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Water quality monitoring
Find water quality data
The Yukon Water Data Catalogue provides information on water quality sampling locations, periods of record and contact information for a variety of water networks.
Other direct sources of water quality data include:
Water data networks
Read a description of water data networks operated or co-operated by the Government of Yukon.
Lake monitoring
Learn about Yukon lakes monitored by the national LakePulse network in 2019 (a one-time sampling event).
- Read the Yukon Lakes Summary Report
- View data from lakes in the Yukon River Watershed
- View data from lakes in the Mackenzie River Watershed
- View data from lakes in the Alsek River Watershed
Explore the LakePulse portal to view Yukon lake data interactively.
Long-term monitoring
Data on the water quality of several major Yukon rivers is available through the Pacific-Yukon network and the Government of Canada Open Data Portal.
Water licence data
You can access monthly and annual reports required under water licences through the Yukon Water Board’s WATERLINE. Long-term records of water licence data may also be available. Email [email protected] to inquire.
Baseline and research studies
Learn more about our recent water quality monitoring projects in Fishing Branch River.
Learn more about research on water in the Yukon in our project information sheets:
Water quality
- Water quality across Yukon
- Alsek River
- Klondike River
- Liard River
- Porcupine River
- South McQuesten River
Microplastics
- Yukon Microplastics in freshwater report: state of science review and sampling Program
- Microplastics in Yukon’s freshwater: pilot monitoring project - summary
- Microplastics in Yukon freshwater: 2021-2022 sampling report
Uranium and arsenic
- Uranium and arsenic in the baseline environment, Dawson Range, Yukon: February 2021 update
- Uranium and arsenic in the natural environment
Baseline assessments
Cumulative impacts
Yukon water quality standards
A variety of guidelines and regulatory-imposed standards are available to assess water quality data for protection of aquatic life or suitability of water to drink. Those commonly applied in the Yukon include:
- Yukon Guide for Developing Water Quality Objectives and Effluent Quality Standards for Quartz Mining Projects
- Implementation Plan for the Yukon Guide for Developing Water Quality Objectives and Effluent Quality Standards for Quartz Mining Projects
- Fact Sheet on the Yukon Guide for Developing Water Quality Objectives and Effluent Quality Standards
- Guidelines for developing adaptive management plans in Yukon: Water-related components of quartz mining projects
- Preferred practices for works affecting Yukon waters used to help developers comply with environmental regulations and avoid or mitigate the negative environmental impacts of development activities
- Yukon Contaminated Sites Regulation used to assess risks posed to human and environmental health in groundwater
- Canadian Environmental Quality Guidelines used to assess natural receiving environments
- BC Water Quality Guidelines used to assess natural receiving environments.
- Metal Mining Effluent Regulations: federally regulated standards for water released from a mine
- Federal Environmental Quality Guidelines: referencing health of aquatic life.
- Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality: Health Canada guidelines to define safe drinking water
- Guidelines for Canadian Recreational Water Quality: public health and safety of recreational waters
Water sampling techniques and protocols
You need to use proper water quality sampling techniques to:
- avoid sample contamination;
- maintain sample integrity through proper preserving; and
- sample from appropriate locations.
Some water sampling guides
- Water Sampling 101: a basic guide to the fundamentals of water quality sampling
- Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment Protocols Manual: a nationally recognized guide for water quality sampling
- American Society for Testing and Materials Standard Guide: a widely adopted protocol for sampling of groundwater wells
- For sampling groundwater wells specific to the contaminated sites regulations:
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Date modified: 2024-04-22
The Government of Yukon acknowledges that Indigenous Peoples have traditional territories throughout the Yukon and celebrates their role as stewards of the lands and waters and their ongoing connection to this place.