Windsor Essex GIS Health Gateway). Alice has recently become a researcher at the Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research and is focusing on air pollution modelling for health outcomes and developing a large scale open source geospatial metadata system for local and environmental projects for the Alberts Oil Sands region.

Presentation Title

WEEMS (Windsor Essex Environmental Metadata Systems)

Summary

Her talk will focus on the development of an open source geospatial metadata system for large-scale research projects and collaboration.

Speaker

Boyan Brodaric (Geological Survey of Canada)

Biography

Boyan Brodaric is a research scientist at the Geological Survey of Canada where he works on projects related to the online interoperability of geoscience information, including groundwater applications. He received his PhD from Penn State University in Geographical Information Science, is co-editor of the international journal Computers and Geosciences, and is involved in several international geoscience data standards initiatives as well as research on geospatial semantics.

Speaker

David Sharpe (Geological Survey of Canada)

Biography

David is a glacial geologist and has been working on regional hydrogeology for the past 18 years at the Geological Survey of Canada.

Presentation Title

The Groundwater Information Network (GIN)

Summary

GIN is a collaboration of some federal, provincial, and watershed agencies that are providing online water well data using common standards and web portals. GIN will be described, including a live demonstration.

Speaker

Hendrik Amo (Toronto and Region Conservation)

Biography

BSc graduate from Brock University focused on GIS and Earth Sciences. 12 plus years working at the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority as a Geomatics Specialist, applying GIS technology to Water Resource Management.

Presentation Title

TRCA Flood Management Network

Summary

Flood Vulnerable Areas Database. The database provides support to TRCA's Flood management initiatives. Demonstration of data development from Flood Plain Mapping to decision making tools within the GIS environment.

Speaker

James Holland (University of Guelph)

Biography

James Holland is a graduate student at the University of Guelph’s School of Environmental Design and Rural Development, currently on a leave of absence from Ducks Unlimited Canada where he held the position of GIS Specialist. His graduate research is looking at factors that influence local land use decisions within the Great Lake’s coastal wetlands.

Presentation Title

Wetland Conservation and Development Trends

Summary

The level of protection in seven wetland policies will be assessed, along with the challenges of measuring trends in wetland conversion on the ground.

Speaker

Kevin Rich (Ducks Unlimited Canada)

Biography

Since joining Ducks Unlimited Canada in 1999, Kevin has served as the lead for habitat program delivery in south-western Ontario. In 2006, he developed DUC’s first-ever municipal extension program specifically designed to encourage strong land use policies for wetland conservation, at municipal and provincial levels. Through this program, DUC has provided relevant information and science concerning wetland values to over 60 Ontario municipalities, to build the case for effective wetland conservation. Kevin holds a B.Sc. in biology and a M.A.Sc. in environmental engineering.

Presentation Title

Municipal Extension

Summary

This presentation describes a unique program within the NGO community designed to encourage municipalities to raise the bar for wetland and natural heritage conservation via outreach and input to planning processes.

Speaker

Michael Walters (Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority)

Biography

Michael Walters is the Director of Watershed Management at the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority (LSRCA). Michael graduated in 1983 with an Honours Degree in Physical Geography from the University of Western Ontario and has co-authored a number of research and journal publications, and a book on watershed monitoring. Throughout his twenty-five year career, Michael has applied his expertise locally and internationally, developing pollution control strategies, planning policy, integrated watershed plans, and subsequently implemented programs to protect and improve ecosystem health. Most recently, Mike presented at the 12th International Riversymposium and Rivers from Source to Sea conference in Brisbane, Australia where the LSRCA received the prestigious International Thiess Riverprize, the most highly regarded and valuable river management award in the world.

