ALBERTA BIOLOGISTS' BIWEEKLY |
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BIOS BRIEF FEATURES THIS WEEK:
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AER lays Water Act charges (AER)
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Constructive Dismissal (Field Law)
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Professional discipline delays could prove costly (Field Law)
(Scroll down to visit BIOS BRIEF)
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CONFERENCE COUNTDOWN
The annual conference is 107 days away! The ASPB 2022 Fall Conference will be held November 30 - December 2 at the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise.
Jessica Koehli, who was appointed last week to join the ASPB administration team as Regulatory Coordinator, has also been assigned by the Executive Director to take the administrative lead for the conference. We are beginning to put together an agenda with speakers that include both federal and provincial government representatives, technical updates, and enough time to network with our friends and colleagues we haven’t seen since our last in- person conference!
Soon we will have our sponsorship package ready to present to our supporters. Check the Conference Website for updates, and if you are interested in presenting, volunteering, or being a sponsor, please contact Jessica HERE.
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Moving Mentorship Forward
In January 2022, the ASPB collaborated with the AAFMP (professional foresters) in a survey that looked at, among other things, the potential appeal of formal mentorship programs. There was sufficient interest expressed by survey respondents that ASPB administration began to seek out opportunities to move a mentorship program forward, and recognized that our professional colleagues at APEGA (engineers and geoscientists) were conducting some interesting mentorship programming. We approached AJ Conway, APEGA’s Mentoring and Networking Coordinator, who graciously invited our administration team to meet virtually with him last week to discuss APEGA’s approach.
The conversation focused on the two programs APEGA is currently offering its members. The first is an online webinar (presentation style) called "Mentoring & Networking: Back to Basics" which, considering the changes brought upon us by the pandemic, seemed particularly appropriate. The ASPB team has been invited to attend the next edition of this, later this month.
The second program APEGA has done recently is a "Speed Networking" session. Participants sign-on to a virtual platform and are separated into smaller groups to network for a limited time before being brought back into the main room, where they are reshuffled and put back into smaller virtual rooms to network with a new group. Conway reports that the program has been a success, partly because of the ease of virtual participation and partly because of the desire for reconnection that people are experiencing, following the pandemic. APEGA shared that they have hosted successful Speed Mentoring sessions before, and certainly the ASPB team views this approach as a promising one going forward. Says ASPB Mentoring Coordinator Jessica Koehli, “We are looking for solutions and opportunities for our registrants, and truly appreciate APEGA’s willingness to share their creativity with us.” For more information, you can reach out to Jessica HERE.
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NEW
on the
JOB BOARD
Senior Fisheries Biologist
Intermediate to Senior Environmental Scientist
Senior Wildlife Biologist - Team Lead
Biologist/Ecologist
Instructor
Intermediate Aquatic Biologist
Intermediate Biologist
Senior Biologist
Senior Wildlife Biologist
Intermediate Wildlife Biologist (Full-Time)
Avian Biologist
Aquatic & Fisheries Biologist
Project Scientist - Vegetation Ecologist ID #19971
Project Scientist - Vegetation Ecologist ID #19969
Lead Wildlife Biologist ID # 20554
Senior Vegetation Ecologist ID # 19293
Senior Wildlife Biologist ID #19806
Environmental Analyst
Fisheries & Aquatics Manager
Environmental Manager – Infrastructure
Aquatic Biologist
Wetland Ecologist/Authenticating Professional
FIND
INFORMATION ABOUT THESE POSITIONS
AND 25+ MORE
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NABC bird banding workshop
and certification in Belize
This ecotourism and learning event to be held between October 15-22 is hosted by Toucan Ridge Ecology and Education Society at the TREES Research Center in Belize’s Maya Mountains. For more information please go HERE or contact Nick Bartok, P Biol at nbartok@west-ulc.ca
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COLUMBIA MOUNTAINS TRAINING INSTITUTE
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NATURAL RESOURCES TRAINING GROUP
Technical Writing for Professionals – ONLINE – August 15-16, 2022
For the full calendar of upcoming courses the link is here:
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GRASSLAND RESTORATION FORUM
HANDS-ON COURSES AND EVENTS
The Grassland Restoration Forum’s hands-on courses and events for 2022 are listed below. You can check out their website for details and registration on all events HERE.
