COWICHAN LAKE, BC --
March 18, 2010 -- Canada’s Environment Minister,
Jim Prentice, today recognized Ian Cairns
as the recipient of the
Morley K. Thomas Award in appreciation for
excellence in climate observing at the Cowichan
Lake Research Station of the B.C. Ministry
of Forests and Range. Mr. Cairns was presented
with the award this week by Pat Wong of
Environment Canada’s regional office.
“We depend on dedication
of individuals like Ian Cairns to help build
a comprehensive climate history in Canada.
We extend a huge thank you to Mr. Cairns
and the B.C. Ministry of Forests and Range
for continuing an important tradition,”
said Minister of Prentice.
Every morning and evening
since 1981, Mr. Cairns has collected climate
information and recorded temperatures ranging
from -15.0° degrees to +38.0°. With
the support of his employer, B.C. Ministry
of Forests and Range, his monthly reports
to Environment Canada have helped create
a valuable record of climate at the Cowichan
Lake Research Station that spans back 60
years.
Each year, Environment
Canada presents certificates and awards
to individuals and families who have reached
milestones as climate observers. Climate
observers across Canada are usually volunteers
who record high and low temperatures twice
daily as well as other weather characteristics
such as the amount of snow or rain that
has fallen. They are important contributors
to a comprehensive climate record of more
than 200 million observations dating as
far back as 1840. The archive, maintained
by Environment Canada, is available at www.weatheroffice.gc.ca.
The Morley K. Thomas
Award was created and named after one of
Canada’s leading climatologists in 1982
when he retired from the Environment Canada.
Morley K. Thomas was the principal architect
of the Canadian Climatological Program and
Canada's foremost authority on both the
practical and scientific aspects of climatology,
publishing over 70 books and articles, including
the Climatological Atlas of Canada, the
Bibliography of Canadian Climate and, with
F.K Hare, Climate Canada.
For more information, please contact:
Pat Wong
Atmospheric Monitoring Division
Environment Canada
+ More
Government of Canada
celebrates World Water Day with an investment
in water quality research
OTTAWA, Ont. -- March
22, 2010 -- Canada's Environment Minister,
Jim Prentice in partnership with Western
Economic Diversification, today announced
the Government of Canada’s investment in
water quality research at the Universities
of Lethbridge and Saskatchewan.
“The international theme
for World Water Day 2010 focuses on the
importance of water quality. Here at home,
the Government of Canada also sees water
quality as a critical issue,” said Minister
Prentice. “By partnering with these universities
on world class science, we are working to
preserve Canada’s water quality for today
and future generations.”
Today’s investment totals
$3.75 million and will go towards research
projects that will ultimately assist organizations
in making environmentally-responsible decisions
aimed at preserving water quality. Environment
Canada will provide more than $1.5 million
of in-kind support and Western Economic
Diversification will provide $2.25 million.
“The Government of Canada
is working to support innovative and knowledge-based
research to find new products, technologies
or services that address environmental sustainability
issues such as water quality and water quantity,”
said Western Economic Diversification Minister
Yelich. “Through investments in technology
commercialization, we are preparing our
economy for future growth and long-term
prosperity.”
“Access to and sharing
of water and land use information and knowledge
remains one of the most significant challenges
to the development of responsible management
policies and plans,” said University of
Lethbridge President and Vice-chancellor
Dr. Bill Cade. “The Water and Environmental
Sciences Hub will be used by governments,
industry, academia and the public to make
more-informed decisions regarding water
and will create a better understanding of
this resource.”
“This collaborative
project, which draws on outstanding research
talent from our new School of Environment
and Sustainability, the Saskatchewan Research
Council, and Environment Canada, will not
only have practical application for environmentally
sound policy decisions around location of
power plants, but will strengthen Canada’s
competitive edge as a global leader in water
resource technology, training and innovation,”
said Karen Chad, University of Saskatchewan
Vice-President of Research.
The projects complement
Environment Canada’s commitment to the Global
Environment Monitoring System Water Programme
(GEMS/Water) of the United Nations Environment
Programme (UNEP), an international water
science program that develops and maintains
a global freshwater quality information
system for use by all United Nations members.
The program received additional federal
funding last year.
In Alberta, the University
of Lethbridge will lead the establishment
of the Water Resource Technology Initiative
(WRTI), a group that will initially develop
the Water Hub, an interactive web-based
platform that will be a repository for water
data, mapping and imagery, and environmental
science data. Information from the Water
Hub will be available to help organizations
develop water resource technologies.
At the University of
Saskatchewan, researchers will develop software
that can be used as a decision-support tool
to help energy developers make environmentally-responsible
decisions on power plant locations by determining
the impact of power plants or other power-generating
technologies on water quantity and quality
in the area. Once developed, the software
will be marketed to utility companies, power
generation equipment suppliers and governments.
