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Tim Boudreau (President)
I
obtained my Master of Science Degree from the University of Guelph
in Environmental Biology/ Toxicology in 2003. I have amassed
significant experience while going through graduate school:
academically, professionally and personally. Being able to apply
my skills and experience to a successful job has been very
rewarding. I still haven't saved the world from environmental
Armageddon but I'm working on that. Currently, I work for Stantec
Consulting Ltd. as an Ecotoxicologist/ Aquatic Biologist in the
Environmental Management Group. We specialize in all aspects of
biological monitoring, impact/ risk assessment and aquatic habitat
surveys for clients in industry, government and even academia. I
am also involved with the federal Environmental Effects Monitoring
Program with clients in mining, pulp and paper, and
municipalities.
The main aspect that I love about my job is the nice
balance between both office work (during the cold, snowy winter
months) and field-work (in the warm summer/fall months) where I
often get to travel to remote locations in Canada. 2007/08 marks
my 9th year as a member of SETAC-Laurentian and I am presently the
President of the organization. I have been a Member of the Board
for eight (8) years now and love every minute of it. Past
Positions Held include: newsletter editor - member of the board,
treasurer, vice president, dinner meeting, sponsorship, AGM, and
short course committee. The behind-the-scenes, organizational
spirit of members of the Board that allows for a smooth ride for
Chapter members is very rewarding. Bringing sound science and hot
topics to within the Laurentian Chapter's reach allows us to grow
as a scientific community. I enjoy being a cog (not the squeaky
one) that helps motor our Chapter forward. I have met many
colleagues and friends through this organization and continue to
grow along with the Chapter. I look forward to the future.
Ève Dussault (Vice President)
I obtained a bachelor's degree in Biology (Ecology) from the
Université de Montréal (1997), and Master's in Biology at the
University of Waterloo (2000). I am now finishing my PhD in
Environmental Biology/Toxicology at the University of Guelph,
under the supervision of Dr. Paul Sibley and Dr. Keith Solomon, where I am investigating the effects of pharmaceuticals and personal
care products on benthic invertebrates. I first met the SETAC
Laurentian crowd in Austin in 2003, and became a member of the
chapter. I started getting more involved with the Laurentian
Chapter in 2005, when the AGM was held in Burlington. Soon after,
I became the Membership Coordinator. I was also involved with the
reinstatement of the Southern Ontario Dinner Meetings, which have
been an immense sucess. I look forward to seeing where each new year
takes this dynamic group of people.
Natalie Feisthauer (Past President)
It
is with a bit of a shock that I realize that I have been a
member of Laurentian SETAC for more than 13 years and remember
our very first Laurentian Annual General Meeting in Ottawa. Wow,
how time has flown. During that period I was working on my
Master's degree in environmental biology and toxicology at the
University of Guelph, where I had also completed my
undergraduate degree. Following the completion of my studies I
worked briefly for the University of Guelph evaluating the
aquatic toxicity of surfactants and had the opportunity to
conduct this work in India. Following my brief sojourn in
foreign lands and with aquatic toxicology, I began work at ESG
International, an environmental consulting firm in Guelph,
Ontario (since acquired by Stantec Consulting Ltd.) as a
terrestrial ecotoxicologist. At Stantec I have been responsible
for the validation of the new terrestrial toxicity test methods
developed for Environment Canada and I also conduct ecotoxicity
assays and surveys on soils and soil organisms contaminated with
organic and inorganic compounds in support of site-specific
environmental risk assessments and soil quality guideline
development. As a member and board member of Laurentian SETAC
for a considerable period of time, I have seen the ebb and flow
of our Chapter. I think right now we are in an exciting period,
with renewed interest and energy from our membership and board.
I am privileged to have the opportunity to work with many
different interesting individuals who are enthusiastic in their
desire to exchange ideas and promote science to our membership
and to the scientific community as a whole.
Rebecca Dalton
I
graduated from the University of Western Ontario in 2003 with a
Bachelor of Science in Biology and Environmental Science.
I completed a Master’s at Carleton University in Biology
with a specialization in Chemical and Environmental Toxicology.
In January 2007, I began a Ph.D. at the University of
Ottawa in the same specialization, under the supervision of Drs. Céline
Boutin and Frances Pick.
