Skip to main content
Log in

Establishing the Canadian Community Monitoring Network

  • Published:
Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Community-based ecosystem monitoring activities in Canada are increasing in response to a number of factors including: (i) the needs of decision-makers for timely information on local environmental changes; (ii) limited use of government monitoring data and information by decision makers; (iii) government cuts to monitoring programs; (iv) the increasingly recognized need to include stakeholders in planning and management processes; and (v) the desire of citizens to contribute to environmental protection. To date there has been no network coordination of community based monitoring in Canada. This paper reports on the establishment of the Canadian Community Monitoring Network by Environment Canada's Ecological Monitoring and Assessment Network Coordinating Office and the Canadian Nature Federation. Information on research prepared in support of network establishment is presented along with a discussion of the potential of the network.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Au, J., Bagchi, P., Chen, B., Martinez, R., Dudley S. A. and Sorger, G. J.: 2000, Methodology for public monitoring of total coliforms, Escherichia coli and toxicity in waterways by Canadian high school students, J. Environ. Manag. 58, 213–230.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bird Studies Canada: 2002, Bird Studies Canada: National Programs, Web site viewed on June 4, 2002, www.bsc-eoc.org/national.html

  • Bliss J., Aplet, G., Hartzell, C., Harwood, P., Jahnige, P., Kittredge, D., Lewandowski, S., Soscia, M.L.: 2001, Community-based ecosystem monitoring, J. Sustain. Forestry 12 (3–4), 143–167.

    Google Scholar 

  • Canada MAB: 2000, Landscape changes at Canada's Biosphere Reserves, Environment Canada, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 56 pp.

    Google Scholar 

  • Canadian Nature Federation: 2002, Protecting Canada's birds and their habitat, Web site viewed on June 4, 2002, www.cnf.ca/bird/index.html

  • Cuthill, M.: 1995, An interpretive approach to developing volunteer-based coastal monitoring programmes, Local Environ. 5, 127–137.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dalton, S. E.: 2001, The Gwynns Falls Watershed: A case study of public and non profit sector behavior in natural resource management, Doctoral Dissertation, Milton E. Eisenhower Library, The John Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ecological Monitoring and Assessment Network Coordinating Office, 2002, Ecological Monitoring and Assessment Network: Monitoring biodiversity in Canadian forests, Environment Canada, Canada Center For Inland Waters, Burlington, ON, Canada, 10 pp.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ecological Monitoring and Assessment Network Coordinating Office: 2001, The Revised Ecological Monitoring and Assessment Network Coordinating Office proposal: Linking community-based ecosystem monitoring to local decisionmaking and policy development on sustainability, Voluntary Sector Initiative, Environment Canada, Canada Centre for Inland Waters, Burlington, ON, Canada, 25 pp.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ecological Monitoring and Assessment Network, 2002. Welcome to NatureWatch,Web Site viewed on June 4, 2002, www.naturewatch.ca/english/

  • Environment Canada: 2002, Long-term monitoring makes a difference, Wildlife Watchers Report on Monitoring, Issue 8, Spring 2002, Web site viewed on June 4, 2002, www.on.ec.gc.ca/wildlife/newsletters/watchers02-e.html

  • Gibson, R.B., 2001. Specification of sustainability-based environmental assessment decision criteria and implications for determining ‘significance’ in environmental assessment, Research and Development Monograph Series, Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency Research and Development Programme, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, pp. 46, Web Site viewed Jan. 03, 2003, www.ceaa.gc.ca/0010/0001/0002/Index_e.htm

    Google Scholar 

  • Long Point World Biosphere Reserve Foundation: 2002, Long Point Cooperation Plan to establish community based monitoring and environmental reporting, Long Point, Ontario, Canada, pp. 28.

  • Lukasik, L.: 2000, Next steps – What do you do when your monitoring efforts uncover an environmental problem, Key Note address, in: Final Report of a Workshop on Community Based Monitoring, Citizens’ Environment Watch, April 7–8, 2000, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

  • McLaughlin, L. and Hilts, S.: 1999, Monitoring accuracy and the decomposition of error committed by volunteers in a wetland wildlife monitoring program, in: Leading Edge Conference Proceedings, October 6–9, 1998, Burlington, ON.

  • O'Neill, H., M. McKim and Rainer, R.: 1995, Community-based water quality monitoring in T. Herman, S. Bondrup-Nielsen, J.H. Martin Willison and N.W.P. Munro (eds), Ecosystem Monitoring and Protected Areas, Proceedings of the Second International Conference on Science and the Management of Protected Areas, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, 447–453.

  • Roseland, Mark: 2000, Sustainable community development: Integrating environmental, economic and social objectives, Progress in Planning, 54, 73–132.

    Google Scholar 

  • Scott, F. W. and Herman, T. B.: 1995, The use of volunteers in ecological monitoring, in T. Herman, S. Bondrup-Nielsen, J.H. Martin Willison and N.W.P. Munro (eds.) Ecosystem Monitoring and Protected Areas, Proceedings of the Second International Conference on Science and the Management of Protected Areas, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, 416–423.

  • Sharpe, T., Savan, B. and Amott, N.: 2000, Testing the waters, Alternatives 26, 30–33.

    Google Scholar 

  • Simmons P. J.: 1998, Learning to live with NGOs, Foreign Policy, Fall 1998, 82–96.

  • Stadel, A. V. and Nelson, J. G.: 1995, The role of citizen participation in ecosystem monitoring, in T. Herman, S. Bondrup-Nielsen, J.H. Martin Willison and N.W.P. Munro (eds), Ecosystem Monitoring and Protected Areas, Proceedings of the Second International Conference on Science and the Management of Protected Areas, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, 447–453.

  • Stokes, P., Havas, M. and Bridges, T.: 1990, Public participation and volunteer help in monitoring programs: An assessment, Environ. Monitor. Assess. 15, 225–229.

    Google Scholar 

  • Treasury Board of Canada: 2001, Government of Canada and Voluntary Sector team up, Web site viewed on January 6, 2003, www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/media/nr-p/2001/0808-e.asp.

  • Vaughan, H., Brydges, T., Fenech, A. and Lumb, Ashok: 2001, Monitoring long-term ecological changes through the Ecological Monitoring and Assessment Network: Science-based and policy relevant, Environ. Monitor. Assess. 67, 3–28.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vaughan, H.: 2002, Ecological monitoring in service to society, presentation to Ecological Monitoring and Assessment Network 2002 National Science Meeting: Enhancing the Effectiveness of Ecological Monitoring, Aylmer, Quebec, April 10, 2002.

  • Watershed Report Card: 2003, Watershed Report Card Explained, Web Site, viewed on January 6, 2003, www.watershedreportcard.org/wrcexplained/index.htm.

  • Whitelaw, G.: 2002, Organizing community based ecological monitoring in Canada, Draft research report prepared for the Canadian Nature Federation and Ecological Monitoring and Assessment Network Coordinating Office in support of the Voluntary Sector Initiative Project ‘Linking Community Based Ecological Monitoring and Policy Development on Sustainability, February 2002, 98 pp.

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Whitelaw, G., Vaughan, H., Craig, B. et al. Establishing the Canadian Community Monitoring Network. Environ Monit Assess 88, 409–418 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1025545813057

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1025545813057

Navigation