ABOUT THE BELLEISLE WATERSHED

The Belleisle Watershed covers approximately 37,000 ha – from Pearsonville to Lower Kars on the Northern side and from Mercer Settlement to Kingston Corner on the Southern side. The Belleisle Bay itself (approximately 24 Km2) is an offshoot of the Saint John River but also has 20 named tributaries feeding into it.

Thirteen of these named tributaries have been assessed by the BWC since 2013 (underlined in the list). These stream assessments examine the water quality, fish habitat, and riparian (stream side) health of numerous sites along the watercourse for more information, please see our ETF Reports or the project section of the website.

Second Run Brook
First Run Brook
Urquharts Brook
Daley Brook
Vals Brook
Grant Brook
Spragg Brook – lower section only
Stewarton Brook
Belleisle Creek
Elm Brook
Ketchum Brook
Taylors Brook
Joliffs Brook
Irish Settlement Brook
Midland Brook
Reddin Brook
Peters Brook
Kingston Creek
Hamilton Brook (Glenburn)
Bates Brook

What is a Watershed?

A watershed is a topographic area where all the water within drains to a common point (ex: Belleisle Bay). The health of a watershed is very important because any impacted or poor quality water will eventually flow downstream to the common point and thus have an impact on it.

The Belleisle Bay is frequently used for recreational activities (swimming, boating, and fishing) by the residents and the many cottage owners that live within the rural communities that make up the watershed. Therefore the water quality of the bay is important to many community members to ensure these activities can continue for future generations.

The most notable industries within the watershed are agriculture and forestry. Both of these industries can have impacts to the water quality and fish habitat such as sedimentation and nutrient runoff. In 2017, the BWC began monitoring the water quality of the Belleisle Bay at 8 sites. Preliminary results from this monitoring revealed that the bay is in good standing.