Presentation Title

Wetland Protection - Lake Simcoe Application of Regulations Through to Convictions

Speaker

Lauren Baker (Sustain Ontario)

Biography

Lauren Baker is the founding director of Sustain Ontario - the Alliance for Healthy Food and Farming. She is a food researcher and activist with over ten years of experience building local food economies, implementing sustainable agriculture projects and addressing food policy. She has worked with organizations including FoodShare, Evergreen, Muskoka Community Coops, The Stop Community Food Centre and Ontario Healthy Communities Coalition on food and agriculture initiatives. Lauren has a PhD in Environmental Studies from York University and she is lecturer at the University of Toronto.

Presentation Title

Local Food, Green Jobs: Growing Local Food Infrastructure for Ontario

Summary

My presentation will focus on efforts to strengthen regional food economies across Ontario. These initiatives are led by innovative farmers, food enterprises, municipalities and community organizations, and often connect issues such as conservation and agriculture, health and economics. What are the opportunities and challenges for scaling up this work in order to create healthy, sustainable food systems?

Speaker

Christopher Jess (Center Wellington District High School)

Biography

A teacher and a chef, Chris is currently running The Food School. Showing kids how to cook, his mandate is to bring much needed skill development to a generation of kids that has been co-opted by the industrial food system. Struggling to distinguish what real food is, the Food School endeavors to empower students to feed themselves by learning how to can and preserve, by learning how to make cheeses, yogurts and cultured butter, by learning how to make artisanal breads, and by learning how to use and forage for edibles in the forest.

Presentation Title

Via The Kitchen: One Institutional Response to our Current Economic Crisis

Summary

In an age when kids are said to be at threat of dying before their parents because of environmental conditions and in particular, the effects of the foods they eat, I will outline one alternative program that can empower this generation to confidently make new choices.

Speaker

John Fitzgibbon (University of Guelph)

Speaker

Scott Mackay (University of Guelph)

Biography

Scott recently completed a Masters of Science in Rural Planning and Development at the University of Guelph. He has worked for 10 years in the areas of environmental restoration and management, and community stewardship, including six years with Environment Canada's Great Lakes Restoration Programs. His undergraduate degree is in Environmental Science and Physical Geography from Trent University. Scott is currently employed as a Communications and Consultation Specialist with AECOM in Guelph.

Presentation Title

Developing Community-Based Watershed Stewardship Plans: A Case Study From Hamilton and Brant

Summary

Collaborative approaches which engage landowners and other community interests in setting watershed stewardship priorities are being increasingly employed in rural southern Ontario. An OMAFRA-funded research project was undertaken in 2008-09 to develop and test a framework for undertaking such approaches. An overview of the research project and its findings will be presented, along with a more in-depth review of experiences applying the framework in two subwatersheds in Hamilton and Brant. A number of implications for the practice of collaborative, community-based watershed stewardship will also be discussed.

Speaker

Craig Merkley (Upper Thames River Conservation Authority)

Biography

Craig is employed in the Conservation Services Unit of the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority based in London, Ontario.

He works primarily with landowners, agencies and organizations on agricultural research and demonstration projects aimed at improving and protecting water quality in the watershed.

In 1993, Craig helped a group of local landowners organize Upper Avon River Conservation Club upstream of Stratford, Ontario. The group has been working together on a watershed basis planting trees and assisting with other conservation projects ever since.

Craig is a graduate of the University of Guelph, and lives in Stratford, Ontario.

Presentation Title

The Upper Thames Watershed and "Friends of" Groups

Summary

His presentation will provide a look at the history of the Upper Avon River Conservation Club and how it works.

Speaker

Peter Burtch (Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority)

Biography

Graduated with a Diploma as a Forestry Technician from Sir Sandford Fleming College in Lindsay, Ontario in 1973.

Employed full-time with the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) from September 1973 to January of 2003. Presently employed with the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority since June 2005.

