GBA’s current Strategic Plan for 2017 – 2022 can be viewed here.
Plans, priorities and committee structures are reviewed and updated from time to time as required, and details can be found on the GBA website, as referenced in the Strategic Plan.
GBA AGM 2021
GBA held its 105th Annual General Meeting on April 10, 2021. Summaries and highlights of the wide range of issues and topics that we deal with on behalf of our members were presented and discussed. You can view the presentations here.
GBA continues to be active opposing threats to water quality in southern Georgian Bay from inadequate septic systems. On two significant projects, the sewage system for a 180 trailer park at Macey Bay, and a marine septage system at Brandy’s Cove Yachting Centre, Ontario’s Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP) ignored damning peer reviews and issued Environmental Certificates of Approval. The combination of MECP falling short on its duty to protect the environment, and what appears to be a biased process at the Land Planning Appeal Tribunal (LPAT) that favours developers, has led to both these projects being approved at LPAT. - See here for recent GBA input on these two developments: - GBA letter to Mayor Koetsier re Macey Bay - Oct 2 2021 GBA letter to LP
Georgian Bay Land Trust's Virtual LANDMARK Speaker Series on Saturday April 17 featured a free, interactive presentation by Andy Metelka entitled Aquatic and Wildlife on Blackstone Lake over time. Andy, GBA’s representative from Blackstone Lake Cottagers’ Association, is an acoustic engineer and an avid amateur photographer. If you missed it, his intimate photographs, audio recordings, and video of the wildlife above and below the surface of the lake will immerse you in nature. Enjoy his presentation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztasUxLUtN0&t=2s
April accumulated precipitation is between 55 and 77 percent of average for Lakes Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, whereas Lake Superior is at 135 percent of average. Water levels continue to be well above average and near record high levels. Lake Michigan-Huron continues to be below the level it was at this time last year – see first graph below. All the lakes are now lower than they were at this time last year. - From a month ago the water levels on Lakes Superior, Michigan-Huron, Erie and Ontario are up 4, 0, 0 and 4 inches respectively and Lake St Clair is down 1 inch. Lakes Superior, Michigan-Huron, St Clair, Erie & Ontario, are lower by 4, 15, 15, 17 & 28 inches, respectively, than they were at this time last year. Lakes Superior, Michigan-Huron, St Clair
The Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) kicked off the 2021 boating season on Georgian Bay, opening their seasonally operated Search and Rescue Lifeboat Stations in Tobermory and Meaford on April 9. The CCG Auxiliary units are also getting up and running but are not at full strength yet. The Inshore Rescue Boat (IRB) stations located at Brebeuf Island and Britt have begun training their crews and will be operational for the Victoria Day long weekend. You can contact the Coast Guard 24 hours a day/7 days a week by calling 1-800-267-7270 or via marine VHF radio use channel 16. GBA suggests saving this number in your phone in case of emergency. CCG also wants to remind everyone that the water remains very cold at this time of year and a greater level of care is necessary when boating. Wearin
On April 19, 2021 MPPs Ian Arthur and Jessica Bell introduced a Private Member’s Bill to further protect our waterways from microplastic pollution. Bill 279 will amend the Environmental Protection Act to prohibit the future sale of washing machines that are not equipped with microplastic filters. The most prevalent type of microplastic pollution comes in the form of microfibres which can be shed from synthetic clothing through washing. These contaminants infiltrate our water system and are harmful to drinking water, wildlife, and the environment. Georgian Bay Forever has been studying the impacts of microplastics in Georgian Bay and how these washing machine filters are critical to reducing microplastic pollution. Through their Divert and Capture research initiative volunteers who ins
Autumn Peltier, of the Wiikwemkoong First Nation on Manitoulin Island, has been recognized as an emerging green leader for her outstanding efforts to raise awareness around the importance of clean water. The Clean50 initiative recognizes people who are making a difference to Canada’s overall sustainability performance. Autumn, who is 16 years old, is the Anishinabek Nation Chief Water Protector, a position she took over in 2019 from her great-aunt and water activist Josephine Mandamin. Autumn is an influential advocate who uses her platform to educate and spread awareness about this valuable resource. Read more here.
Month to date accumulated precipitation is 55-71% of average for Lakes Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario, whereas Lake Superior is at 154% of average. Water levels continue to be well above average and near record high levels. Lake Michigan-Huron continues to be below the level it was at this time last year – see first graph below. All the lakes are now lower than they were at this time last year. - From a month ago the water levels on Lakes Superior, Michigan-Huron, St Clair, Erie and Ontario are up 4, 0, 2, 1 and 7 inches respectively. Lakes Superior, Michigan-Huron, St Clair, Erie & Ontario, are lower by 5, 14, 15, 17 & 28 inches, respectively, than they were at this time last year. Lakes Superior, Michigan-Huron, St Clair & Erie are 9, 22, 19, &
Last November GBA joined the Green Budget Coalition and advocated for increased funding to meet Canada’s commitments on protecting lands and inland and coastal waters. We are pleased to report that the collective efforts of Canada’s NGO community on this matter was successful. The 2021 federal budget contains the largest-ever Canadian investment in nature, earmarking $2.3 billion to conserve 1 million square kilometres of land over five years. Read more here. -
Water levels continue to be well above average and near record high levels. Lake Michigan-Huron continues to be below the level it was at this time last year – see first graph below. All the lakes are now lower than they were at this time last year. - From a month ago the water levels on Lakes Superior, Michigan-Huron, St Clair, Erie and Ontario are up 4, 1, 0, 2 and 5 inches respectively. Lakes Superior, Michigan-Huron, St Clair, Erie & Ontario, are lower by 5, 13, 13, 17 & 29 inches, respectively, than they were at this time last year. Lakes Superior, Michigan-Huron, St Clair & Erie are 9, 22, 19, & 16 inches, respectively, above their long term April average, whereas Lake Ontario is 11 inches below. All the lakes are now well below their April
Saturday April 10, 2021 GBA’s committee chairs presented details of action over the last year, strategy, and plans for the coming year to the presidents of the GBA associations for all of our ten primary committees. These were well received and can be found here: - GBA AGM April 10 2021 - Presentations slide deck - As always we welcome ideas from any GBA member on both current activities, and any issues that are not on our radar, but you feel that we should be addressing. -
Bill 257 passed despite vigorous opposition from farmers, municipalities, most relevant NGOs (including GBA, see here) and 1,000’s of Ontarians. It seems that the Ontario government is determined to jam through developments at the expense of the environment and is not listening. Read more here. -
Georgian Bay Land Trust (GBLT) continues their 2021 Virtual LANDMARK Speaker Series on Saturday April 17 at 10am featuring a free, interactive presentation by Andy Metelka entitled Aquatic and Wildlife on Blackstone Lake over time. Andy is GBA's representative from Blackstone Lake Cottagers' Association and he will immerse you in nature with his intimate photographs, audio recordings, and video of the wildlife above and below the surface of the lake he has called home for over 50 years. To register for this session and to see the complete speaker line up, click here. Be sure not to miss it! Check out a sampling of his photos and audio recordings below. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZdBBkVxp3M
