The 2023 Water SOURCE Symposium

The 2023 Water SOURCE Symposium is a meeting about adapting to the challenges of and exploring opportunities for water management in a changing climate on Prince Edward Island. Our objective is to share recent scientific research and connect people who are working on expanding our knowledge of water and policy on PEI and the Southern Gulf of St Lawrence region.

  • Date: Tuesday, 7 November, 9:30 am – 4:30 pm. 
  • Location: Andrew Hall 142, University of Prince Edward Island, Charlottetown Campus

Sessions will introduce participants to new research on Offshore Groundwater resources in the Continental Shelf surrounding PEI (the SOURCE project) and discuss possible impacts on PEI’s natural resources and groundwater supplies. It will also emphasize the urgent need to adapt to climate change impacts and explore policies for maintaining water security, managing risks, and promoting sustainability.

Preliminary Schedule:

Tues. 7 November
Time ActivityPresenter
9:30 –
10:00 am		RegistrationUPEI GeoREACH Lab
10:00 –10:10 amTerritorial Acknowledgement Dr. Judy Clark, UPEI Elder-in-Residence
10:10 –
11:15 am		Session 1: PEI’s Water Futures
Welcome and Objectives
SOURCE Project Overview
PEI Water Management
Q&A 		Dr. Joshua MacFadyen, ACLC, UPEI
Donna Miller-Ayton, Island Studies, UPEI
Dr. Vittorio Maselli, Earth and Environmental Sciences, Dalhousie University
Bruce Raymond, Manager, Water and Air Monitoring Section. PEI Department of Environment, Energy & Climate Action (EECA)

11:15 – 11:30 amBreak
11:30 am –
12:30 pm		Session 2: Coastal science
SOURCE Project Results
Coastal and inland groundwater resources on PEI
Q&A, Feedback exercise		Dr Irena Schulten, Earth Science, Dalhousie
Dr. Barret Kurylyk, Civil and Resource Engineering, Dalhousie University

12:30 –
1:30 pm		Lunch
1:30 – 2:30 pmSession 3: Policy and water
International governance
Policy development, PEI
Q&A
Indigenous governance
Indigenous knowledge
Q&A
Dr. Renée Martin-Nagle, A Ripple Effect
Andrew Halliday, PEI EECA and Island Studies, UPEI
Randy Angus, Mi’kmaq Confederacy of PEI
Dr. Patrick Augustine and Margaret Augustine, IKERAS, UPEI

2:30 – 2:45 pmBreak
2:45 –
4:00 pm		Session 4: Managing water
Irrigation research
Primary sector demand
Urban demand
Protecting watersheds
Q&A, Feedback exercise		Dr. Yefang Jiang, AAFC
Dr. Michael van den Heuvel, Biology, UPEI
Directors, PEI Industry Groups
City of Charlottetown
PEI Watershed Alliance

4:00 – 4:30 pmSession 5: Participant Feedback, Closing Remarks and SummaryDr. Joshua MacFadyen, ACLC, UPEI
Donna Miller-Ayton, Island Studies
4:30 pmEnd

Resources: