Indian Time - A Voice from the Eastern Door

Save The River, Upper St. Lawrence Riverkeeper, and River Institute of Cornwall, Ontario will co-host a Riverkeeper Volunteer Training and Interpretative Paddle on Saturday, June 23 from 10am to 1pm at Gray’s Creek Conservation Area in Cornwall, Ontario.

The program will feature a one-hour training session where participants will learn how to monitor and report changes in St. Lawrence River health indicators such as signs of pollution, harmful algal blooms, invasive species, threatened and endangered species, and wildlife die-offs. Following the training session, there will be a two-hour kayaking excursion where participants will use their Riverkeeper guidebooks to look for indicators of River health.

To participate in the kayaking portion of the program volunteers must bring their own kayak, life jacket, and whistle. Interested individuals who would like to be trained as Riverkeepers but are not interested in the kayaking excursion are welcomed to attend just the one-hour training session at 10 am.

Pre-registration is required; to register contact Karen Cooper at River Institute (613-936-6620 x229 or kcooper@riverinstitute.ca). Registration fee is free but spots are limited. The program will be held at Gray’s Creek Conservation Area at 18045 County Road 2, Cornwall, Ontario. In the case of inclement weather, the program will be re-scheduled for Sunday, June 24.

Over the past ten years Save The River has trained over 1,000 adults and students as Riverkeeper volunteers who help protect the St. Lawrence River by serving as the frontline “eyes and ears” monitoring the health of the River. If your club, service organization, or neighborhood association would like to host a Riverkeeper Training Program contact Save The River Program Manager, Patricia Shulenburg (315-686-2010 or patricia@savetheriver.org).

For 40 years Save The River has been the leading grassroots environmental advocacy organization fighting for the ecological integrity of the St. Lawrence River. Save The River takes an active role in River policy issues by engaging decision makers, community leaders, residents, visitors and volunteers to make positive change. Every year Save The River works with educators in school districts in the watershed to educate 1,000+ students in a place-based curriculum that stresses age appropriate aspects of stewardship.