Max Blouw honoured

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The University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) has honoured president of Wilfrid Laurier University Max Blouw by naming a research centre after him. Blouw previously saved the centre from the federal government who wanted to destroy it.

โ€œI was overwhelmed and absolutely did not expect to be honoured that way,โ€ said Blouw, who served as vice-president of research at UNBC. โ€œThe recognition I received should have been shared by quite a number of people, but the fact that they chose me was very special.โ€

The Dr. Max Blouw Quesnel River Research Centre at Likely was unveiled Aug.17.

Blouw played a large role in rescuing the centre, then called the Quesnel River Research Centre, from near destruction and re-building it into a top-notch research facility.

โ€œIt started as a federal research lab, but the federal government determined that it wasnโ€™t meeting their needs and they were going to bulldoze it,โ€ said Blouw.

โ€œThe nearby community was outraged.โ€

The community of Likely approached UNBC, where Blouw served as the vice-president of research, asking the school to take over the centre and run it as a university research facility.

The site, which sits on 20 hectares of land, contains three buildings: concrete raceways to simulate stream beds, a classroom and laboratory building and a residence.

โ€œThe reason it is so ideal for research is because it is situated in the middle of a gradient of elevation between the Rocky Mountains and the Fraser River valley,โ€ said Blouw.

The research station is being used to study landscape ecology, and the centre has a number of chairs, including one focused in climate change.

โ€œI raised the money to keep this facility open, and it has become quite a success story,โ€ said Blouw.


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