Conservation
Our mandate is to protect the ecosystems that provide fresh water for humans and wildlife.
We own and steward over 300 acres of watershed, including including land near Maxwell Lake, the Larmour lands, and the St Mary Lake Watershed Nature Reserve.
Advocacy
We promote policies at the local and provincial level that protect the sources of drinking water. We identify potential harms to watersheds, and work with partner organizations and First Nations to mitigate these risks.
Research
We promote research to inform decision-making, and provide free access to all of our technical reports. Our freshwater catalogue empowers citizen scientists and compiles extensive volunteer-collected data on local water resources. We also support the Climate Adaptation Research Lab’s work at Mt. Maxwell.
Education
We help island residents reduce their water consumption and set up rainwater collection systems. Our short documentary film, Shaped by Water, highlights the importance of watersheds and our work in partnership with the Stqeeye’ Learning Society. We also offer educational programs for schools.
Over forty years of leadership
SSIWPS was founded in 1982 by five island residents: Sidney Filkow, Tom Gossett, Michael Larmour, Gail Secor, and John Crofton.
Since then, we’ve monitored public policy, lobbied decision-makers, won a major court decision, acquired significant watershed areas, shared research data, empowered citizen scientists, created a short documentary film, and produced learning resources for schools.
Today we continue to pursue our founders’ vision: to protect the sources of drinking water, promote research into water resources, and increase public awareness of the value of fresh water.