Background information:

No previous water quality study of Kesagami River has been conducted. Currently, Kesagami River, which is entirely within Kesagami Provincial Park in Ontario, is classified as a non-operating wilderness park. The park is 55, 997 ha in size and is commonly used for fishing, camping, and canoeing. Although there is abundant wildlife including bears, wolves, otters, moose, and woodland caribou, no hunting is permitted within park boundaries. In Ontario, there is an ongoing water quality monitoring network managed by the Ontario Ministry of the Environment. Although this network is predominantly in South-eastern Ontario and not in the vicinity of the Kesagami River, the baseline water quality data collected using uniform methods and modern high-tech instruments within this network has been valuable in comparison to my water quality data for Kesagami River. Critical to this study was an assessment of how land use affected water quality. I also investigated the effect of changes in the natural environment on water quality; this which necessitated a detailed assessment of the geology and geomorphology of the watershed.