When Does Registration Open?

Registration is scheduled to open in late Spring. Sign up for the mailing list to be notified once registration is open.

About the Registration Rates

All registrations received after Wednesday, September 21, 2016 will be processed ON-SITE. Space is not guaranteed for onsite/walk-in registrations.

NGO's (Non-Governmental Organization) and students carrying at least 50% of a full-time course load qualify for half-price registration rates. Students must include their student identification number on the registration form, where indicated, in order to receive a discounted rate.

All rates quoted are in CDN funds and are subject to 13% HST.

Space Availability

Seating at all concurrent sessions is limited and will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis as registrations are received. Session substitutions will only be allowed if space permits.

Attendee Substitutions

Attendee Substitutions are allowed by contacting the Registrar prior to the symposium.

What Your Registration Includes

Your 1 or 2-Day Package includes admittance to all Conference sessions, lunch and coffee breaks for the day on which you are registered.

Contact Information

General inquiries, contact:
Karen Anderson, Conference Coordinator
Phone: 1-888-274-1364 ext. 103
E-mail: karen@allsetinc.com

Microsoft Word document containing:

• Project Name
• Company or Organization Affiliation(s)
• Month and year constructed
• Brief description of the project (max 150 words)
• Location in lat and long format only (e.g. 43.858691, -79.314211)

JPG files of photos or graphics:

Maximum of 5 photos. Typical set of photos might include photos before, during and after construction.

• Include project name in JPG file name
• Embed a one-line description in the details property of the JPG file (see image below)
  

How to Submit

Please zip submission files (Word document and images) and email to livinglab@naturalchannels.ca for review by September 20, 2016. Questions should be directed to Hazel Breton at hbreton@toronto.ca.

Serge Metikosh, is a Sr. Fish Habitat Biologist and President of Fish Habitat Solutions Inc. with more than 40 years of experience as a Fish and Fish Habitat Biologist and as an environmental impact assessment practitioner. Before starting Fish Habitat Solutions Inc. in 2012, Serge Metikosh was a Principal and Senior Fish Habitat Biologist at Golder Associates Ltd in Calgary for 15 years. As a consultant, Serge Metikosh focus was on his clients with technical and strategic advice for obtaining regulatory approval for various resource development projects throughout Canada. He has been Project Manager and Discipline Lead on numerous pipeline, oil and gas, coal mining and diamond mining and has prepared Environmental Impact Statements and applications for authorizations under the Fisheries Act. This work included issue scoping, the design and implementation of baseline studies, analysis and reporting, development of mitigation strategies, determination of residual effects and development of Offsetting Plans. In addition to being involved with projects in the preconstruction and approval stages, Mr. Metikosh also participated in their construction and operation phases. Mr. Metikosh’s work in relation to the construction and operation phases of resource development projects focused on the implementation of mitigation measures for various aspects of construction, implementation of No Net Loss Plans, as well as the design and implementation of effects monitoring studies required as conditions of regulatory approval.

Prior to joining Golder Associates Ltd. in 1997 Mr. Metikosh was a Senior Fish Habitat Biologist with Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) in Burlington Ontario where he was responsible of the delivery of the Fish Habitat Management program in Ontario. He is familiar with the regulatory requirements of the Fisheries Act, DFO’s Policy for the Management of Fish Habitat (including the guiding principle of No Net Loss) and the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act. He was also instrumental during his time with DFO in promoting and supporting major science-based guidance documents for watershed planning and the Natural Channel Systems Initiative. Mr. Metikosh has kept up to date with changes in Federal legislation that have taken place over the last several years and continues to provide advice to his clients on policy and implementation issues related to the fisheries protection provisions of the amended Fisheries Act. He has developed guidelines and procedural manuals for DFO and other government and industry organizations related to the Fisheries Act and CEAA.

Colin Thorne is Professor and Chair of Physical Geography at the University of Nottingham. His educational background is in environmental sciences, civil engineering and physical geography. He has published 9 books and over 130 refereed journal papers and book chapters. To date, his work has nearly 8,000 citations, including one paper that has been cited over 800 times. He has an h-index of 44 and an i10-index of 99. During a career spanning four decades, he has held posts with UEA, Colorado State University, the University of London, USDA National Sedimentation Laboratory, USACE Waterways Experiment Station, NOAA Fisheries, and currently, the University of Nottingham. He is also a visiting Professor at Tsinghua University, China and an Affiliate Professor at both Portland State and Colorado State Universities.

Professor Thorne is an environmental scientist with expertise in erosion, sediment transport and sedimentation in natural, modified and managed rivers, particularly with respect to the restoration of lost river functions, form and habitat. Internationally, Thorne’s experience with rivers extends to the basins of the Awash, Brahmaputra, Clutha, Columbia, Ganges, Mekong, Mississippi, Missouri, Parana, Salado, San Juan, Toutle, Yangtze, and Yellow Rivers, including research on a number of the alluvial deltas associated with these watercourses.

