October Newsletter

Newsletter - October 15, 2023

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TOPICS INCLUDE:

Trees Reduce Energy Consumption
AIS Spotlight - Spiny Waterflea
Aquatic Species at Risk
Welcome to the Team - New Staff
October Employee Recognition!

NEWSLETTER

October - 2023

Using Trees to Be Energy Efficient

We all know how important trees are to our everyday lives – they improve the air quality, sequester carbon, conserve water, preserve the soil and support wildlife. Did you know that trees can also decrease energy use and emissions associated with power plants? This also means they can help you decrease your energy bill!

By planting trees – whether it is in an urban setting or around your own farm yard – you create shade. Shaded areas are cooler than unshaded areas. As a result, your air conditioning costs can see a reduction of up to 30% (https://www.earthday.org/5-reasons-we-need-trees-for-a-healthy-planet/).

In Saskatchewan, we tend to use heat more than air conditioning, because of our short summers, so it is important to point out the benefits of trees in the winter too. Planting trees, especially coniferous trees that keep their foliage throughout the year, plays an important role blocking the cold winter winds.

It is important to strategically plant trees around your home and yard to maximize the potential benefits of trees for your energy consumption. For example, trees that are planted on the south and west-facing side of buildings are especially effective in the summer, because of the intensity of the sun at these points.

Each spring, SAW sells tree seedlings as part of the Saskatchewan Tree for Life Program. This is a program that helps raise funds for the work SAW does around the province. We chose this as a fundraiser because of the benefits of trees for everyone! This spring, consider purchasing a tree through our Tree for Life Program to support our programming, help reduce your energy bill, provide habitat for wildlife, help clean the air and so much more!

The Saskatchewan Association of Watersheds (SAW), with support for Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), is developing watershed-based climate change adaptation plans for Saskatchewan. Planning for the Northeast Watershed District engagement meetings has started, and a meeting date and location will be finalized soon. If you are interested in attending a meeting in the Northeast watershed district, please contact Samantha or Alyssa at ccap@saskwatersheds.ca.

Aquatic Invasive Species Spotlight:

Spiny Waterflea

Around 1982, a new aquatic invasive species (AIS) was detected in Canada – the Spiny Waterflea (Bythotrephes longimanus). Like many AIS, the flea came from Eurasia into the Great Lakes by way of the ballast water of cargo ships. Since it was first reported, it has infested all the Great Lakes and several inland lakes in Ontario and to the west, including Lake Winnipeg and Cedar Lake, in Manitoba.

Spiny water fleas are small – approximately 1.5 cm in length. They have a single black eye, branching antenna, an abdomen that has four pairs of legs and an egg pouch on the top of their abdomen. They also have a tail that makes up a little over half of their body length. Their tails have 1 to 4 pairs of barbs on it, which they use to defend against predators.

Spiny water fleas live in fresh waterbodies with colder temperatures but can tolerate warmer water temperatures too – up to 30°C. They reproduce sexually and asexually, making them very prolific. Eggs are released from the female where they stay dormant over winter, until water rises above 4°C. The dormant eggs can also survive the digestive tract of fish!

Once this invasive flea becomes established in a waterbody, it can have detrimental effects. Spiny Waterflea consumes zooplankton – which are at the bottom of the food chain – reducing food supply for species higher up the food chain. Another issue with the Spiny Waterflea is that it gets caught in fishing equipment and can make it difficult to reel in fishing lines.

Because of their size, Spiny Waterflea are sometimes difficult to see. They can be moved from waterbody to waterbody in toys and equipment. As well, the barbs on the flea’s tails also gives the potential to get tangled up on ropes, nets, and other items. Currently, there are no control or eradication methods, making prevention essential!

For more information, use the links below!

Information about the Spiny Waterflea

Information on AIS Prevention

Information on Cleaning Your Gear

Aquatic Species at Risk

Quite often, the focus of species at risk is on terrestrial species, but did you know that in Saskatchewan there are several fish that are considered at risk to some degree? Three of these species include the Bigmouth Buffalo (Ictiobus cyprinellus), the Mountain Sucker (Catostomus platyrhynchus) and the Plains Minnow (Hybognathus plactitus).

The Saskatchewan – Nelson River population of the Bigmouth Buffalo is considered Special Concern. This fish species is found in the Qu’Appelle River Basin. Its population has seen a decline, partially due to the elimination and degradation of spawning habitat, which in turn leads to a decrease in its capacity to reproduce.

The Milk River population of Mountain Sucker, which is also known as the Plains Sucker, is considered to be a Threatened species. A few of the threats to this species include the loss and degradation of habitat that comes from agricultural, commercial, and industrial land uses, as well as water extraction.

The Plains Minnow is also considered to be a Threatened species. Due to its method of reproduction, the plains minnow requires greater than 100km of flowing water to complete the incubation and hatching of its eggs. Threats to its population is the fragmentation of rivers by dams and the consequences of the dams - the changing of habitat.

As is common with species at risk, the major threat to populations includes some sort of habitat loss or the decrease in habitat quality. This may seem quite dismal, but with some changes to different agricultural practices, landowners can easily do their part in ensuring habitat is pristine on their land, giving these fish species a chance to continue for generations.

For more information on aquatic species at risk, visit

https://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/species-especes/sara-lep/identify-eng.html?province=Saskatchewan#speciesTable

Welcome to the Team!

We would like to welcome two staff to the SAW team!

Jessica Morland - Administration

Jessica was born and raised in Moose Jaw, SK and attended the University of Regina, receiving a B.A. in Geography that focused on hydrology and a Certificate in Sustainability. As she convocated in 2020, and had her second child, rather than finding work during the pandemic, she chose to continue her education. Recently, having received her Masters in Water Security from the School of Environment and Sustainability at the University of Saskatchewan. She has a love for animals and wildlife, and enjoys spending time with her kids and family. Hobbies include finding terrible puns/jokes, speed reading, and crocheting, which she ends up frogging (undoing) just to start over 5 more times.

Ryan Rutko - Southwest District Manager

My name is Ryder Rutko, originally from Mossbank, Saskatchewan. I will be responsible for the Southwest District, spanning from the Alberta border to Moose Jaw and south to the US border. I have a Masters of Science in Biology from the University of Regina, where my research looked at the population structure of Yellow Perch in Lake Huron. Most recently, I worked as a Fish and Wildlife Biologist for the Government of Alberta. I will be heavily involved in groundwater testing, Prairie Watershed Climate Program applications, Species at Risk monitoring, and ongoing Aquatic Invasive Species work across the province. In my personal time, I enjoy fishing, hunting, camping, and weightlifting.

October Employee Recognition!

Jenn is an excellent reviewer. She is extremely organized, timely, and has amazing problem solving skills. I am nominating Jenn because she goes above and beyond to make the peer reviewing process more efficient.