Dorset Environmental Science Centre

Ontario has 200,000 lakes and millions of kilometres of streams. These water bodies are vital to Ontario’s cultural heritage and economy. The Ministry of The Environment, Conservation and Parks have a responsibility to protect these waters. We do this by understanding their health, how that health changes over time, and what’s causing the changes.

The Dorset Environmental Science Center (DESC) monitors lake and river health using things that are simple to observe. Monitoring the different aspects of physical limnology, hydrology, water chemistry and aquatic ecology helps us understand the range of natural conditions which we use to measure the change in Ontario’s lakes and the growing impacts of climate change. This work gives us valuable information about our water to help inform policy and other management activities.

DESC operates in collaboration with many government organizations, non-governmental organizations, universities and colleges. Through monitoring and research, we collaborate to protect Ontario's inland waters.