Research chair to focus on watershed research

Winnipeg, MB – Dr David Lobb has been appointed as Manitoba’s first-ever research chair in watershed systems, with a focus on developing new ways to clean up Lake Winnipeg.

“We congratulate Dr Lobb on his being named as this inaugural senior research chair in watershed systems at the University of Manitoba,” said Dr Digvir Jayas, University of Manitoba vice-president (research). “Dr Lobb and his colleagues at the university are well-positioned to address the issues of water quality, water policy and protection. There is a wealth of knowledge housed within the many faculties and departments that are currently conducting research in areas of water quality and stewardship. These researchers are dedicated to finding solutions to the complex problems facing our resources today and for the long-term sustainability of our world.”

The creation of the research chair at the University of Manitoba has been recommended by both the Clean Environment Commission and the Lake Winnipeg Stewardship Board and is supported with funding from the Manitoba government of $1.25 million over five years.

The initial focus of Dr Lobb’s program will be to better understand how nutrients that cause algal blooms move so readily off Manitoba’s relatively flat prairie landscape and into streams, rivers and lakes, and to assist in identifying measures to prevent this from happening.

Dr Lobb is a professor in the department of soil science in the faculty of agricultural and food sciences at the University of Manitoba. He received his PhD (1998) in soil science from the University of Guelph. His research, teaching and extensive activities are in the areas of soil erosion, soil and water conservation, and sustainable agriculture.

His expertise in soil erosion and conservation has been sought by the International Atomic Energy Agency, the Food and Agriculture Organization, the World Bank and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development in addition to provincial and federal agencies across Canada.