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students collecting water samples in a marsh

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South Central Eco Institute's Riverwatch: No. 1 of 9

The Riverwatch watershed management program is truly making waves in Manitoba.

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South Central Eco Institute's Riverwatch: No. 2 of 9

“Between 2009, when we first started this thing, to now, we’ve seen the program’s involvement jump from three conservation districts to seven,” says Kent Lewarne, project manager of South Central Eco Institute.

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South Central Eco Institute's Riverwatch: No. 3 of 9

The Riverwatch program, a collaboration between Enbridge and Manitoba-based South Central Eco Institute (SCEI), was established in 2011.

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South Central Eco Institute's Riverwatch: No. 4 of 9

The Riverwatch program promotes education for students in Grades 5 through 12 around the province’s main watershed of Lake Winnipeg.

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South Central Eco Institute's Riverwatch: No. 5 of 9

“Ongoing funding allows us to offer the program at no cost to the end users—the schools and, ultimately, the students. On an average year we now have anywhere between 30 and 40 schools participating,” says Lewarne.

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South Central Eco Institute's Riverwatch: No. 6 of 9

Using a kit of industry-grade field testing equipment that conservation districts purchase through SCEI, students collect and analyze water samples—for dissolved oxygen, pH, conductivity, temperature, and other parameters—from across the Lake Winnipeg basin.

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South Central Eco Institute's Riverwatch: No. 7 of 9

“The students’ data is published on our website, and I can see that it motivates them to make sure they are getting it right,” says Lewarne.

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South Central Eco Institute's Riverwatch: No. 8 of 9

“We see students that come out for the program not even knowing the name of the river they’re at, and by the end of the day they have an understanding of the whole Lake Winnipeg watershed,” says Lewarne

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South Central Eco Institute's Riverwatch: No. 9 of 9

Lewarne says the program intentionally connects students with professionals in the industry, which may eventually lead to students becoming conservation district managers.

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