To say that the Clean Annapolis River Project (CARP) is a veteran organisation in Nova Scotia’s watershed world would be an understatement – one of AWN’s long-standing community partners, CARP has been actively working on projects linked to the restoration, community engagement, and enhancement of the health of the Annapolis River watershed since 1990. From bringing ecologically sound knowledge and tools to the decision-making table, to engaging community members through innovative and educational ways, CARP is constantly working to improve the health of the Annapolis River watershed. And once you take a look at what they’ve been up, it’s safe to say that they continue to succeed in being a strong leader in protecting the health of NS waters.

With their hands dipped into over 5 water quality monitoring projects, CARP certainly had a busy 2018 field season. In partnership with Bluenose Coastal Action Foundation (lead) and ACAP Humber Arm, CARP is working on the Atlantic Canada Microplastic Research Project: a two-year research initiative aimed at quantifying microplastic distribution and concentration across the Bay of Fund, the Bay of Islands, and the LaHave River Estuary.

In another project, partnered with Eastern Charlotte Waterways and Dalhousie University, CARP has also been focusing on ocean acidification in the Annapolis River Basin. As the increase of C0₂ emissions have resulted in rapid changes in the acidity of Atlantic Canada’s waters, the organisation collected monthly coastal acidification samples in the Annapolis Royal while also collecting radium samples in the Digby Gut and Annapolis Basin.

On top of this, the busy NGO has been working with Eastern Charlotte Waterways to continue monitoring the Annapolis estuary. This estuary is unique in that the arrival of tidal saltwater mixes in with the freshwater from the Annapolis River, making it an interesting and complex environment to study. Some highlights from last year’s season include the selection of sample locations throughout 5 Bay of Fundy tributary watersheds, as well as the continuation of the work being conducted through the “Addressing Nutrient Runoff in Bay of Fundy Watershed” project. This new project aims at providing knowledge and tools to land use decision-makers in the Bay of Fundy through eutrophication indicator data being collected in the estuary.

In addition of all of these exciting projects, CARP continues to roll out its extensive volunteer-based Annapolis River Guardians water quality monitoring program. Being the longest running project for the organisation, the program has contributed to the collection of over 27 years’ worth of data on the Annapolis River. And if that isn’t impressive enough, the program has attracted over 150 volunteers, resulting in more than 4,500 water samples being collected and analysed.

Thank you for all that you do for the health of our waters, CARP; we are certainly looking forward to seeing what 2019 brings! If you’d like to learn more about what CARP is up to, check out their website, or give them a follow on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

By Jessie Smith