Through his research and consultancy work, Thorne has acquired particular skills in expert knowledge elicitation, stakeholder engagement, multi-criteria analysis and risk assessment (qualitative and quantitative). He is adept at working with stakeholders in the co-production of knowledge and delivering key messages to non-specialist decision makers in ways they understand and can act on, as evidenced by uptake in the UK of the principles of ‘natural flood management’ and ‘working with natural processes’. He currently leads a 9-university consortium investigating the generation of multiple flood risk benefits using Blue-Green infrastructure (http://www.bluegreencities.ac.uk/bluegreencities/index.aspx).

Chester Watson is an Emeritus Professor of Civil Engineering and presently is a private consultant. His career spans industrial water supply, construction of municipal water and waste water conveyance and treatment, teaching advanced level University classes, short courses and conference lectures pertaining to stream restoration. He has lectured in the U.S., U.K., Canada, and China, and has written numerous publications.

Dr. Watson is an engineer with experience in fluvial morphology, erosion, and sediment transport in modified and managed watersheds and streams. Much of his career has been spent in the study and rehabilitation of incised stream channels caused by watershed modification and channelization, and an equal portion of his career has been in the study of large rivers, particularly the Mississippi river. He is presently engaged with an advisory role in a physical model of the drainage from Mount St. Helens.

Marc Gaboury has over 28 years of experience in fish habitat restoration and enhancement, environmental impact assessment, and research. He has worked throughout British Columbia, Yukon, Canadian prairies and eastern United States. He has worked cooperatively on research, impact assessment and restoration projects with First Nations in Manitoba and British Columbia, including Cowichan Tribes, Cree, Haida, Lheidli T'enneh, Huu-Ay-Aht, T'Sou-ke, Nisga'a Lisims Government, Okanagan Nation Alliance, Nuu‑chah‑nulth, and Uchucklesaht First Nations.

Marc has extensive experience in preparing integrated watershed restoration plans and the design and construction of fish habitat restoration structures. He has co-authored comprehensive restoration plans for the Okanagan, Englishman, Coldwater and Cowichan rivers in B.C. and designed specific treatments to restore stream habitats and watershed processes in another 58 watersheds in B.C. and 15 in Manitoba. He has also designed and constructed fishways for low head dams, as well as backwatering schemes for existing culverts to allow fish passage.

Marc is a Registered Professional Biologist with the College of Applied Biology of British Columbia.

The Educational

• The word Niagara comes from the word "onguiaahra" which means "a thundering noise".
• The Niagara Falls were created by glacier activity around 10,000 years ago
• Falls were formed when melting glaciers formed massive fresh-water lakes (the Great Lakes) one of which (Lake Erie) ran downhill toward another (Lake Ontario). The rushing waters carved out a river in their descent and at one point passed over a steep cliff like formation (the Niagara escarpment). From the original falls going over the Niagara Escarpment, the water began to wear its way back up the river. The path that it left is known today as the Niagara Gorge (a deeply-cut and very scenic river path).
• The Niagara Falls are made up of 3 waterfalls, the American Falls, the Bridal Veil Falls and the Horseshoe Falls.
• The Horseshoe Falls are the largest and the Bridal Veil Falls the smallest.
• The Niagara River flows at approximately 35 miles/hour (56.3 kilometers/hour).
• The Horseshoe Falls are 180 feet (57 meters) high and allow 6 million cubic feet (168,000 cubic meters) of water over the crestline every minute during peak daytime tourist hours (that is about a million bathtubs full of water every minute!).
• Although Niagara Falls isn’t the tallest waterfall in the world, it may be the fastest moving waterfall on the planet.
• The largest vertical drop is over 165 feet (50 metres).
• The 3 waterfalls combine to produce the highest flow rate of any waterfall on earth.
• Ice bridges form below the Falls when ice floes travel over the edge and collect at the base of the Falls.
• Currently, Niagara Falls wears its way back another approximately 1 foot/year.
• At the current rate of erosion, scientists believe that the Niagara Falls will be gone in around 50,000 years, luckily you still have time to see them!
• In March of 1848, the waters stopped flowing over Niagara's famous cliff when the Niagara River was plugged temporarily at the mouth of the river in Fort Erie, Ontario.
• Hydroelectric stations in the area divert less water during the summer when tourist numbers are high, ensuring a spectacular flow of water for visitors.
• Niagara Falls is not the highest waterfall in the world. There are actually about 500 waterfalls that are taller than Niagara. It’s actually the combination of height and large volume of water that makes Niagara Falls a great tourist destination.

