Shoreline Habitat Inventory Mapping (SHIM)

Lake Winnipeg Foundation Inc. (LWF), a charitable, non-government organization, was established in 2005 to promote the restoration and protection of Lake Winnipeg and its watershed. In 2010, the Lake Winnipeg Basin Stewardship Fund (LWBSF) presented an opportunity for the LWF to propose a project that would enhance research and monitoring capacity to assist in decision making for Lake Winnipeg. Based on an ecosystem assessment model developed by the Community Mapping Network in British Columbia (Mason and Knight, 2001; Mason and Booth, 2004) and applied to several provincial lakes, a proposal “Sensitive Habitat Inventory and Mapping of Foreshore Areas of Lake Winnipeg South Basin and Development of Shoreline Management Guidelines” was prepared by the LWF and submitted to the LWBSF.

With funding awarded by the LWBSF and additional support from Thomas Sill Foundation, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, and the Small Change Fund, the LWF coordinated the Lake Winnipeg SHIM project. The team of environmental specialists assembled by the LWF undertook field data collection, data analyses, report preparation, data product development, and project management and included: Terra Limnic Consulting (Winslaw, BC), Native Plant Solutions (DUC, Winnipeg, Mb), Aquatic Environmental Services (St. Andrews, Mb); Whelan Enns Associates Inc. (Winnipeg, Mb), Benson Fishers (Gimli, Mb), University of Manitoba, and Washington State University.
In addition to providing science-based information on Lake Winnipeg south basin shorelines, SHIM will help to locate point and non-point nutrient sources, identify priority aquatic ecosystems that support nutrient reduction and sequestration, and achieve overall nutrient load reductions to the lake, the ultimate goal of the LWBSF program. Scientific studies indicate that most nutrients to Lake Winnipeg come from sources closest to the Lake (State of Lake Winnipeg 1999 to 2007). Communities and infrastructure situated directly adjacent to Lake Winnipeg, pose significant risks to water quality from nutrient and contaminant loading and to fish and wildlife from shore habitat alteration, disruption, or destruction.

Creating a baseline inventory of existing Lake Winnipeg south basin shoreline conditions is the first step in preparing an integrated master plan for any future sustainable development options. All shoreline activities require that regulators have access to science-based information, to guide decisions for the protection, rehabilitation or development of shoreline areas. The Lake Winnipeg SHIM is a first attempt to provide some of this missing information.

温尼伯湖基金会有限公司（LWF），一家成立于2005年的慈善非政府组织，旨在推动温尼伯湖及其流域的恢复与保护。2010年，温尼伯湖流域管理基金（LWBSF）为LWF提供了一个提议项目的机会，旨在提升研究及监测能力，以协助温尼伯湖的决策制定。基于不列颠哥伦比亚省社区测绘网络（Mason和Knight，2001；Mason和Booth，2004）开发的生态系统评估模型，并应用于数个省级湖泊，LWF准备了一份名为“温尼伯湖南岸敏感栖息地调查与制图及海岸线管理指南开发”的提案，并将其提交给LWBSF。

在LWBSF的资助以及托马斯·希尔基金会、加拿大渔业和水产部以及小额捐赠基金的额外支持下，LWF协调了温尼伯湖SHIM项目。由LWF组织的环境专家团队承担了现场数据收集、数据分析、报告编制、数据产品开发以及项目管理等工作，团队成员包括：Terra Limnic Consulting（不列颠哥伦比亚省Winslaw）、原生植物解决方案（加拿大温尼伯，MB）、水生环境服务（MB省圣安德鲁斯）；Whelan Enns Associates Inc.（MB省温尼伯）、Benson Fishers（MB省Gimli）、曼尼托巴大学和华盛顿州立大学。

除了提供基于科学的温尼伯湖南岸信息外，SHIM项目还将有助于定位点源和非点源营养源，识别支持营养减缓和固存的优先水生生态系统，并实现总体营养负荷对湖泊的减少，这是LWBSF项目的最终目标。科学研究表明，温尼伯湖的大多数营养素来自湖畔附近的源头（1999至2007年温尼伯湖状况）。直接毗邻温尼伯湖的社区和基础设施，由于营养和污染物负荷以及岸边栖息地改变、干扰或破坏，对水质构成重大风险，并对鱼类和野生动物构成威胁。

建立现有温尼伯湖南岸条件的基线清单是准备未来可持续开发综合总体规划的第一步。所有岸边活动均要求监管机构有权访问基于科学的资料，以指导对岸边区域的保护、康复或开发决策。温尼伯湖SHIM项目是首次尝试提供这些缺失信息。