A Committed Community

A community member observes invertebrates through a microscope during a Project workshop.

Thanks to the numerous participants whom it brought together, the Rideau River Biodiversity Project became one of the most advanced environmental studies ever conducted in Ontario.

Scientists from every discipline, local residents, representatives of local organizations and government agencies worked together for three years to determine the biodiversity of the Rideau River.

Community involvement was expressed through:
	the establishment, with the assistance of the Rideau Valley Conservation Authority, of two community advisory committees. These committees facilitated communication between the scientists and the community throughout the life of the Project;
	the some 50 volunteers who devoted more than 1,000 hours to such activities as counting giant heaps of mussels, observing aquatic insects, and participating in the various community activities related to the Project;
	the organization of workshops in the field in which the scientists shared their findings with the community on topics such as zebra mussels and the survival of turtles;
	the participation and support, in various capacities, of approximately 40 organizations, municipalities, public corporations and private businesses.

Canada Goose, Branta canadensis.

This collaboration between scientists and residents also gave rise to the Rideau River Roundtable, which assumed the task of ensuring the preservation of the River once the study was completed in 2000.