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Is Lake Simcoe healthy? Have your say on its future

Provincial survey on protection plan closes March 3

Yorkregion.com
Jan. 11, 2021

As part of the Lake Simcoe Protection Plan 10-year review, the province is turning to public to help shape the future of Lake Simcoe.

Local residents and stakeholders are encouraged to share their input on the Lake Simcoe Protection Plan through an online survey.

The protection plan is a roadmap to improve the lake’s water quality, reduce phosphorus pollutants, support sustainable fisheries and address the impacts of invasive species.

The survey asks whether residents are satisfied with the current policies listed in the protection plan, how the protection plan can be strengthened, as well as what new policy areas should be included.

In the fall, the town passed a resolution calling on the provincial government to outright cancel the Upper York Sewage Solutions project that would see about 47 million litres of treated wastewater pumped into Lake Simcoe daily.

Not to mention, the federal government’s recent investment of $16 million toward the region’s $40-million mechanical treatment facility to remove phosphorus run-off on a large scale near the Holland Marsh, which is a critical phosphorus discharge point into Lake Simcoe.

The online survey for the Lake Simcoe Protection Plan closes March 3.

The province is also hosting a virtual science event where residents and stakeholders can learn about the latest scientific and technical information from watershed experts.

For more information, visit www.ontario.ca.

You can also send comments and input to the province via lakesimcoe@ontario.ca.