Interesting Tidbits

• You are almost always guaranteed to see a rainbow if you’re on the Canadian side of the Falls.
• An "Old Scow" (a steel barge) remains stranded a few hundred meters above the Falls and has been marooned there since August 6, 1918 when a near tragedy was averted by three men who opened the dumping hatches of the barge to let water in and ground the out-of control boat.
• Niagara Falls is steeped in history and was one of the most popular and busiest New World visiting spot.
• The Niagara Falls are a source of hydropower, producing large amounts of electricity.
• Hydro Electricity generated in Niagara Falls at the Sir Adam Beck 1 and Sir Adam Beck 2 power stations from redirected waterflow serves the electrical needs of Southern Ontario and Western New York.
• Water is redirected from traveling over the Falls in order to drive large hydro-electric turbines that produce electricity for Southern Ontario and Western New York State.
• The Niagara Falls are visited by around 30 million people every year.
• The Niagara Falls State Park is the oldest state park in the United States (1885).
• About 28,000,000 (that’s 28 million!) liters of water travel down Niagara Falls every second.
• About 20% of the drinking water in the United States goes through and over Niagara Falls. Yup, you have most likely drank water that came from the Falls.
• Fish actually travel over the Falls. Don’t believe it? Visit the Cave of the Winds for $10. This place will prove the fact and you might even meet someone who has actually been struck by a fish on his journey down the Falls.
• Approximately 90% of the fish that travel down Niagara Falls survive. It is believed that the white foam from the rushing waters acts like a cushion for the fish traveling down the waters.
• One of the bloodiest battles of the War of 1812 took place on July 25, 1814 at Lundy's Lane in Niagara Falls, Ontario... A total of 7500 Americans and Canadians fought for six hours. At the end, 1,000 soldiers lay dead or wounded.
• One of the largest Butterfly Conservatories in North America has been added to Niagara's growing list of attractions.

Crazy Ones

• It is illegal (and not very smart) to go over the Niagara Falls.
• A number of people have tried it anyway, some survived, some were injured and some were killed.
• The first tightrope walker to cross the Niagara Falls did so in 1859.
• Blondin was a funambulist (tight-rope walker) who performed numerous crossings of the gorge in Niagara Falls during the mid 1800s.
• Blondin performed endless stunts on the high-wire, from crossing blindfolded to carrying a cooking stove and preparing an omelet on the high wire.
• Most spectacularly, was the stunt during which Blondin carried on his back Harry Colcord his 148-pound manager August 19, 1859.
• Annie Taylor "Queen of the Mist", a school teacher from Bay City Michigan was first person to travel over the Falls in a barrel on October 24, 1901.
• Since her feat, many stunt artists have challenged the mighty Falls usually in home-made barrel-like contraptions.
• In 1960, Roger Woodward was the boy who had survived a descent over the Falls after a boating accident above the Falls.
• In 2012 Nik Wallenda became the first person to cross the Niagara Falls by tightrope in 116 years. He did so after receiving permission from both the Canadian and United States governments, although he was required to carry his passport and present it on entry to the Canadian side of the falls.
• More recently, a couple of foolhardy individuals have attempted to survive a plunge over Niagara Falls in a kayak and a jetski - they both perished.

Information taken from the following sites:

https://www.niagarafalls.ca/living/about-niagara-falls/facts.aspx
http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/earth/niagarafalls.html
http://www.justluxe.com/community/top-12-most-interesting-facts-about-niagara-falls_a_1822789.php

Types of entertainment in the Niagara Region include - Events, Attractions, Winery and Brewery Tours, Night Clubs and Bars, Shopping, Movies, Restaurants, Sporting Events, Theatre, Fishing adventures, and more!

For more information, please visit following sites (this is not an exhaustive list, but will get you started):

• Trip Advisor - Top Ten Things to Do in Niagara Falls
• USA Today – Top 10

Niagara Falls Tourism:

• Things to Do
• Coupons
• Clifton Hill:
  • Top of Clifton Hill
  • Clifton Hill

Niagara Region Tourism:

• Niagara-on-the-Lake Tourism
• Tourism Niagara – Exploring Niagara Region
• Expedia.ca – Things to Do in Niagara

Niagara Falls – Zip line and Adventure Parks

• Canadian side - new this year – Zip line to the Falls
• US side – Niagara Falls adventure park

Niagara & Region - Wineries and Breweries

• Niagara Falls Wineries & Wine Tours
• Niagara Falls Tourism Wineries & Breweries
• Wineries of Niagara-on-the-Lake
• Niagara Wineries
• Winery Tours of Niagara

Niagara & Region Fishing Adventures

• Niagara Fishing Adventures
• Niagara River Guides Fishing Charters

Niagara & Region Shopping

• Niagara Falls Tourism Where to Shop
• Shopping in Niagara Falls
• Outlet Malls:
  • Canada One Brand Name Outlets
  • Outlet Collection at Niagara
  • Fashion Outlets of Niagara Falls (USA)

