A Cost-Effective Enhancement for Canada’s Environmental Monitoring Network | Policy Brief

This policy brief by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) advocates for a shift from short-term, project-based grants to long-term core funding for Community-Based Water Monitoring (CBWM) in Canada. It argues that CBWM is a cost-effective and scientifically rigorous method to address significant gaps in Canada's water quality and flow data, which currently hinder watershed health assessments and risk management.

• Community-Based Water Monitoring (CBWM) is presented as a scientifically rigorous and cost-effective approach to collecting water quality data at the watershed scale, offering a return on investment greater than 3:1.
• Canada faces a critical lack of water data; 100 out of 167 watersheds are so poorly understood that they cannot be assigned a health score, and the number of flow-gauging stations has declined over the last 30 years.
• The current funding model for CBWM, which relies on competitive grants with 2–3 year cycles, is incompatible with the needs of long-term monitoring and has forced organizations to reduce data analysis and dissemination.
• The author recommends establishing a 5-year pilot project providing core funding to established CBWM organizations to enhance local capacity and create high-skill jobs in remote regions.
• Failure to invest in long-term monitoring may lead to economic risks, including the potential for certain areas of Canada to become uninsurable because insurers cannot assess risk without water data.

APA

International Institute for Sustainable Development (n.d.). A Cost-Effective Enhancement for Canada’s Environmental Monitoring Network | Policy Brief. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2021-11/investment-canadian-community-based-water-monitoring-brief.pdf

Chicago

International Institute for Sustainable Development. A Cost-Effective Enhancement for Canada’s Environmental Monitoring Network | Policy Brief. n.d. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2021-11/investment-canadian-community-based-water-monitoring-brief.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=International Institute for Sustainable Development |title=A Cost-Effective Enhancement for Canada’s Environmental Monitoring Network | Policy Brief |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2021-11/investment-canadian-community-based-water-monitoring-brief.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{internationalinstituteforsustainabledevelopmentndcosteffective, author = {{International Institute for Sustainable Development}}, title = {{A Cost-Effective Enhancement for Canada’s Environmental Monitoring Network | Policy Brief}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2021-11/investment-canadian-community-based-water-monitoring-brief.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }