Data Discovery in Vancouver
Swim Drink Fish is a big advocate for transparency. We believe that keeping people informed is fundamental in our pursuit of swimmable, drinkable, fishable water. That means informing the public when we’ve made a mistake.
We operate water quality monitoring hubs across the country – and it was not until recently that we began operating them as a national network where each hub’s operations are frequently reviewed to ensure that standards and procedures are being held to the same quality assurance protocols. By creating a network of hubs, we’re able to expand our knowledge and learn more about how to protect local water bodies.
During this process, we were able to identify an issue at our Vancouver Hub – from approximately early 2020 until the spring of 2022; our E. coli data had been overcounted, making some of our historical data at the hub uncredible. This is something we want to be transparent about. It is important to note that nobody's safety was put at risk.
This means there will be a noticeable lack of E. coli data in our 2022 Vancouver Community Science Recreational Water Monitoring Report; however, all of our other baseline data is still applicable and will be represented accordingly. These issues happen, and although we are not proud of it, we were able to catch this error because we now function as a community and a network. Moving forward, we are confident that we’ve created a cohesive process, and our E. coli data will be representative of that.
“As an organization, we’ve pushed all levels of government, industry, and individuals to be transparent and responsible about the impact we all have on our waterways and the health of them. It’s important we hold ourselves accountable to these measures. Being transparent works in many ways.” -Mark Mattson, President and CEO, Swim Drink Fish Canada
Our focus has always been on water literacy, and we will continue learning, sharing, and expanding our knowledge. We encourage other organizations and individuals doing the same type of work to reach out and join our community. Collaboration plays an integral role in creating a world where everyone has access to water that is swimmable, fishable, and drinkable. If you have any questions about our Standard Operating Procedures or Quality Assurance protocols, we encourage you to reach out to Isabel Fleisher, the National Manager of Water Monitoring Hubs at Swim Drink Fish: isabel@swimdrinkfish.ca.
We thank the community and our partners for their continued support, and we look forward to what the future holds.