1. FLOW IN THE URBAN CONTEXT
   Advancing the understanding of flooding and flood risk management in the context of urbanization and associated land use changes. Examples include:
1. Urban systems challenges – floodplain encroachment
2. Headwater system protection / rehabilitation
3. Landowner expectations
4. Urban system connectivity and planning
5. Revising historical trends – is expropriation needed?
2. RIVER HYDRODYNAMICS AND SEDIMENT TRANSPORT
   Science and applied research into river mechanics and response mechanisms to known disruptors of the balance between flow and sediment.
1. Sediment transport in response to hydromodification
2. Time scale for rivers
3. Restoring for sediment supply deficiencies
4. Understanding erosion thresholds
5. Understanding channel forming flow
6. Impact of surrounding land use on sediment and erosion
7. Laboratory study of the complex flow and sediment interactions
8. Water quality considerations
9. Technological advances
3. ECOLOGICAL INTEGRATION
   Integration of floodplain dynamics, specific to ecological function and the interactions between flow stage and ecological productivity.
1. Riparian zone interactions
2. Effects of riparian vegetation on channel form and function
3. Hyporheic zone exchange
4. Designing to enhance stability
5. Post construction monitoring of riparian vegetation
6. Importance of choosing the right vegetation for the right spot at the right time
7. Management of invasive species
8. Effects of riparian areas on water quality

1. CONSTRUCTION
   Insights and innovation from the perspective of the construction industry. Methods, lessons learned, opportunities and challenges that promote the successful implementation of construction projects in valley corridor settings.
   1. Construction practices. Construction limitations
   2. Mitigating impacts during construction.
   3. Oil and gas – challenges working in / around watercourses
   4. Working in remote areas
   5. Erosion and sediment control BMPs
   6. Technological advances
2. NATURAL CHANNEL DESIGN
   Design tools, techniques and insights that advance the science and understanding of natural channel systems in the context of stream and river rehabilitation.
1. Technological advances
2. Detailed design of aquatic habitat creation and enhancement
3. Pre-design data requirements (biological, geomorphic, etc.) to suit NCD
4. Cost comparisons integrating natural channel design (C/B analysis or value added approach)
5. Maximizing what we can accomplish on a small budget
6. Rural natural channel design challenges and opportunities
7. Innovations in rehabilitation techniques
8. Field methods
9. Remote sensing for geomorphological purposes
10. Flow training tools
11. Precision technology for data collection
12. Main channel and floodplain linkages
3. AGRICULTURAL DRAINS
   Advancing the understanding of landuse, hydrology, sediment supply, and the regulatory environment as it pertains to agricultural settings.
1. Challenges and opportunities in applying NCD principles to agricultural drains
2. The economic case
3. Impact of agricultural practices on the resiliency of agricultural drains
4. Demonstration site promotion
4. DAM REMOVAL
   Dam removal examples and research into the evolutionary response of streams to dam construction and dam removal.
1. Stream response to low head dam removal
2. New opportunities for Natural Channel Design in Dam removal
3. Processes and permitting challenges specific to dam removal
5. DESIGNING FOR FISH HABITAT (ECO-HYDRAULICS)
   The integration of habitat-based design criteria into natural channel design projects
1. Technological advances
2. Interrelation between hydraulics and fluvial geomorphology in natural channel design
3. Water crossing design for fish passage
4. Eco-hydraulic modeling
5. Hydrology, water quality and habitat usage
6. Using natural materials in construction and design

1. GOVERNANCE AND ADVOCACY
   Challenges and opportunities generated by legislative and funding mechanisms in support of (or as a roadblock to) improvements natural channel science and application.
1. Innovative legislative drivers for successful projects
2. Innovations in funding models benefiting natural systems
3. Advocacy opportunities – NCI and beyond
4. Permitting process
5. Education and Awareness
2. ASSET MANAGEMENT / ECONOMIC ANALYSIS
   Insight into risk management surrounding waterways, as it applies to the built environment
1. Risk management
2. Issues of liability
3. What design storm is a new project supposed to withstand without damage. What is damage
4. Changes to the insurance industry

1. MONITORING
   Telling the story of restoration failure or success though post construction monitoring.
1. What’s been learned. Are we making a difference in urban systems
2. What’s been learned. Are we making a difference in rural systems
3. Geomorphic, biological, water quality
4. Meta-analysis – will it be helpful?
5. Remote sensing and precision data
2. MOVING FORWARD
   Knowledge gaps and opportunities for advancing knowledge of river science, ecology, engineering, land use planning as it pertains to successful project implementation.
1. Engineering for biologists 101
2. Biology for engineers 101
3. Remote sensing