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Riverwatchers Hope Cadieux-Ledoux
(Pontiac), Mike Ryan (Fitzroy) and
Pat Tait with Delphine Hasle,
Outreach Director for the Ottawa
Riverkeeper Organization, and
Meredith Brown, the Riverkeeper.
Some of Pat Tait’s most peaceful
moments have been spent alone in her
kayak, gliding across the glass-like surface
of the Ottawa River, the sounds of
nature swishing and stirring in the
background.
Pat, 58, admits that these moments
can be few and far between. But that’s
what she loves about the river. “The
reason it intrigues me is that it is totally
unpredictable,” she says. “Absolutely
unbelievable storms come down the
river with little warning.”
Pat and 24 other people are
Ottawa Riverwatchers. They are the
eyes and the ears of the Ottawa
Riverkeeper and advocates for the
largest freshwater ecosystem in the
world, a globally significant river that
runs from Temiskaming to Montreal.
Pat Tait is the Chat Falls Riverwatcher.
The Riverwatchers and three stewardship
groups — Friends of the
Gatineau, Friends of the Tay and
Friends of the Kipawa — are volunteers
who reside along the river from
Fort Williams/Petawawa to Montreal
and are familiar with a specific section
of the river or tributary.
“Twenty of the 25 Riverwatchers
are more than 50 years old,” estimates
Delphine Hasle, Director of Outreach,
Ottawa Riverkeeper. “Older volunteers
aren’t afraid to raise their voices, and
they bring with them the skills and
experience that we need to understand
and protect the Ottawa River.”
Most often individuals join the
Riverwatch program because they have
a concern and want to know how to
help out. “Most see the same issues
over and over,” says Delphine. “We
develop the tools to help them make a
difference at the local level.”
Riverwatchers observe the river,
spending time on or near it, and identify
the activities in their local communities
that may have an impact on it. They
are often active in their community, listening
to the concerns of others and taking
action when appropriate. Their contributions
are accentuated by the observations
of a group of pilots, paddlers and
scuba divers who view the river from
above, at the surface and from below.
Observational data offers the
Riverkeeper an opportunity to see what
commonalities there are throughout the
watershed. While the water quality is better
today than it was 30 years ago,
Delphine cautions that it is still much
worse than it was 60 years ago. “We have
a volunteer in her ’60s who has been on
the river her whole life and has such an
incredible knowledge of it,” she explains.
Delphine and Riverkeeper
Meredith Brown are keenly aware of
the importance that storytelling,
informed observation and a lifetime of
knowledge can play in understanding
changes in the river. And they encourage
older adults to talk about their
river experiences with others.
According to Meredith, the
Riverwatcher program plays a significant
role in the work of the Ottawa
Riverkeeper. “The Riverkeeper’s mission
is to bring people together to protect
and promote the Ottawa River and
its tributaries,” she says. “The
Riverwatchers connect communities by
inspiring and motivating people to act
Due East Magazine • Page 26 • Summer 2008
Watching Over Us
Like our rivers, volunteer
riverkeepers connect communities
STORY AND PHOTOS BY KAREN SECORD
on behalf of the river.”
She adds, “It is at the community
level where we get a lot of important
work done. We have a really amazing
opportunity to be world leaders in
managing this incredible resource.”
THE OTTAWA
RIVERKEEPER PROGRAM
A volunteer board of directors governs
the Ottawa Riverkeeper. Two staff
members work alongside a number of
volunteer committees. Volunteer support
for the Ottawa Riverkeeper continues
to grow. In 2007, 258 people
offered their skills and time, contributing
almost 7,000 hours. (That was
1,500 more hours than in 2006.)
Pat and her husband, David, have
lived in a house on the edge of
Lavergne Bay near Fitzroy Harbour
since 1984. They are avid boaters and
between spring and fall spend as
much time as possible on or around
the river. Last July, accompanied by
Pat’s Riverwatch partner Mike Ryan
and joined by Riverwatchers from
Norway Bay and Pontiac Station, they
took Delphine and Meredith on an
investigative tour of their section of
the river.
Travelling between the Chat’s Falls
dam and the Cheneaux dam, they
explored the river, looking at the health
of its tributaries when they enter the
Ottawa River, noting agricultural areas
where cattle still roam in the water and
discussing the issues of shoreline development.
It is an annual pilgrimage that
the Riverkeeper tries to make in each of
the Riverwatch sections of the river.