Long-term Water Quality Monitoring for Lower Saskatchewan and Nelson River Basins

Environment and Climate Change Canada collected freshwater quality data for over 15 years at three monitoring sites. This dataset includes measurements for nutrients, metals, major ions, and other physical-chemical variables. The data supports the Lake Winnipeg Basin Initiative and informs regulatory decisions by the Prairie Provinces Water Board.

Use Cases

• Analyze long-term trends in nutrient concentrations based on the 15+ year monitoring period mentioned in the description
• Assess the effectiveness of remedial measures based on the stated purpose of tracking regulatory decisions
• Detect emerging water quality issues based on the monitoring program's objective to identify new problems
• Establish or validate water quality guidelines based on the dataset's stated use for guideline development

Strengths

• Data spans 15 years or longer, enabling robust trend analysis
• Covers multiple water quality variables including nutrients, metals, and major ions
• Collected by the authoritative national agency Environment and Climate Change Canada

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment
• Data is limited to three specific monitoring sites within the two river basins

Provenance

Source

Environment and Climate Change Canada

Collection Method

Long-term freshwater quality monitoring at fixed sites

Time Range

15 years or longer

Freshness

Last updated 2026-05-07 19:11:50.806010; freshness should be verified

Geography

Three sites in the Lower Saskatchewan and Nelson River basins, Canada