Our Changing Watershed: Is it Time to Give the Muskoka River Legal Rights?
Shifting the balance between us and the rest of nature. By Dr. Peter Sale. Birds Mill Dam in Bracebridge. Photo by Neil Hutchinson The Muskoka River Watershed is mostly in…
Our Changing Watershed: Living with Flood Waters
A floodplain is a risky area to build. By Dr. Neil Hutchinson. Floating home in Yellowknife Bay, N.W.T., where annual water level fluctuations are 20 to 40 centimetres and 1.5…
Our Changing Watershed: How Nature Works to Avoid Flooding in Muskoka
By Kevin Trimble. We often don’t think about floods until we see torrents of water roaring over our dams and waterfalls, down our big rivers, or raising water levels in…
Our Changing Watershed: A Layman’s Guide to Spring Flooding in Muskoka
What happened in 2023? By Chris Cragg. The extreme spring flooding we saw in 2019 and 2013 does not happen every year. It only happens when a sequence of adverse…
Our Changing Watershed: Understanding the threats facing our watershed
What kind of place do we want Muskoka to become? By Dr. Neil Hutchinson. Our Muskoka, and our watershed, are changing. From the forests and wetlands in the upper reaches…
What is the Muskoka Watershed Council?
By Peter Sale, MWC Chair. The otter on the Muskoka Watershed Council logo has been cavorting across Muskoka for over 20 years, yet people remain confused. MWC is not part of…
Reflections on Earth Day and Muskoka
By Peter Sale. April 22nd will be the 52nd Earth Day. Starting in 1970 with teach-ins across US campuses, Earth Day became global in 1990. It is a day to pause…
A Community Round Table is needed for Integrated Watershed Management
Muskoka Watershed Council is seeking individuals interested in joining the Community Round Table on Integrated Watershed Management for the Muskoka River Watershed. You can become a part of the process…
Restoring Muskoka shorelines and integrated watershed management
By Cassie Emms Did you know that the Muskoka River Watershed has approximately 6,800 kilometres of shoreline? To put that in perspective, it equates to driving from Ottawa to Calgary…
Texas Freeze and Muskoka Flooding: What We Can Learn From Recent Events Down South
By Peter F Sale. Photo Credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images Muskoka has a worsening flood problem: conditions often conspire to produce damaging spring floods, such as those in 2019 and 2013. Our…
Current planning is not doing enough to protect the Muskoka River Watershed
Nor is this planning helping the economy in our changing environment. By Kevin Trimble. Aerial view of Huntsville. This article is part of a series to show how Integrated Watershed…
Drawdown Ecology – why can’t we just lower the lakes?
By Kevin Trimble. Walleye. Source: Eastern Georgian Bay Stewardship Council Pressure is mounting in Muskoka to push water levels lower. The Muskoka River Water Management Plan (MRWMP) calls for a…