My current research is focused on investigating potential
effects of pesticides and other stressors on primary producers in
river systems.
I am particularly interested in how herbicides influence
algal and macrophyte community structure.
I work at various levels of study from laboratory
experiments to field studies and am always eager to explore
different methodologies and statistical techniques.
When not busy at school, I enjoy reading, yoga, swimming,
volleyball, hiking, golf and spending time at the family cottage.
I became a member of SETAC in 2006 and look forward to
becoming more involved in the Laurentian Chapter.
Zahra Galehdar
Currently, I am employed with the Pest
Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) of Health Canada as a Senior
Evaluation Officer for the Science Development Section of the
Environmental Assessment Division. I have been with the PMRA for
almost ten years and contribute significantly in the critical
scientific evaluation/analyses and conclusions on environmental
fate, environmental toxicology, risk assessment and risk
mitigation of pesticides, liaises with industry on environmental
issues related to pesticide, scientific information/advice to
researchers and industry on the acceptability of proposed studies,
contributing to reports and recommendations on environmental
issues, writing correspondences, scientific articles, review
summary and technical briefings, developing new protocol and
methodologies for the evaluation process and proposals for
legislative, policy and regulatory amendments, acting as agency
observer/representative in national and international fora, and
training and mentoring new evaluators. During my career in PMRA I
had the opportunity to Act as a section head for almost a year,
which I gained extensive experience in managerial skills. I have
two Master degrees in Ecology and Environmental toxicology. My
Master research pertained to the “Effects of 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T
herbicides on nitrification cycles in the polluted water” and
“Effects of nitrogen fertilizers on the rhizosphere biochemistry
of the winter wheat”.
Nilima Gandhi
I
am a professional engineer (P.Eng.), currently working on my Ph.D.
in the department of Chemical Engineering and Applied Chemistry at
the University of Toronto. I
received both my B.A.Sc and M.A.Sc. degrees in Chemical
Engineering, collaborative program in Environmental Engineering,
from the University of Toronto.
My master thesis work, under the supervision of Prof.
Miriam Diamond, focused on the understanding of contaminant
(organics and metals) movement and their fate in natural aquatic
(both temperate and arctic) environments.
As a result, I developed mathematical models to estimate
the extent of contamination in various environmental media using
the engineering and hydrodynamic principles of environmental
modelling.
I also worked as a Research Associate for projects that are
related to the environmental assessment of surface water
contamination and ecological risk for more than one sites across
North America and Europe.
I have worked in collaboration with many government
agencies, e.g. MOE, EC, NWRI, DFO, USEPA, USGS, and consulting
companies, e.g. CH2M Hill, Gartner Lee Ltd. and MDA Consulting,
for my projects.
I have been actively involved with other organizations
(e.g., Chemical Institute of Canada) and have participated in
activities of both parent and local chapter of SETAC.
I value the important contributions of the members of
professional societies in propagating the science and knowledge
through active communication.
I hope to bring in my previous experience to promote
participations of local members of SETAC.
I look forward to working with other board members, who
have similar visions for the SETAC Laurentian chapter.
Jonathan
Hill
I received my undergraduate degree from
Queen’s University in 2001 in Biology.
After graduation, I analyzed fish tissue and water from
lakes across Ontario for mercury with the St. Lawrence River
Institute of Environmental Sciences in my hometown of Cornwall.
I continued to study mercury cycling in aquatic systems at
University of Ottawa where I completed a Master’s of Biology
with a specialization in Chemical and Environmental Toxicology
supervised by Dr. David Lean in 2005.
My thesis work focused on the relationship between methyl
mercury and organic matter at different size fractions in
wetlands, lakes and rivers. I currently work with the National
Guidelines and Standards Office at Environment Canada as an
Environmental Quality Guidelines Officer, developing an approach
to estimate site-specific natural background, teaching guidelines
courses and working on the Water Quality Indicator project.
I have been a SETAC member and/or event attendee for about
5 years now and am interested in the intersection of the
environmental science research and policy.
Away from the office I enjoy plucking banjos, guitars &
mandolins, singing with friends, listening to the Northern Pikes,
ice hockey and super-hero movies.
Derek
Hillis (Membership Coordinator)
No bio currently available
Roxana
Roshon (Secretary)
I have been involved in toxicology and the
Laurentian Chapter of SETAC for almost 20 years.
