About the Project

Project Summary

Note: Please consult our original program proposal created by Geneviève Carr of the University of Ottawa in January, 2003 for additional information on the rationale and design of our program.

Below is a summary of our 2003-2007 monitoring and education programmes. For a comprehensive description please visit the Research and Monitoring Programs and Community Education pages of this web site..

Project Rationale

Chelsea relies exclusively on groundwater for its very existence. The geography of the community – largely low-density housing built directly on the Precambrian Shield bedrock of the Gatineau Hills – precludes any chance of an economically viable municipal water or sewage system being developed.

There is a critical need for better understanding of water resources in Chelsea to inform planning and management decisions to ensure that we preserve our community’s high level of water quality and quantity into the future. As residents of a community fully reliant on groundwater, here is also a need for us to better understand our water stewardship responsibilities. The H2O Chelsea project was developed with research, monitoring and education initiatives that are geared to meet those needs.

Research and Monitoring Activities - Summary

(See detailed description >>)

The project is made up of several research and monitoring programs. They are: water quality testing of private wells, water quantity monitoring of private wells and water quality testing of lakes and streams.

Our science-based activities have been designed to provide water quality and quantity data that is compatible with that collected by provincial and federal environmental agencies. This allows us to compare the status of Chelsea’s water resources with those of urban, rural and wilderness areas in other regions of the province and country.

Research and Monitoring Activities

Name of Program	What is Analysed	Number of Stations/Wells	Number of Volunteers/Participants
Static Level	Water Levels in Private Wells	80	80
Well Water Quality	Water Quality of Private Wells	1300	1300
Lake Sampling	Water Quality	10 (Meech, Beamish and Kingsmere)	14
Stream Sampling	Water Quality and Quantity	38 (Meech, Chelsea, Fortune, Hayworth)	25
Water Survey of Residents	Water Quality and Quantity	1825	1250

Community Education - Summary

(see detailed description >>)

An important aspect of the H2O Chelsea project is our focus on community-based education. Our aim is to provide Chelsea residents with information and resources that will promote better water-stewardship practices. Past and future activities include: water-themed lecture series, a Water Fair to celebrate the United Nation’s World Water Day (March, 2003), presentations of our scientific activities and results, and a regular presence at local Chelsea events such as Earth Day and Chelsea Community Day.

Please contact us if you have an idea for an education initiative that you think would assist H2O Chelsea in promoting water-conservation in our community.

Education Initiatives

Activity	Purpose-Focus	Location-Venue
Lecture Series	Various Water Conservation Presentations by Visiting Specialists	Community Centres, Schools and Churches
Presentations of Results	Update Volunteers, Residents and Lake Associations About Sampling Results	Community Centres, Schools and Churches
Community Events	Public Education Regarding Project Activities, Upcoming Events, Well Testing Services and Volunteer Opportunities	Chelsea Community Day, Earth Day and United Nations World Water Day Fair
News Updates	Inform Chelsea Residents of Project Activities, Upcoming Events and Well Testing Services	Municipality of Chelsea’s Newsletter (Chelsea Express) and Flyers Sent to Residents
Water Kits	‘User-Friendly’ Tips and Resources for Managing your Septic System, Well and Property	Sent to each Business and Residence in Chelsea (in 2005)
Water Curriculum	Interdisciplinary Water Resource Curriculum to Compliment Existing Education Initiatives	Chelsea’s Grand Boisé and Chelsea Elementary Public Schools (in 2005)

Transfer to other Municipalities

Why reinvent the wheel? A key objective of the H2O Chelsea project is to transfer the program to other groundwater dependant communities in North America and around the world. We are fine-tuning our programs to ensure that our ‘Monitoring Program Package’ will be ‘user-friendly’ and easily adopted by citizen groups and municipalities who may not have the training or resources to design and implement their own program.

Please contact us if you are interested in establishing your own community-based water monitoring program.