Career highlights:

• Worked in the Ontario Land Inventory program mapping and ranking the physiography of lake shorelines and inventorying natural recreational features throughout Ontario
• In Thunder Bay managed an outdoor Crown Land recreation program including canoe routes, public access points, cross-country ski trail and hiking trails
• While in Sault Ste. Marie:
-- Created the first MNR Shoreline Management Plan in 1990
-- Was a member of a Provincial Policy team that created Part 3.0 (Protecting Public Health and Safety) of the Provincial Policy Statement. (Provincial Great Lakes Shoreline Development Policy)
-- Qualified as an “Expert Witness” in Shoreline Management by the courts on numerous occasions.
-- In 1998 created the concept of the Great Lakes Heritage Coast (GLHC) and worked as a Project Planner in the GLHC project team from 2000 to 2003.
• Since 2003:
-- A founding member of the Lake Superior Conservancy and Watershed Council
-- Co-Authored an Eco-tour Guide that describes the geology and history of the Ontario side of Lake Superior, the guide was published by Canadian Geographic.
-- Presently employed by the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority as a Watershed Coordinator providing a stewardship and landowner outreach service to the east Lake Simcoe area.
-- A member of a multi agency project team, headed by Environment Canada developing and implementing a community-based environmental rehabilitation and protection plan called the “Framework for Community Action” for the Canadian portion of the Lake Huron Basin.

Presentation Title

The Maskinonge River Watershed Adopt-a-Stream Project - A Community Approach to Watershed Management

Summary

My presentation will identify the need for a community based effort to reverse the slow an steady loss of environmental health within the Maskinonge River watershed. I will provide discussion of issues both environmental and social; a description of the process being developed within rural and urban communities; the challenges being faced; the successes, and the future path.

Speaker

Meg St. John (Toronto and Region Conservation)

Presentation Title

Aquatic Habitat Toronto Introduction

Speaker

Stephanie Hawkins (Toronto and Region Conservation)

Biography

Stephanie Hawkins is the Project Manager for the Toronto and Region Remedial Action Plan. She completed her graduate studies at Queen's University (Biology - Aquatic Toxicology) and Laurentian University (Science Communication). Prior to joining Toronto and Region Conservation earlier this year, she held positions with the Department of National Defence - Land Force Central Area, and the Nunavut Regional Office of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada.

Presentation Title

Toronto Area of Concern - Progress Report 2007

Speaker

Rick Portiss (Toronto and Region Conservation)

Presentation Title

Baseline Environmental Monitoring in Support of Aquatic Habitat Toronto

Speaker

Mike Correa (AMEC Earth and Environmental)

Presentation Title

The Fish Communities of the Toronto Waterfront: Summary and Assessment, 1989 – 2005

Speaker

Shidan Murphy (University of Toronto)

Biography

Shidan Murphy is currently a Ph.D. student in the Ecology and Evolutionary Department at the University of Toronto, and graduated with a B.Sc. in Biology from York University in 2006. His current research focuses on the quality of thermal habitat created by coastal embayments along the northwest shoreline of Lake Ontario. The research is supported by the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority, Fisheries and Oceans Canada and the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources.

Presentation Title

Seasonal and Interannual Variation in Thermal Habitat Quality for Fish Across Constructed Embayments of Lake Ontario

Speaker

Danny Moro (Toronto and Region Conservation)

Presentation Title

Factors Affecting Northern Pike (Esox lucius) Home Range, Size and Habitat Use in Perturbed Environments

Speaker

Bill Snodgrass (Toronto Water)

Presentation Title

Effects of Land Based Storm Water Controls on Waterfront Aquatic Habitat

Speaker

Susan Doka (Fisheries and Oceans Canada)

Presentation Title

Assessment of Urban Fish Habitat Renewal, the Lake Ontario Experience

Speaker

Lisa Prime (Waterfront Toronto)

Biography

Lisa A. Prime, is a Registered Professional Planner, with a Masters of Environmental Studies (Environmental Planning) from York University and a Bachelor Degree in Environmental Studies (Geography) from the University of Waterloo. She is also a LEED Certified professional. Lisa is the Director of Sustainability for Waterfront Toronto, which oversees revitalization of approximately 2000 acres of land in Toronto’s waterfront. Lisa liaises with all activities on the waterfront to implement the Corporation’s Sustainability Framework, which sets out the corporate objectives for sustainability. The Toronto waterfront provides an opportunity where Lisa works to advance interests in applying principles of sustainability include balancing strong community design and urban innovation with natural heritage protection, as well as achieving LEED recognition.

