Canada commits $1.5 M to Great Lakes cleanup.

The Honourable David Anderson, Minister of the Environment, announced funding of $1.5 million from the Great Lakes Sustainability Fund, to support 47 restoration projects in the Great Lakes Basin. The fund provides financial support to projects that improve the ecosystem health of Areas of Concern

"Restoring the health and sustaining the integrity of the Great Lakes Basin Ecosystem is a priority for the Government of Canada, and we're advancing through concrete action," said Minister Anderson. "We must continue to protect and restore this precious resource, which serves as the primary source of drinking water for the millions of Canadians who live, work, and play in the Great Lakes Basin. Building on our success in the full restoration of Collingwood Harbour and Severn Sound, we're working with our partners toward ensuring a healthy and sustainable future for the Great Lakes."

Great Lakes Sustainability Fund projects, involving partnership with local government and community groups, focus on a range of restoration activities. These include improved practices in the treatment of wastewater by products, restoration of habitat for fish and wildlife, and preventing agricultural run-off from flowing into waterways that empty into the Great Lakes.

The funding announced today is part of the Government of Canada's Great Lakes Sustainability Fund, first announced by Minister Anderson in July 2000. Through the fund, the Government of Canada is investing $30 million over five years to help restore the remaining Canadian Areas of Concern. This funding is a key component of the Government of Canada's Great Lakes Basin 2020 Action Plan which is an inter governmental partnership between Health Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Canadian Heritage, Transport Canada, Natural Resources Canada, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Public Works and Government Services Canada and Environment Canada.

Environment Canada