ECOMETRIX - Key Persons

Alipio Abanto Florida is committed to upholding the reputation of engineering

Alireza Ghane has a passion for working with water When Alireza decided to study a degree in water resources engineering, all that was on his mind was making a difference.

Job Titles:

• Principal
• Senior Consultant

"At the time, there wasn't any grand plan," he says. "I'm not a pure outdoorsy guy or an environmentalist, but I'm practical. I enjoyed it, the people I worked with, the work I was doing, and it seemed like it would be an interesting career in the sciences to pursue." As one of Ecometrix's partners and part of the initial group who founded the company 19 years ago, Brian's story is linked to the business' beginnings. Today, his title is Principal and Senior Consultant. It was while working at Beak Environmental, which was then purchased by Stantec, that he met a group of like-minded visionaries who would go on to form Ecometrix. "It became obvious for a group of us that if we wanted to continue working together, we might need to change our circumstance," he says.   Brian Fraser is laying a strong foundation As one of Ecometrix's partners and part of the initial group who founded the company 19 years ago, Brian's story is linked to the business' beginnings.

Job Titles:

• Director of Assessment and Senior Environmental Scientist
• Senior Environmental Scientist

While finishing up her undergraduate degree at Trent University in analytical chemistry, Elizabeth Haack found herself drawn to the world of environmental sciences. "I did some environmental microbiology research in the summers with the Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, and in my fourth-year undergraduate thesis I did a study on mercury uptake in aquatic invertebrates," she says. "I actively searched for work and research opportunities based in the natural world." She went on to do a PhD in metal cycling in surface water bodies associated with mine tailings and continued to do a post-doctorate focused on metal-mineral-microbial interactions at the University of Notre Dame. Elizabeth then decided to pursue a career as an environmental consultant. Elizabeth began her career as a risk assessor with WorleyParsons where she was trained internally in risk assessment. She worked there as a human and ecological risk assessor for a decade with a focus on the resource, energy, and land development sectors. She was also part of modelling teams that developed site-wide water and chemical balance studies and geochemical fate and transport modelling. Our Director of Assessment and Senior Environmental Scientist says Ecometrix's people and projects make for a great workplace. READ THE ARTICLE

Gillian Dunlop is helping clients meet their regulatory requirements

Job Titles:

• an Environmental Scientist
• Environmental Scientist

"I always envisioned myself looking into a microscope. I was fascinated with observing a world we don't normally see. One of my first school trips was to the Baxter Conservation Area where we got to take samples of a pond and see all the different organisms under the microscope - I was hooked," she says. Combining her passions for molecular biology and zoology, Heather completed her Bachelor of Science in biochemistry at the University of Ottawa. She then moved to Australia for 10 years, where she completed her Master's degree, Ph.D., and first Postdoctoral Fellowship in marine molecular biology at James Cook University working on the Great Barrier Reef. "I was supposed to be in Australia for one-and-a-half years and it turned into a decade." It was during her time in Australia that she was first introduced to using DNA in the environment (eDNA) as a biomonitoring tool. eDNA, which can be shed from any organism to soils, sediments, and water, can be collected, isolated, and analyzed so species present can be better identified, monitored, and researched. In Australia, she helped develop assays for invasive sea squirts and crabs, hammerhead sharks, and sawfish. There are so many practical applications for this technology, and I found that it was much more rewarding to be able to use all my background in molecular biology and ecology to be able to have real world impact on how to conserve species. In June 2023, the paper for Heather's first eDNA project was published. It describes how the team developed an eDNA assay to detect the invasive Asian paddle crab, Charybdis japonica. Heather designed the assay, performed the experiments and analyzed the data, prepared figures, authored and reviewed drafts, and approved the final report. As well as already being adopted into the routine sampling regime for biosecurity surveillance in Western Australia, it was the project that set her on an eDNA-focused path. She found the eDNA work so fascinating that, when she returned home to Canada to undertake a Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Alberta, she applied for an Alberta Conservation Association (ACA) grant to develop an eDNA assay for detecting Arctic grayling, a fish species of special conservation concern. With a finger on the pulse of the latest eDNA technologies, our Environmental Scientist knows what it takes to put deep research into biomonitoring action. READ THE ARTICLE

Joe Tetreault's move from the farm to the director's table As the Associate Director of Environmental Monitoring and Technology, and a Senior Aquatic Biologist, Joe is the longest standing, non-founding member of Ecometrix.

Job Titles:

• Senior Hydrogeological Engineer

Jonathan Keizer is taking an integrated approach to water

With over 20 years of experience in water resources, Nava talks about his introduction to the industry and his plans for its future.

Rina Parker has engineering in her blood At first, our Director and Environmental Risk Assessment Specialist wanted nothing to do with engineering but is glad she changed her mind.