Emily Zacharias is a grade 11 student at W.C. Miller Collegiate and is concerned about the well being of our local watershed.

Through her grade 12 Biology class, she learned of an initiative by Ducks Unlimited called Caring for Our Watershed, where students create ideas on how to help protect the 

Zacharias says bat houses must be 10-12ft off the ground. Photo courtesy of Emily Zacharias watershed.

"One idea that stood out to me is the use of pesticides," said Zacharias. "I realized that when we use them, these pesticides are being taken from the ground and into storm drains and end up in our water."

"From there it can affect aquatic life and the quality of our drinking water, and it can hurt our watershed," she added.

After some research, Zacharias discovered that bats are useful when it comes to reducing the number of insects in an area. She found bats can eat up to 1,000 mosquitoes in a single hour, and up to about 8,000 insects a night.

"So my plan to help protect our watershed is to install bat houses in the Altona Park... in hopes that bats will prey upon insects and prevent the town from having to use as many pesticides."

She also spoke with Clint Derksen, Altona's Public Works Manager, to get an idea of what chemicals are used by the town and how costly they are. Her proposal states that the town uses three main chemicals to kill mosquitoes, all of

Zacharias says bat houses must be 10-12ft off the ground. Photo courtesy of Emily Zachariaswhich are costly products. For example, one of the chemicals is priced at $650 per 10 litres.

Zacharias presented her idea to Altona Town Council last month to get permission to install the bat houses, and council said they are on board with the project.

However, Zacharias noted the bat house project will only happen if she wins the Ducks Unlimited contest.

"Whoever wins the Ducks Unlimited project would receive a grant to carry out the project, and so I would not need any money from the town or from the school," she explained.

Zacharias said Ducks Unlimited will announce the winner sometime in February.

If her project is selected as the winner, Zacharias plans to install bat houses at the Altona Park. It is recommended they must be at least 10-12ft from the ground, face south or southeast, and be located in secluded areas.

Zacharias has located several buildings, light poles, and trees as possible areas to put the bat houses.

"I think this project is important because through my research I realized how much we depend and need our watershed," she said.

Zacharias told council where the bat houses could be located. Photo courtesy of Emily Zacharias