We’re very excited to have Heather Loomer join the Nashwaak Watershed Association team as our new project manager. We have no shortage of great ideas for Heather to tackle in the coming year!
Heather is eager to work with the passionate and motivated group of people at the NWAI as well as become more involved in the Nashwaak River as it is at the heart of many issues related to resource management and development in New Brunswick. She is very excited about having the opportunity to enhance the vision of the organization and her experiences have given her a good foundation to start work as the new project manager for NWAI. You may see Heather paddling down the Nashwaak or biking along the trails in her spare time. We can’t wait to see what Heather has planned for the Association!
We asked Heather a bit more about herself, her plans and her dreams for NWAI:
Aliza: Can you tell me a little about yourself?
Heather: I have always been contentiousness of environmental problems but became interested in local issues at the end of my BSc. In 2005, I was given the opportunity to do an honours project working with ACAP Saint John (a local NGO) to understand if the practice of discharging raw sewage into Saint John waterways was likely to contaminate local fish and threaten public health. My Masters research looked at the use of nutrients from treated waste waters into river food chains (i.e. stream bugs and fish) in southern Ontario. This experience and later work with the Grand River Conservation Authority instilled in me the complexity of water quality issues in rivers and importance of having designated people to advocate for the protection of individual rivers. My PhD research looks at the effect of agricultural land use on the function of New Brunswick. I think my biggest gain, (relevant to my position with the NWAI) from this experience was an appreciation of all the factors (i.e. weather, people, and logistics) that influence the outcome of a project. Together I think these experiences give me a good foundation to start work with the NWAI
Aliza: Why did you want to work for the NWAI? What are you excited to work on?
Heather: A lot of great work has been done to establish some strong projects (i.e. the tree nursery, the Greenway and educational projects) and gather motivated and passionate people to support the organization. I feel the organization is at a point where it has a strong foundation and the momentum to grow and I am excited about having the opportunity to bring the vision for the organization into fruition. The Nashwaak is a beautiful river at the heart of many issues related to resource management and development in New Brunswick and I am, both excited and nervous, to be responsible for making the voice of that ecosystem heard.
Aliza: What do you like to do in your free time? What else are you passionate about?
Heather: I am happiest when I am outside and over the years have developed a collection of outdoor sports I am passionate about pursuing at every opportunity. Typically, I rock climb in the summer and ski in the winter but take advantage of opportunities for outdoor adventures on foot, by bike or by paddle. As long as I get to spend my free time away from city life, I am not picky. I think it is my personal connection to natural spaces that makes me so motived to take the challenges of this new position with the NWAI.