It has been interesting watching the Laurentian Chapter
grow and develop. Now,
I would like to take a more active role
in the Laurentian Chapter. During my career, I have specialized in
aquatic plant toxicity testing and the toxicity of pesticides,
radionuclides, air pollutants and metals to non-target organisms.
Currently, I am a senior study director with AquaTox (formerly
Stantec Consulting Ltd. and ESG International) in
Guelph
ON
, where I have been for over eight years.
At AquaTox, I have been involved in study design and
implementation of numerous GLP (Good Laboratory Practice) and
non-GLP projects involving toxicity determination of pest control
products and chemical substances upon non-target organisms.
Prior to my current position, I spent a year and a half
working for the Environmental Assessment Division of the Pest
Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA), Health
Canada
(
Ottawa
). I’ve been
involved with the international harmonization of non-target plant
testing. For my Ph.D.
thesis, I conducted aquatic toxicity tests with submersed aquatic
vascular plants in order to standardize a protocol for determining
the phytotoxicity of pesticides and other toxicants.
Before my Ph.D., I spent a year and a half examining the
potential environmental impacts of radionuclides for AECL in
Pinawa
,
MB
. Before that, I
spent a couple of years up in
Sudbury
working on my M.Sc., which examined the effects of copper, nickel
and aluminum on terrestrial plants.
My career in biological science and toxicology started at
the
University
of
Winnipeg
. It seems fitting that I assist the Laurentian Chapter with their
continued growth and development.
John Thelen
A member of SETAC since 1998, I have been part of
two Canadian Chapters (Laurentian and Quebec/Saint Laurent) and
two U.S. Chapters (Hudson-Delaware and Chesapeake-Potomac). From
2003-2005 I served as a board member of the Chesapeake-Potomac
Regional Chapter of SETAC. Currently, I work for Jacques Whitford
Limited as an Environmental Scientist and Aquatics Practice Leader
for their Ottawa office. My responsibilities include CEAA environmental
assessments, Fisheries Act HADD determinations, sediment quality
triad evaluations, and human and ecological risk assessments.
Cecilia Tolley
I
am currently employed at Intrinsik Environmental Sciences Inc.
(formerly Cantox) as an environmental risk analyst, where I am
involved in human health and ecological risk assessments for
contaminated sites and industrial emissions and effluents. Prior
to this, I completed a
masters degree in biology at the University of Ottawa, where my
research involved quantifying levels of persistent organic
pollutants in the terrestrial environment in the vicinity of a
smelter, and subsequent application of data to contaminant
guidelines for human health risk characterization.
The project involved liaison with the local community,
encompassing on-site environmental field work and on-going
progress reports to the local
people. I received my BSc joint in geography and environmental
science at McGill University, where I
worked at the McGill Center for Climate & Global Change
Research and conducted
research on the carbon sequestration potential of wetlands. I also
worked at Natural Resources Canada, The Canada Centre for Remote
Sensing, developing standards for geographic information. My
involvement with Laurentian SETAC began in September of 2003, when
I began attending pub nights and discovered these were a great way
to learn about current research in the toxicology and to meet
people involved in various aspects of the field. I enjoy my
involvement in the chapter and I look forward to contributing in
the future.
Paul Welsh (Treasurer)
I’ve
been a member of SETAC for most of my academic career (since the
early 1990’s). My roots are in Ontario: I have a MSc from the
University of Guelph (Gerry Mackie) and a PhD from the
University of Waterloo (George Dixon). After graduating, I
worked in Colorado first as an environmental consultant with
Stratus Consulting and then as an aquatic biologist with the
Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. In 2003, I
returned to Canada and have worked ever since at the Ontario
Ministry of the Environment. My current position is as a
Research Scientist in the Ecological Standards Section of
Standards Development Branch. I'm an applied scientist at heart
and have a wide range of experience with contaminated sites,
ecological risk assessment, and site-specific water quality
criteria development. Once back in Ontario, I rejoined
Laurentian SETAC to get involved with the local activities of
our society (e.g., short courses, dinner meetings, and the
annual general meeting and conference). I soon found myself as
the Treasurer and charged with keeping the books balanced. So
far, so good – the bills are paid on time and the cheques
don’t bounce. I look forward to working with you as we
continue to grow our society.
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