September 14th, 2022: How to Use Range Plant Community Guides and Recovery Strategies Manuals for Project and Reclamation Planning in Grasslands at Cassils Hall, near Brooks. This one-day, classroom-based course teaches participants how to use the Range Plant Community Guides and introduces the Recovery Strategies for Development in Native Grassland Manuals planning process. These tools will provide valuable context to interpret results of data collected for NEW AEP Conservation Assessments
September 15th, 2022: Hands on! Grassland Assessment Training at Antelope Creek Ranch, near Brooks. This one day, field-based course offers training on common plant identification, use of soils and landscape mapping (AGRASID and GVI) in relation to Alberta’s Range Plant Community Guides and Range Health Assessment Manuals.
October 4th, 2022: A Walking Tour of the Stavely Research Ranch – west of Stavely, Alberta in the Porcupine Hills. This tour will be led by Barry Adams, Rangeland Management Specialist - AEP (retired). A unique and valuable demonstration of long-term effects of land management on foothills fescue grassland ecosystems in southwest Alberta.
November 17th, 2022: Our Perennial Gathering! GRF Fall Information Session at Claresholm. The one day Fall Information Session gathers a variety of industry and grassland stakeholders to exchange current information on grassland restoration and conservation through a variety of presentations and mini updates.
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SALMTEC
SALMTEC has announced new courses and training programs:
Alberta Wetland Policy Basics Online Course
Alberta Soil Information Viewer Online Course
Understanding ACIMS Tools Online Course
Navigating the Alberta Soil Information Viewer Video Short (free)
Wetland Water Cycle Video Short (free)
Interactive classes comprise the final learning component of a Blended/Online course.
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AER lays five charges against N7 Energy Ltd.
According to a media release on August 9, 2022, the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) has laid charges against N7 Energy Ltd. (N7 Energy) following AER inspections. The company is facing one charge under the Water Act, two charges under the Water (Offences and Penalties) Regulation, and two charges under the Public Lands Act.
The Water Act charge alleges a failure to obtain an approval to do an activity under the Water Act; charges under the Water Regulation allege a failure to give notice to the Director prior to doing certain activities (as well as carrying out works at a watercourse crossing during a restricted activity period) and the Public Lands Act charges allege activities by the company that could have resulted in injury to the bed or shore of a waterbody and creating conditions likely to result in soil erosion on public lands.
All charges are alleged to have occurred near Swan Hills, between August 8 and 19, 2020.
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Constructive Dismissal:
Silent Acquiescence = Acceptance (Field Law)
The Alberta Court of Appeal confirmed the test for constructive dismissal and reaffirmed that the onus is on the employee to decide whether they accept the new terms of employment within a reasonable timeframe - in this case, ten business days. Read More
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Delay in professional discipline proceedings
may constitute an abuse of process (Field Law)
The Supreme Court of Canada has released a decision of critical importance to professional regulators, addressing when a delay in administrative proceedings constitutes an abuse of process. The decision reverses a Saskatchewan Court of Appeal ruling which was of grave concern to regulators, who saw it as "lowering the bar" to obtain a stay of proceedings based on delay. For a full discussion of this ruling and its positive impact for professional regulators like the ASPB, please click HERE.
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We post on Twitter every day...
here is a sample of our tweets over the last two weeks:
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Banner Image:
Honeybee at work (Photo by Mike Tate)
The ASPB regulates the professional practice of biology in the disciplines of Botany, Zoology, Environmental Biology and Microbiology, and all sub-disciplines below them. The ASPB is the only organization for biologists in Alberta that is registered under Provincial Legislation with a mandate to protect the interests of the public of Alberta. The society is governed by a Board of Directors elected by its registrants.
You are probably receiving this newsletter because you are an ASPB Registrant. This newsletter provides relevant information about professional development opportunities for our members and essential member-related society business; if you are a registered member of the Alberta Society of Professional Biologists, please DO NOT unsubscribe. For more information about the Society or to contact the administration, please visit the website: https://www.aspb.ab.ca
Opinions and general news published in this e-newsletter
do not necessarily reflect the opinions or policy of the Society or its Board of Directors.
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