In 2019, The TCCBE applied for a Trillium SEED grant under the Green People category in collaboration with U-Links to launch a pilot project that would address the increasing needs of the local lake associations for regular benthic biomonitoring. The pilot project also facilitated vital
field experience for students enrolled in community-based research courses under the Community Based Education (CBE) program.

The evaluation was completed by systematically reviewing the project records to determine progress towards milestones; first-person observation of program implementation; conducting a series of interviews and online surveys with stakeholder groups that focused on whether any changes should be made to the existing project design in place and whether the evidence
supports an application for funding support; and reviewing the literature in place that supports the project design.

The specific questions that were asked of each group (see Appendix 1) attempted to gauge the progress towards objectives for the pilot submitted in the application for the Trillium SEED Grant.
A total of thirteen stakeholders, including lake association members, students, U-Links staff and faculty from Trent University and Fleming College were surveyed or interviewed. The interviewees represented a range of involvement with the project.

The report concluded that TCCBE and U-Links have made significant and positive progress on every milestone they set out to achieve, much of it earlier than originally anticipated, and that there is confidence amongst stakeholders in the effectiveness of the model. Moreover, the implementation of this project led to some important quality assurance decisions as well as some new partnerships that will ensure the model will continue to align with best practices while scaling up to meet the research needs of community organizations in multiple geographic areas.
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Natasha Prytulka]]> David Beresford, Biology]]> Joseph Gentile
Hannah Williams
Stephanie Barrie
Julia Herault]]>
Parker Garrod]]> Tom Whillans]]> Joshua Wyard]]>
Melanie Logan, Fleming College School of Environment and Resource Sciences]]>
Ontario: A Baseline Study Utilizing
Benthic Macroinvertebrates]]>
Association. We completed a benthic macroinvertebrate assessment of the lake
following Ontario Benthic Biomonitoring Network (OBBN) protocol using samples
collected in the fall of 2022. The goal of this assessment is to contribute to a 5-year
study establishing the baseline conditions of Bob Lake and the benthic invertebrate
communities that inhabit it. Only one year has been completed prior to the submission
of this report, which accounts for the second year. The results of this research will
contribute to lake monitoring data and advise the Bob Lake Association on future lake
management decisions. Using the random teaspoon sampling method, we identified
100 invertebrates from each replicate of the three sites sampled. We then evaluated the
results of each site using several indices of species diversity and richness. Our
evaluation shows that the lake conditions are within a normal range for the Haliburton
area, but the remaining three years of this study must be completed to effectively
confirm these results.]]>
This summary seeks to provide stakeholders with a preliminary indication of the health of Kabakwa Lake (hereafter, Kabakwa). This is done though explaining what the benthos community assemblage infers about the current water quality of Kabakwa. The objectives for 2023 include (1) collecting benthos through a modified OBBN sampling protocol; (2) identifying collected benthos in lab and sorting them into OBBN groupings; (3) quantifying each group using metrics to determine abundance, richness, and diversity; (4) interpreting the results to provide an assessment of Kabakwa’s water quality. ]]>