Who are Registered Applied Biologists and Technologists?

Applied biology professionals are individuals who perform applied biology as defined under the Applied Biologists Regulation.

"(1) In this regulation:

“Act” means the Professional Governance Act;

“biological science” includes botany, zoology, ecology, biochemistry and microbiology;

“biology objective” means the restoration, retention or enhancement of, or the mitigation of impacts on, the receiving environment, and the living organisms, habitats or processes within ecosystems in relation to

  1. conservation,
  2. protection, or
  3. wild terrestrial or aquatic species management;

“impact” includes

  1. the harming or removal of living organisms, including by gathering, collecting, hunting or angling,
  2. the effect of a contaminant or other circumstances affecting the environment, including light or noise, or
  3. the damage or loss of a habitat;

“practice of applied biology”, subject to subsection (2), means the provision of

  1. advice or services that
    1. are based on biological sciences, and
    2. relate to aquatic or terrestrial ecosystems or the living organisms, habitats or processes of those ecosystems, or
  2. advice or services that are ancillary to those described in paragraph (a).

“protective purposes” means the safety, health and welfare of the public, including the protection of the environment and the promotion of health and safety in the workplace

(2) The practice of applied biology does not include the provision of advice or services within the reserved practice of a registrant of another regulatory body...

Cont.

(4) Reserved practice

For the purposes of section 51 (1) (b) [reserved practice] of the Act, the practice of applied biology is a reserved practice that may only be carried out by or under the supervision of a registrant, if the practice relates to providing advice or another service for a biology objective that, having regard to the protective purposes, requires the experience or technical knowledge of a registered professional biologist or registered biology technologist."

                                        Applied Biologists Regulation, (2021)

The College of Applied Biologists recognizes and respects that Indigenous Traditional Knowledge and professional applied biology are complementary practices in managing and protecting natural resources.

College registrants who are Professional Biologists (RPBios) are involved in many areas of practice ranging from environmental assessments, wildlife and fisheries management, riparian area assessments, contaminated site assessments and the development of conservation plans in urban and rural environments.

College registrants who are Technologists (RBTechs) are involved in all aspects of data collection and the preparation of summary reports on biotic and abiotic data such as wildlife and fisheries abundance, vegetation composition and hydrological and soil parameters. 

College registrants who are Technicians (ABTs) assist Professional Biologists and Technologists in data collection, monitoring and assessments and are important registrants of the applied biology team. 

Registrants of the College of Applied Biologists are professionals who meet high standards for entry into the College and the right to the designation, RPBio, Registered Professional Biologist, RBTech, Registered Biology Technologist, RBTech or ABT,  Applied Biology Technician. They are the practitioners who take the theoretical knowledge of biology and apply it in a wide variety of fields to help us manage and protect our natural resources to the benefit of the public.