Lisa’s past work experience in consulting includes work on the Toronto Waterfront, including preparation of the Environmental Review for the Toronto 2008 Olympic Bid. Her environmental planning experience also ranges from managing very controversial landfill Environmental Assessments, international strategic policy development, Conservation Authority planning approvals, to tactical roles with the province and federal government in areas of sustainability.

Presentation Title

Waterfront Toronto’s Commitment to Revitalizing Fish Habitat in Toronto’s Inner Harbour

Speaker

Ralph Toninger (Toronto and Region Conservation)

Presentation Title

Nearshore Fish Habitat Creation at Tommy Thompson Park

Speaker

Warren May (Ministry of Natural Resources)

Presentation Title

Toronto Waterfront Aquatic Habitat Restoration Strategy – A Strategic and Integrated Approach to Managing the Aquatic Habitat in a Large Urbanized Centre

Speaker

Karl Schaefer (Environment Canada]

Biography

Karl Schaefer is Head of Strategic Science Policy with Environment Canada's S&T Liaison Division in Burlington, Ontario. He leads in bringing EC's environmental research to a multi-sector policy and program community, and is interested in strengthening the science-policy link. Karl was previously an Environmental Economist and Binational Programs Coordinator with the Great Lakes Corporate Affairs Office of Environment Canada in Ontario Region. He has a Masters Degree from the University of Waterloo, in the areas of water resources management and environmental economics.

Speaker

Amy Handyside (Ministry of Natural Resources)

Speaker

Pascal Badiou (Ducks Unlimited Canada)

Biography

Pascal Badiou is a research scientist with Ducks Unlimited Canada’s Institute for Wetland and Waterfowl Research. Pascal is the program coordinator for Ducks Unlimited Canada’s Agriculture and Wetlands Greenhouse Gas Initiative.

In general, Pascal’s research interests focus on the ecology of wetlands and shallow lakes. He is particularly interested in how wetland restoration and preservation can be targeted to mitigate nutrient export from watersheds. Currently Pascal is working to develop the Broughton’s Creek watershed in south-western Manitoba as a model/experimental watershed in order to determine the impacts of wetland management practices (drainage and restoration) on hydrology and water quality at large scales.

Pascal has a Ph.D. in Wetland Ecology from the University of Manitoba. Pascal is an adjunct professor in the University of Manitoba’s department of Environment and Geography.

Speaker

Dr. Brad Bass (Environment Canada / University of Toronto)

Biography

Dr. Brad Bass is a member of the Adaptation and Impacts Research Division located in the University of Toronto’s Centre for Environment. His current research interests include the impact of green roofs and breathing walls on energy conservation, simulating adaptation with agent-based simulation models and the impacts of climate change on the energy sector. Brad also chairs the North American Green Roof Research Committee and is a member of Mississauga’s Environmental Advisory Committee.

Speaker

Deborah Kimmett

Biography

Some people call Deborah a cross between Ellen and Erma Bombeck. Whatever you call her she is one funny woman. A veteran of the famous Second City, Kimmett has been bringing her own brand of Wit with Wisdom to conference rooms and theatres for nearly thirty years. She energizes teams across North America on how to deal with constant change and and keep your sense of humor doing it. Deborah appears on CBC TV’s, Winnipeg Comedy Festival, and is a regular on CBC Radio’s. The Debaters. In 1994, she was nominated for the Governor General’s Award, for her hit play Miracle Mother, and she has a book of comedic essays, Reality Is Over Rated.